Dear BTS friends and supporters,

Warm greetings on behalf of the Breaking the Silence Community Council. We are writing to you now because many of you will have received a letter from Tatamagouche Centre, indicating the need to pause programming and recognizing major financial challenges which may necessitate permanent closure of Tatamagouche Centre. We want to assure you that Breaking the Silence (BTS) has been fully informed of these issues.

BTS has, since its inception, been a part of Tatamagouche Centre and an expression of its commitment to personal and social transformation, and social and environmental justice. We are profoundly grateful that Tatamagouche Centre has supported BTS in a myriad of ways over the decades, including organizing delegations, sponsoring and hosting the Internship Program for over ten years, acting as employer of BTS staff, managing grants and donations from individuals and organizations, and much more. Tatamagouche Centre feels, in essence, like BTS’s home.

The BTS Community Council is now recognizing that we might need to create a new path forward in the coming months. After careful reflection, we are deeply committed to the continuation of BTS as a solidarity network with our Guatemalan partners. A strong and dynamic staff team anchors this commitment in actions in Guatemala and Canada. At our November 22nd-23rd Community Council meeting, we began to work on a transition process, if in case that is needed, either to find a new home with a Canada Revenue Agency-recognized charitable organization or to create our own Registered Society and apply for Canada Revenue Agency-recognized charitable status.

We want to assure you that, in the coming months, you can continue to support BTS through Tatamagouche Centre. Tatamagouche Centre has been transparent with BTS, keeping us fully informed and involved throughout this discussion. If Tatamagouche Centre makes the difficult but perhaps necessary decision to close permanently, that will take several months, which gives BTS time to make a transition. We will, of course, keep you informed of changes and how you may continue to support BTS.

We also know that the 2026 BTS Annual Meeting will be more important than ever, and we hope that you will plan to attend from June 26th-28th, location to be decided.

We thank you for your ongoing support which continues to be very much needed, as we maintain our solidarity with our Guatemalan partners. We have put a Transition Working Group in place and will keep you updated as we learn more.

In solidarity,
The Transition Team of the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Community Council