Greetings from Valle de Angeles, Honduras! After wrapping up in Cambodia, my squad took a 10 hour bus ride from Battambang to Bangkok, Thailand, where we had LDW (Leadership Development Weekend). We had lots of sessions and talks, and got to reflect on our two months in Cambodia, and recharge and prepare for the next two months. We also got to explore the city, which I loved. After an extremely filling, busy two days, we set out for Honduras. Our first transfer was in the Philippines, and then we flew to San Francisco, and then San Salvador. Our 4th flight brought us to Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and then we hopped in a bus and drove an hour to Valle de Angeles (the Valley of Angles). We were greeted by the most wonderful hosts, David and Scarleth (pronounced Scarlet). David is from Texas, and Scarleth is from Honduras. They met when they were 13, got married at 20, started their own mission organization called Hope at Hand. They have now been married 7 years, hosted almost 20 World Race teams, and made such a huge impact on this community. They are letting 24 people on our squad (4 teams) live in their home for the next 2 months. They even arranged for us to have cultural immersion classes every Monday morning with other missionaries in the area, and Scarleth graciously offered to give us Spanish lessons (I’m hoping to be semi-fluent by the time we leave Central America in three months). Their goal is not for us to accomplish a bunch of tasks, but experience the Lord and this country in a deep, authentic way. They’ve made us feel so at home, and we’re so blessed to have such amazing hosts and spiritual mentors.
While we’re here in Honduras, our ministry could look different day-to-day. A large part of our time will be spent at a special needs orphanage, which is a 15 minute walk from the house. They have about 75 residents there, from kids all the way to elderly. The orphanage came close to shutting down a couple years ago–it got so bad that they didn’t know where food would come from for the coming days. To the surrounding communities, it was eerie and haunted. Thankfully, a new director came in and has started to rebuild the program–it has come such a long way! While we’re at the orphanage, we’ll be painting the houses, working on landscape, and hopefully starting a gospel choir! (though I will be no help for this) This past week, we worked in the craft house and wrapped lots and lots of yarn. (They got a colossal shipment of material–most of which came unwound or was just unraveled). While it felt tedious at times, getting to see the residents use the yarn to make purses, rugs, decorations, and other things put purpose into some of the wrapping. (The goal is to have them sell their products in town. Though many of them can’t get real jobs, they want them to have a source of income, even if it’s small). In addition, I was able to bond with some of the women there, who taught me how to crochet. I can’t wait to continue building relationships there–it is such a special place, and I know we’ve been placed there for a reason.
Overall, I am loving Honduras. It is truly one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been. I absolutely love living in the mountains, where the weather is perfect and flowers grow everywhere the eye can see. While we are all packed very tightly into our house, it is so home-y, and it is filled with love and laughter. We spend many hours playing games, studying scripture, having heart-to-hearts, and warming our hands around campfires as we admire the stars. We are planning to have a huge feast on Thanksgiving, and I’m so grateful for hosts that go all-out to celebrate with us, even though Thanksgiving isn’t a thing down here. While the holidays do bring some homesickness, I know without a doubt that I’m right where God wants me. Please keep me and my squad in your prayers this week–that we’ll be filled with peace and comfort even as we’re away from family.
More updates coming soon! Thank you so much to all my prayer warriors back home…you are appreciated more than you know. Much love xoxo
