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WHAT
WE DO
We are a community-based nonprofit that has been supporting Indigenous Guatemalan-Maya and migrant families in Lake Worth Beach and surrounding areas for over 30 years. TGMC was founded by Father Frank O’Loughlin to assist Indigenous Guatemalan-Maya refugees fleeing genocide in Guatemala. These refugees arrived with few resources, significant language barriers, cultural differences, and legal challenges. TGMC stepped in to address their immediate needs and help them adapt to their new community. Today, our team of 40 serves more than 16,000 people annually from 28 countries, providing language support, social services, healthcare access, cultural preservation, direct aid, advocacy, and education.
PROGRAMS & PROJECTS.
Social
Services
The Outreach Team provides vital support for families in need, offering both immediate assistance and long-term solutions. We connect families to resources through community engagement, education, and language support. In addition to ongoing services, we focus on climate emergency preparedness, crisis response, and organize community events to promote health, wellness, and solidarity.
Escuelita Maya-
VPK & PreSchool
Since 1998, we’ve provided affordable after-school and summer care that supports students' physical, social, and emotional development through tutoring, homework help, and lessons on empathy. Each summer, children participate in activities like free swimming lessons, field trips, and a two-week camp led by SALTT students from Immaculata-La Salle High School. Our programs foster academic growth and engagement with the world around them.
Clínica
Maya
Clínica Maya helps uninsured families access and navigate essential healthcare services, including free or low-cost primary care, prenatal care, and emergency services. We provide education on chronic illness self-management to empower individuals to better care for themselves, alongside supporting Indigenous families with a community herbal medicine pantry, group therapy sessions (platícas or círculos), and other traditional healing practices.
Escuelita Maya-After School Care
Founded in 2011, our Escuelita Maya VPK and preschool programs help provide the Florida Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program to children in underserved communities. Most of our children speak Spanish or a Mayan language at home, and we teach them English while fostering pride in their home language and culture. Our culturally competent early childhood education prepares them for future academic success.
Food Pantry
ince the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many families in our community have faced job loss, illness, and food insecurity. In response, we opened a food pantry, distributing up to 8 tons of fresh produce and canned goods each week to those in need in Lake Worth Beach. Thanks to our volunteers, the Palm Beach County Food Bank, and generous donors, we provide food to over 1,000 households each month. The pantry is open every Tuesday and Friday from 10 AM to 1 PM.
ParentChild+
ParentChild+ uses an in-home approach, making it easier for underserved families facing poverty, language barriers, and transportation challenges to access high-quality early childhood education. Each family is paired with an early learning specialist who shares their cultural background and language. The program consists of half-hour visits twice a week over two years, scheduled at a time convenient for the family.
