Changing the story
At 58, the average American is starting to think about retirement, but instead of slowing down, Kathy Barthelmes �88 is launching a brand new career.聽
Last February, Barthelmes celebrated the official opening of , a nonprofit designed to empower teenagers aging out of orphanages in Guatemala. Located in the northeast corner of Guatemala City, Robles prepares young adults to reintegrate into society by providing them with a safe place to live, life skills classes, mentorship, and access to education and vocational training.
Barthelmes has worked tirelessly for the past two years to build Robles from the ground up, convening partners in the U.S. and Latin America and making fundraising calls from her Maryland dining room. She never worked for a nonprofit before, much less founded one or served as co-director, her current title, but she can point to numerous events in her own life攕ome as far back as 51动漫攖hat have made her success possible.聽
淢y personal and professional stories are really interconnected,� she said recently. 淚t definitely a bit strange, but I檓 starting to see the puzzle pieces connecting.�
A passion for service
Barthelmes was a math major at Boston College, but her most formative experiences were through PULSE, a service learning program that combines academics with community placements. She worked with incarcerated men in three prisons and later joined the PULSE council, where she mentored younger students going through the program.聽
淧ULSE just launched me,� she recalled. 淚 got really involved and in my senior year I finally took an intro to social work class, and that where I found my love of serving others.澛�
It was too late to change her major, but after graduation, Barthelmes decided to use volunteering as a way to test out different career paths. Her husband was in the military and the family moved nine times in the span of 15 years, eventually ending up in Maryland. Barthelmes was struggling with debilitating health issues, and enrolled in a Spanish course at a local community college at the suggestion of an occupational therapist. Shortly afterwards, she and her husband began sponsoring a 16-year-old orphan in Guatemala through their local church, and Barthelmes used her limited language skills to advocate for her to receive medical care for facial disfigurement in the U.S.聽
In 2018, Barthelmes and another congregant decided to increase their church support for the orphanage by cutting out the intermediary and leading mission trips to Guatemala instead. During one of their bi-annual visits, Barthelmes learned that most of the country 132 institutions, known as hogars, won檛 allow orphans to remain in their care after they turn 18 (in the U.S., states are required to assist older youth transitioning from foster care to independence, often providing services until the age of 21).
淭he rule of law is that they appear in front of a judge and are released as adults,� she said. 淭here are verified stories of teenagers who were handed two black bags filled with their personal belongings and just walked out. Immediately I檓 thinking, 榃hat happens to these teenagers after they leave?櫇聽
Barthelmes's desk in her Maryland dining room.
Back in Maryland, Barthelmes decided to answer her own question. She chose the plight of Guatemalan orphans as the subject of her thesis project at St. Mary College, where she檇 enrolled to continue her Spanish classes. Using the field work from her trips to create a small case study, she threw herself into researching the history and culture of Guatemala, its treatment of orphans, and the effects of globalization on its institutional model. After concluding that the government was failing to support youth after their release, she interviewed the leaders of nonprofits to find out what was working and what challenges remained. Finally, Barthelmes outlined the idea for a scalable program that would address the eight areas of need her research had identified, potentially changing the lives of the country 5,000 orphans and impacting generations to come. She called it Robles de Justicia, which means Oaks of Righteousness.聽
Bringing Robles to life
Even the most well-researched thesis paper can檛 launch a nonprofit from scratch, but a few chance encounters convinced Barthelmes that her vision had potential to succeed in the real world. The most consequential was a dinner meeting in 2023 with a Guatemalan couple named Wendy and Elvys Iboy, friends of missionaries in Barthelmes church who had adopted their teenage daughter from an orphanage and wanted to open a nonprofit for young adults in their country. They outlined the seven areas of their program to Barthelmes, who felt like she was hearing her own ideas recited back to her.
From left: Robles co-directors Elvys and Wendy Iboy, psychologist and Robles Board member Lily Morales, Barthelmes, and Robles Board member Emily Ortiz.
淭hey named seven of the eight areas that I檇 created in my thesis and I was shocked,� she recalled. 淚 told them my story, everyone crying, and we檙e thinking, 榃hat do we do about this?� We檙e perfect strangers with very little financial resources to bring to the table. We have heart, we have experience, we have time and talent, but we do not have treasure, as the church would say.澛�
As it happened, the Ilboys were at a crossroads of their own. The small Christian school that they had worked at for years, founded by Wendy father, was closing that summer, and the building would be vacant. After six months of conversation and reflection, they decided to partner with Barthelmes to make Robles a reality, using the old school building as a residential facility. The Ilboys would run day-to-day operations, and Barthelmes would figure out a way to pay for it.
The group launched Robles as a grassroots organization in Guatemala in December of 2024, and obtained nonprofit status for a U.S.-based fundraising arm last August. Over Zoom, Barthelmes and the Ilboys began bringing on partners: teachers, social workers, psychologists, and government employees. Through their contacts, they got approval to begin running mobile life skills training programs at four orphanages to help teenage girls prepare for successful reentry. Behind the scenes, Elvys and Wendy worked to convert the schoolhouse, located in a gated community in the northeast quadrant of the city, into a welcoming home for the program first participants.聽
淭he first vision for Robles is to open up a residential program for 10 young women,� said Barthelmes, 渁nd the second vision is to replicate the model, ideally throughout Guatemala, including young men. The third vision is to replicate it throughout Latin America.�
Volunteers gathered to paint the Robles residence in December.
The program gives participants a choice of pursuing education or vocational training, and teaches them crucial life skills like how to manage their finances, cook healthy meals, navigate public transportation, and maintain their personal safety. Within the Robles house, the founders hope to build a strong community where former orphans can feel safe and supported, with access to one-on-one mentoring, trauma support, and spiritual development if they choose.
Last February, Barthelmes flew to Guatemala for a kick-off celebration, attended by nearly 50 individuals from local organizations who had pledged their support to Robles by way of services, donations, or mentorship. Four local churches were represented, as well as national nonprofits like the Christian Alliance for Orphans. At the Ilboys� encouragement, Barthelmes spoke to the group about her own journey, describing the personal adversities she檇 faced and the inspiration that led her to devote herself to a cause thousands of miles away.聽
淚 asked them to try to think of a time in their life that been really difficult,� she recalled. 淲ho helped you? Was it medical professionals? A friend or mentor? Was there psychological help? Now take away that community. Take away those resources and try to envision doing it yourself. That what we檙e trying to tackle. It hard for these teenagers to change their story, but we believe that working together it can change.澛�