Trip Calendar

Host Information
Robin Cifuentes, Josh Hill; Retalhuleu Baptist Church

Robin, Mariela, and their children Marco, Timothy, and Robin Daniel are the founding missionaries of Retalhuleu Baptist Church. Over the past 12 years, the Cifuentes family has developed church ministries, including classes for in-depth Bible study, a feeding center for children, military chaplaincy, and a Bible institute. They serve an area of 150,000 people with both Mayan and Hispanic cultural influences. Their desire is to see more souls saved and church growth as more families follow Christ. Pastor Robin says they have friendly people, great food, and a warm tropical climate.

CONNECT WITH THEM

Follow Pastor Robin on Facebook, or visit their website at misionbautista.weebly.com.

Trip Description 

Guatemala is a Central American country of volcanoes, mountains, and beaches, with borders on both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.

The Mayan civilization extended through the Yucatán Peninsula, Honduras, and El Salvador, but Guatemala is regarded as its heartland. The Mayans dominated Guatemala from A.D. 250 to 900. The capital city of Tikal was home to 100,000 people, but it began to decline in A.D. 850 and was abandoned about 50 years later.

The national bird of Guatemala is the quetzal. The currency, also named the quetzal, ties into this history, as in Mayan times, quetzal feathers were used as currency.

Christianity is deeply influential in nearly all of Guatemalan society. The country, once dominated by Roman Catholicism (introduced by the Spanish during the colonial era), now includes a diverse array of Christian denominations, with Protestants making up nearly 40% of the population.

Guatemala has one of the highest infant mortality rates and one of the lowest life expectancies at birth in Latin America. With only 16,000 doctors for its 16 million people, Guatemala has about half the physicians it needs.

Many traditional foods in Guatemalan cuisine are based on Mayan traditions and feature corn, chilies, and black beans. Guatemala is also known for its street food, including small tamales called chuchitos, fried plantains, and tostadas with noodles.

Guatemala is touted as the birthplace of chocolate, which the Mayans revered. While you can find fine artisan chocolate in-country, locals prefer more traditional methods—the vast majority of cacao consumed in Guatemala is still drunk, not eaten.

For more country information, click here https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/guatemala/

Services Offered 

Our plan is to offer medical, optical, dental, and physical therapy care to this community. Every patient who receives care will hear the gospel from a member of this local church.

Note: At this time we are only considering applications for dental professionals, as well as approved groups.

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