Honduras 2009

At the beginning of 2009 there were plans for 5 different mission trips; however, the political unrest in Honduras changed those plans. The first trip included the youth from First Baptist – Frisco who ministered to the children of 4 different villages and helped with the foundation construction in the village of La Bomba (see note). The team for the second trip arrived 24 hours before the Honduran government was overthrown, which immediately changed the mission plans. While the initial plans were altered, the team did get to provide medical assistance to the small village located near the teams living accommodations. The remaining three trips had to be canceled as a result of the unrest. As the year ended, our prayers for Honduras were answered and the government and country have begun to stabilize with a new democratic government in place and the country returning to normal.

The village of La Bomba (la boom-ba) was formed 12 years ago to satisfy the need to provide workers to the banana plantations located in the valley outside of San Manuel. Translated "the pump", the village was so named because of its location in the mountains above the River Ula, which is the life blood of the Sula Valley. The village is very poor and only has a total 127 children. Because of the severe flooding that occurred in 2008, the banana plantations where the men worked to earn a living were devastated. This devastation has forced the men of La Bomba to leave the village for days on end in order to provide for their families. The village currently has one school building which provides education to 12 kindergarten children. The remaining children have to travel miles down the road to the village of Santiago in order to attend school. This travel occurs on public transportation at a cost to the student and in many cases, due to the cost, the children have to rely upon remote education that is transmitted on the radio.

The village is intent on building their second school building; however, because the men of the village have to leave for extended days in order to earn a living, the women and children have taken the responsibility to build the second school building. Our efforts were focused on providing workers and the funds that will help construct the second school room that will allow the children of La Bomba to go to school in their own village.