On-going Contact Programs and Services

Nuevas Familias is all about helping adoptive families foster and maintain connections with the birth families of their Guatemalan-born children.  It is incredibly challenging to navigate the language, cultural, economic and geographical differences between these two groups. Each family situation is as unique as the people who make up those families. 

Our approach is to be as flexible as possible to allow families to connect within a structured framework of visits which allows us to serve as many families as possible.

We currently offer the following programs only to adoptive families who have done a search via Nuevas Familias/Fide:

Family Visits

We visit each area of Guatemala two times a year.  During these visits we meet personally with each birth family and get an update on their lives, including photos.  At each visit we deliver a basket of supplies along with a letter and photo from the adoptive family.

Adoptive families can choose to participate in either one or both of the visits made each year.

Here is our current visit schedule:

January and June - Zone 1: Suchitepéquez, San Marcos, Huehuetenango, Quiché, Xela.

February and July - Zone 2: Escuintla, Colindancias, Sta. Rosa

March and August - Zone 3: Guatemala City, Outlying areas and Chimaltenango.

April and September - Zone 4: Chiquimula, Puerto Barrios, Peten

May and October - Zone 5: Alta Verapaz, Izabal, Jalapa, Jutiapa, Zacapa, Progreso

Adoptive families may send a letter (which we will translate) and up to five photos for each visit.  These are due by the 15th of the month prior to the visit month.

Christmas Baskets

Each December Christmas baskets are delivered to each sponsored family at a central location in their area of the country.  The baskets contain basic food and household supplies as well as school supplies for the coming school year.

Adoptive families may send a letter (in Spanish) and up to five photos for each visit.  These are due by October 15th.

Emergency/Ad hoc check-ins 

We often get requests from adoptive families to check-in on their birth family after they read about an earthquake, flood or other situation which occurred in the area where their family lives.  Nuevas Familias proactively keeps tab on families in situations such as this and we are always happy to make a phone call on request to offer added reassurance.

We are also happy to make calls to pass along information on bank transfers or special news that adoptive family wishes to share.