In Memory of Vladimir Raphael “Rapha” Melgar Gramajo
November 7, 2000 – January 11, 2026
Rapha grew up as part of the Guatemala Village Health family in Santiago Sacatepéquez, home to GVH’s Training and Development Center. His father, Vlady, serves as GVH’s Director of Projects, and his older brother, Santy, leads pharmacy and logistics. Like the rest of his family, Rapha gave generously of his time and talents to GVH and to the communities we serve.
Rapha was one of GVH’s most dedicated volunteers. He helped build both the pharmacy and Training and Development Center in Santiago Sacatepéquez, as well as the clinic in Chinachabilchoch. He was always willing to lend a hand wherever one was needed—whether that meant working on a construction project, making an airport run to pick up members of the U.S. team, or simply flashing his beautiful smile and brightening the day of everyone around him.
Rapha helping in one of the gardens in our permaculture program
Rapha helping build our pharmacy in Santiago
Rapha died suddenly in January 2026, leaving an enormous hole in the hearts of his family and the GVH community. We miss his warmth, his smile, his generosity, and his willingness to pitch in however he could. But that spirit of service lives on in the people who knew and loved him and in the places he helped build.
During our July 2026 jornada, the GVH community gathered in Chinachabilchoch to honor Rapha and dedicate the clinic he helped build to his memory. A plaque bearing his name will hang there—a lasting reminder of Rapha and of the many ways his life and his generous spirit became part of GVH.
Rapha volunteering in the villages as a young teenager
Rapha with his dad, Vladimir, at graduation