Petro Gonalez is an 83-year old coffee farmer who has been working in the fields since the day he could walk- with no shoes. Gonzalez represents the generation of coffee farmers who wish to maintain their culture of hard work and family. In this picture, Gonzalez is sitting with us on the ground, using a bag as a cushion, under a grouping of coffee trees. He tells us this is simply the way of life for him. He waves hello as a fellow farmer drives by. | Photo by Ella Roberts

Aura Marina sells flowers outside of her doorway on the streets of the pueblo of San Juan del Obispo. She recently lost her job as a waitress to covid and she knew flowers would be her best second chance at making any kind of income to support her family. Specifically, her son, Estuardo who is dsiabled and confined to a wheelchair. The moment we met Aura on the street, I knew she had an important story to tell. She waited until the end of our entire first day to tell us about her son and everything she has had to sacrifice to make a life for the two of them. Her honesty and kindness is something I will never forget and I cherish every moment I spent with Aura. | Photo by Ella Roberts

After checking off the most favored item on my bucket list, to harvest coffee fruit that I would later drink coffee from, Scott, Ella and I embarked on the descent of Volcán Agua to return home for the day. Coffee farmers begin leaving us in the dust as their trucks cruise by. After glancing back, I realized that Agua was in its usual and glorious late afternoon light. This was a moment to never forget. | Photo by Savannah Heeren

One press of a button on my camera captured the years of determination that produced the resilience we admire in Estuardo today. I loved the opportunity to photograph a subject of such great skill and tenacity with the beauty of Guatemala landscape in the background. | Photo by Savannah Heeren

| Photo by Talia McWright

| Photo by Talia McWright

This is a photo of Jakelin and her brother Kevin Marleny walking into school for orientation. I took this photo before we knew they would be main characters. I was just sitting on the balcony with my camera trying to capture the excitement of the first day of school for these students. Later when I was sitting in a coffee shop looking over the photos I realized I had captured that excitement in the siblings we ended up talking to for a few hours. | Photo by Molly Wilson

The Cathedral in Santa María de Jesus is one of the first places we saw when we visited the pueblo. It caught all our attention because it is so colorful. Later, when we hadn't just climbed a volcano, we went back to attend a mass and go to the school that was attached. | Photo by Molly Wilson

I chose this photograph because it does a good job of taking me back to Guatemala. People in this shot are just details in the distance. For me, they really make it great. The lady standing outside what is likely a tienda, the man on the motorcycle and the person sitting on top of the truck remind me of walking through the streets of Guatemala. Agua Volcano towering over everything is what brings all of the details of the photo together. | Photo by Clark Frederickson

I chose this photograph because the truck has so much character. The color, chipped paint, bumper stickers and the one open water jug make a simple picture of a car eye-catching. My group all told me to snap a photo of it as it was driving by and I scrambled to get my camera ready. I am really happy with how it turned out. This photo represents an important part of our story of water in the Antigua area. It was taken in a village, San Pedro Las Huertas, just outside of Antigua. We were walking to meet with the man who filters the water for the village. | Photo by Clark Frederickson

My team had the honor of experiencing a small Mayan fire ritual performed by Silvia Mansilla. Everything in the photo is an important part of the ritual. She explained that “in a ritual, everything is significant.” | Photo by Soraya Keiser

César Taj hangs out the open door of his father’s camioneta, bus, as it whips around bends on the way to Guatemala City. Taj is his father’s brocha, meaning he helps advertise where the bus is going, collects the bus fare and helps people board. It was such a cool experience following around Taj and his father, Checha, for the day and seeing the chaos that is being a bus driver in the busiest city in Guatemala. | Photo by Soraya Keiser

This photo is special to me because it was the moment that I felt that I could take a good ,picture. Until this point, I struggled with imposter-like syndrome being on a design team without a background in photography. After this shot, I felt myself break through a massive milestone in my career, and because of that, I continue to hold this photo close to my heart. | Photo by Davis McElmurry

This photo was not taken by me but by Oscar, a little boy who held my camera with great delight. He took the camera and took a picture of his sister, who was too nervous about getting closer to the strange foreign visitors. This picture shows such an exhausted and blank expression. The fact that such a small child holds that in their eyes just strikes a nerve in my heart. I wish I could have been the one to take this photo, but it’s fitting that the one who saw this and captured it was her brother. | Photo by Davis McElmurry

The colorful walls and friendly faces of Colegio Angelitos de Dios, a private primary school in Santa María de Jesus, welcome students and parents in-person for the first time in two years. This new, hybrid learning style allows students to interact with their teachers and classmates beyond WhatsApp communication. | Photo by Gina Miller

Niños and niñas run around the heart of Santa María de Jesus, as their mothers spend an eight-hour work day washing clothes in the puebla’s local well. Many families cannot afford to send their children to school, and need them to help provide for the family by working in the fields or washing clothes in the well. | Photo by Gina Miller

Eight-year-old Diego Hernandez sits by the well in Santa Maria de Jesus, a pueblo twenty-five minutes from Antigua, Guatemala. Diego spends his weekdays playing at the well while his mother and brother wash clothing for other families in pueblo. | Photo by Morgan Day

Calle de Hermano Pedro is a familiar street for our Textura team, as it was the road into the center of Antigua. This photo was taken on the first full day of our trip, before I knew how often we would walk this road. It became a lifeline of sorts, the vein connecting us from Quinta de Las Flores to the heart of the city. | Photo by Morgan Day

This is an environmental photo of self-taught artist Agust Julajuj, 36, of Guatemala City. He works out of his family store, which also serves as his home and studio, and provides for his three nephews and two nieces. He carries a pencil with him at all times in case he needs to capture something beautiful. Spending time with Agust and his family helped me become more aware of the struggles of the Guatemalan artist– from painted-over murals to overpriced art school tuition, artists do not have much of an outlet for affordable expression. Despite all of this, Agust remains dedicated to both his craft and his family, a constant inspiration and reminder that human relationships always prevail. | Photo by Rachel Blood

In the Guatemalan village of San Juan de Obispo, Brian, Luis and Ángel play fútbol in front of the church. My team wasn’t in the pueblo for any particular story – our bus driver, Francisco, had taken us on a tour of the local towns and this just so happened to be a stop. Playing soccer with these boys was genuinely one of my favorite parts of my Textura experience. Although I can barely speak Spanish, we were able to have fun together and understand one another. It was a lovely reminder of the simple joy of human connection. | Photo by Rachel Blood

One of the guides that leads groups of tourists and adventurers up the volcano Pacaya sat on the top of the mountain to eat his lunch. These Guides make this hike multiple times a day and do it with a smile on their faces. | Photo by Bryson Rosell

Silvia Mansilla allowed my team and I to participate in a small fire ritual. She let us follow her around the markets as she collected the necessary supplies and performed the ritual in a small patio behind her house. It was so interesting to see a different expression of spirituality that feels so distant from us in Minnesota. | Photo by Bryson Rosell

With her many cousins, brothers, and sisters, Lady peeks out of her home boldly to giggle and tease students as they walk the streets of Santa Maria de Jesus. Making friends with the people who cross her streets, Lady waves goodbye as students leave the pueblo. 

This photo is special to me because of its subject. Lady quickly gave us a window into her life. She showed us her home and her family. She teased us and giggled with us. When we left on the bus she waved goodbye. As we entered her life very briefly taking pictures and buzzing around, she was authentically herself and let down her walls. I think I’d like to be more like Lady and I think we all have something to learn from her. | Photo by Hannah Hobus

In 2018, Volcan de Fuego erupted leaving destruction in the town of El Rodeo. Rosa, a resident of El Rodeo, lived through the eruption and saw the death and destruction that it caused. Standing in front of the surrounding volcanos in the area, Rosa tells of the friends that she lost and the struggle to rebuild after Fuego.

This photo is special to me because of its subject. Rosa with her bottle of pepsi sat and chatted with us. She opened up to us about her experience, her pain from the explosion. She waved to people as they passed the dirt road and we quietly listened because of the language barrier. She was raw, kind, and open. I appreciate that about her and I will remember her from thousands of miles away. | Photo by Hannah Hobus

The wedding procession, started by a young boy holding the Bible with the flower girls behind him, waited outside of the Evangelical church for their cue to walk down the aisle. Kenneth, seven, was the Bible boy for the day’s special occasion. | Photo by Makenzi Johnson

A wedding party, family and guests walk across the town of Santa María de Jesús, Jan. 8, to the church for a small, Evangelical wedding. The flower girls carry baskets filled with flower petals and a sign reading “here comes my beautiful girlfriend” as they slowly make their way to the church. | Photo by Makenzi Johnson