A Wonderful Wedding Gift: Helping Communities In Honduras

Chris Penson used to work for World Vision, but left to travel with her husband and see more of the world. As part of their journey, they stopped in to see some of the projects they are supporting in Honduras, as Chris explains in her blog:

I have to admit, I had dipped my toe into the sponsorship experience rather tentatively, conscious that it was a way of supporting a whole community and not wanting to get emotionally attached to one child. Writing letters and receiving cards and updates from Nubia for three years had given me a little glimpse into her family’s day-to-day life in the highlands of western Honduras but I didn’t feel I really knew them or their circumstances particularly well.

When Anthony and I got married in May last year (by chance, the wedding fell on the same date as Nubia’s birthday!) we decided that instead of a traditional wedding gift list we would ask friends and family to support World Vision’s work in Latin America, an area of the world close to our hearts. We received a wonderful response and decided to take the opportunity this winter to visit Nubia, who is now 12, and see the kind of work World Vision is doing in communities in Honduras.

First — nervous — impressions

Waking up on the rainy morning of the visit, I was nervous about meeting Nubia and her parents for the first time, but I needn’t have been because as soon as we walked into the World Vision office and I recognised her from her photos, I felt as though I already knew her!

We all smiled shyly at each other and shook each other’s hands. Nubia and her parents, Marco Antonio and Gladys, had travelled for five hours to get to the office, which was in a town they had never visited before, so they were understandably tired and looked nervous too.

With the help of Randolfo from World Vision, after swapping stories of bumpy bus journeys in this part of the country (often with upwards of 22 people crammed into buses designed for 15!) and joking about my appalling lack of football knowledge (they had to make do with Anthony’s Crystal Palace banter!) we were all smiling and laughing and the ice had been broken.

Talking on the road

On the journey from the office to one of the nearby communities (which we were visiting to get an idea of the kind of work our wedding gift list had helped to support), we all had the opportunity to chat some more and I enjoyed hearing Nubia explain about her family, home and school and her hopes for the future.

She would like to become a school teacher, which involves six more years of study, and I found this very encouraging both for her as an individual and for the community because currently all six age-groups in the school have to share just two teachers.

As excited as I was to find out more about her, I tried hard not to bombard Nubia with too many questions, as she appeared to be so shy and quiet. I remembered that I had been similarly shy about meeting new people when I was twelve years old!

In the torrential rain Randolfo drove us high up into the mountains, weaving between the deep potholes and avoiding the steep drop-offs. We slid around dramatically in the thick, orange mud and realised that with two more months still left of the rainy season this was one of the many rural communities which regularly become cut off to vehicles from November to January.

The air was fresh, still and cool and we enjoyed magnificent views of varying shades of green tree canopies blanketing the steep sides of the valley.

It was also interesting to see banana trees and maize growing beside the road and on the mountains. Nubia’s father said he tends crops on similarly steep mountainsides where they live, and I was impressed.

The challenges were clear to see

When we arrived in the community, the challenges of sanitation, access to clean water and materials for building houses which can withstand the heavy rain were clear to see.

A member of the community called Aquileo explained to us how he and his four children used to live in a very basic shelter until World Vision started to work with him and his neighbours to build more durable structures.

That was the start of an Area Development Programme (ADP) and the new housing was followed up with long-term work on children’s rights, education, family relationships, values, livelihoods, nutrition and sanitation.

It was amazing to have the opportunity to hear directly from Aquileo how he felt the future of his children - and the whole community - had been impacted positively.

He introduced us to his daughter, Jenny, who has been a community volunteer for the last few years. She receives regular training from World Vision staff and helps build awareness among her neighbours of good sanitation and nutrition practices.

Jenny took us to meet a family whose son had recovered from malnutrition with the help of the club World Vision set up for mums of under-5s. By meeting monthly to weigh their babies and learn about things they can do to improve their family’s diet, Lucia and many other mums have seen their children’s health improve.

As Aquileo explained, they have seen the knock-on effect of eliminating malnutrition in their community in the children’s improved capacity to learn at school.

Lucia’s husband, Antolino, was keen to show us his patch of crops growing outside their house. He has been instrumental in helping his neighbours gain access to markets for selling excess crops. It was really inspiring to meet a family which is so enthusiastic and active in helping their community to thrive.

Over too quickly

After our visit to the ADP, we had a lovely lunch with Nubia, her parents and the World Vision staff. It featured all the typical local food and drink: rice, beans, chicken, soup, plantain and horchata made from rice.

It was a great opportunity to get to know each other better and to exchange gifts – Nubia and Gladys had spent several weeks sewing our gifts and we were very touched.

The combination of meeting Nubia, Gladys and Marco Antonio, and seeing first-hand the kind of support World Vision is giving to a community similar to theirs, was a fantastic opportunity to feel more connected to them as individuals and to their community.

So even though I was tentative about sponsorship at first, and was nervous about meeting Nubia and her parents for the first time, I came away with very fond memories (including the two Antonios having a laugh trying on each other’s hats!) and a much closer sense of connection to the family and to their community as a whole.

It felt like the day was over too quickly, and it was very hard to say goodbye! We’re looking forward to exchanging letters even more now.

How would you feel about travelling to see your spsonored child? Excited, nervous, thrilled? All of the above? Let us know on our Facebook page.