This is the first in our Beneficiary Spotlight series, where we introduce you to the organizations and causes that your solar project helps support. When you go solar with Jackie, you are not just saving on energy – you are creating impact that reaches far beyond your roof.
A Volleyball Game That Changed Everything
In 1990, Jackie Kelly was a high school student when a group of children from The GOD’S CHILD Project visited her school. They played volleyball together and practiced their Spanish. Those kids were from Antigua, Guatemala – orphaned, abandoned, and living in poverty. But they were full of joy, full of hope, and full of gratitude for the people who supported them.
That afternoon planted a seed in Jackie that has grown for more than three decades. She has supported The GOD’S CHILD Project ever since – financially, through advocacy, and now through her solar energy consulting business. A portion of every solar project Jackie completes goes directly toward funding solar energy for the GOD’S CHILD orphanage and hospital in Guatemala.
But who exactly is The GOD’S CHILD Project, and what do they do? Let us take you inside one of the most remarkable humanitarian organizations you have probably never heard of.
Founded by One Man With a Mission
The GOD’S CHILD Project was founded in 1991 by Patrick Atkinson, a social worker from Bismarck, North Dakota who traveled to Guatemala and saw firsthand the devastating poverty affecting children there. What started as one man’s commitment to helping a handful of kids has grown into an organization that now cares for and educates more than 5,000 orphaned, abandoned, and poverty-stricken children, widows, and families.
GCP operates primarily in Guatemala through their local partner, Asociacion Nuestros Ahijados (“Our Godchildren”). They are non-denominational and serve families regardless of religion, ethnicity, or background. For 35 years, they have been doing the quiet, unglamorous work of saving lives – one child at a time.
The Four Pillars
Everything The GOD’S CHILD Project does is built around four core programs:
1. Education: GCP runs K-12 schools, vocational training centers, and scholarship programs in Guatemala. Education is the most powerful tool for breaking the cycle of poverty, and GCP provides it free of charge to children who would otherwise have no access to schooling.
2. Healthcare: The flagship medical facility is the Casa Jackson Hospital for Malnourished Children in Antigua, Guatemala. This hospital treats critically ill children suffering from severe malnutrition – a condition that kills more children under five than any other cause in Guatemala. The hospital provides emergency medical care, nutritional rehabilitation, and long-term follow-up to ensure each child recovers fully.
3. Housing: GCP builds safe, permanent homes for families who would otherwise live in makeshift shelters without clean water, sanitation, or protection from the elements. These are not temporary fixes – they are real houses that give families stability and dignity.
4. Sustainable Development: GCP operates micro-enterprise programs, agricultural training, and community development initiatives that create long-term economic self-sufficiency. The goal is not just to help people survive, but to give them the tools to build independent, prosperous lives.
See It for Yourself
Words only go so far. These videos show the real facilities, the real children, and the real impact of The GOD’S CHILD Project.
The Four Pillars of The GOD’S CHILD Project
This professionally produced video walks through all four of GCP’s core programs, showing their K-12 schools, Casa Jackson Hospital, housing construction, and sustainable development work in action.
A Tour of the Facilities in Guatemala
Take a virtual tour of the actual clinics, classrooms, and living spaces where these children spend their days. This is where your solar investment makes a difference.
Volunteer Teams Making a Hands-On Difference
GCP’s ServiceTeam program brings volunteers from around the world to work alongside the children and families in Guatemala – building homes, visiting schools, and working in the hospital.
A Holiday Message from the Children
A heartwarming message directly from the children of The GOD’S CHILD Project to their supporters around the world. This is why Jackie does what she does.
Why Solar + The GOD’S CHILD Project
Jackie’s dream is to raise enough through her solar consulting work to fund a complete solar installation at the GOD’S CHILD orphanage and Casa Jackson Hospital in Antigua, Guatemala. Reliable electricity is not a convenience there – it is a matter of life and death. When the power goes out (which happens frequently), medical equipment stops working, refrigerated medicines spoil, and children in critical condition lose access to the care keeping them alive.
Solar panels with battery storage would give the orphanage and hospital energy independence – clean, reliable power that does not depend on Guatemala’s fragile electrical grid. Every solar project Jackie completes in Maryland brings her one step closer to making that a reality.
Every panel on your roof brings us closer to panels on theirs.
How You Can Help
Go solar with Jackie: The simplest way to support this mission is to let Jackie help you explore your solar options. A portion of every completed project goes directly to The GOD’S CHILD Project. Schedule a free consultation here.
Donate directly: You can also support The GOD’S CHILD Project directly at godschild.org/donate.
Learn more: Visit godschild.org to read about their programs, sponsor a child, or sign up for a volunteer ServiceTeam trip to Guatemala.
Stay tuned for our next Beneficiary Spotlight. And if your organization is doing important work in the community and would like to be featured, reach out to Jackie.
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