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About
Children's
Rescue
Mission
Teupasenti
2003 Trip |
Mission Trip to Honduras – June 2005
Becky - How do you describe a life that is so different from
ours…? Where people who have little, smile and say "Hola"
to complete strangers; where they welcome you with open arms, and
immediately become your friends. Upon arrival in Teupasenti, I was
immediately impressed with what Miguel had constructed as the
"Mission" and his future plans for the "Mission
House" that with adequate funding, will become the place for
doctors, nurses, teachers, and other missionaries visiting Teupasenti
to have a safe refuge in order to help the children.
When we met the children, although quiet, they were very friendly, and
stepped in to help us bag 5 lb. bags of beans and rice. They helped
without even being asked. We didn't speak much, a few words of Spanish
here and there, but we understood, and they understood, .we didn't
need words.
The children appeared to be well dressed, clean clothes, many
American, French, or Italian logos (the foretelling signs of donated
clothing), although the second day, you noticed that the same children
were wearing the same clothing once again, a little bit dirtier, and
on the third day, the same clothing once again. Little girls showed up
in beautiful hand sewn dresses, you knew their mothers had dressed
them up for the "Gringos" to see.
The children are small in stature, ¿Cuántos años tiene? (how old
are you?) we would ask to a small boy who appeared to be no older than
8 or nine, and often the answer would be "trece, catorce,
quince" - thirteen, fourteen, fifteen - and we were surprised.
Was this one effect of the lack of adequate nutrition?
How do you describe a world where barefoot children ask you for "chicletas"
(rubber flip-flops) that cost about 6 Honduran Limpira or 30 cents
American? Your heart is telling you to go and buy out the store and
start handing out chicletas to all the children… to open up your
pocketbook and empty out everything you have and give it to these
people…people who have nothing, from people who have so much more
than we really need. But Miguel, in all of his wisdom, let us know
that the Children's Rescue Mission is not about teaching the children
of Teupasenti to beg, but about teaching them to become part of the
mission, where they will learn a skill, where they can earn their own
shoes, their own clothing…where with their own will and God's love,
they will learn, and maybe go on to the University, and become
something. The Children's Rescue Mission is a place that gives these
children direction, and so much more than that, it gives them hope,
hope for a better life. How do you describe a world where children who
cannot afford uniforms and shoes, are not allowed to go to school.
There is no chance for these children, and little hope. Coming from a
world where school is mandatory, it is hard to imagine until you see
it for yourself at 7 a.m., children in white shirts and blue
pants/skirts - the prescribed uniform walking to school while other
children, shoeless in the street, watch them walk by, yearning for the
same opportunity.
How do you tell people about the two room clay dwellings, housing
several family members, where furniture, if there is any at all, may
consist of a single plastic chair, the "plastic lawn
furniture" we Americans discard without a thought. A male
dominated society, where girls at the very young age of 12 have babies
and are left to care for them, living with their own mothers who are
barely old enough to care for themselves and the other children.
Children come to the Mission to get a good meal, and as we watched,
children often ate with their hands; some children brought their own
plastic dish and cup in a plastic bag to use for their meal. I noticed
several children, attempting to be discreet, taking half or more of
their meal and putting it in their bag to take away with them; was it
for another sibling, a parent, or were they just saving it for later,
I wondered? Amazingly, these people who have so little, smiled, and
never once complained.
We often give money to causes and receive newsletters about all the
good that our money has brought; but to go and see first hand that a
Mission is being built, a farm is being developed, a sanitary
slaughter house is constructed, a Mission house is under construction,
that children are being fed, that they are learning, and they are
being taught about God's love and His gifts to us all. This is
Miguel's dream, and it has become our dream. We have seen the faces of
the hundreds of children who benefit from the little that we provide.
In America, we strive for prosperity…for outdoing our neighbor…for
having the most things. The people of Teupasenti struggle for food,
clean water, the health of their children & families…the basic
essentials of life.The difference about the Children's Rescue Mission
in Honduras is that we, the people of the First Congregational Church
of Kent Connecticut, are making a visible difference. We are affecting
these children's lives in more ways that we can say, in more ways than
I ever imagined, until I saw it for myself. I want to express my
heartfelt thanks to all of you.
The children and people of Teupasenti not only touched my heart ….
they left an imprint… on my heart…on my mind…on my conscience…imprints
that will last forever. With God's help and guidance, I am committed
to doing my part to help the children at the Children's Rescue
Mission.
Paxton - What I saw were kids who have nothing, but they smiled
anyway. They were very friendly kids and we spoke to them in a
combination of some Spanish words mixed with English. But somehow,
they understood, and somehow, we understood them. We formed
friendships. They became part of our lives, part of our hearts. We
played games with them, taught them things that we learn
automatically, helped them learn English, and how to make bracelets
from beads and colored embroidery thread. We handed out beans and rice
to the children. They held our hands, and now they hold our hearts. We
didn't want to leave. We want to go back.
On a visit to one of the satellite missions, there was this one Albino
boy, born without pigment, who couldn't play with the other kids
because he couldn't take his hands away from shielding his eyes from
the bright sun. Sawyer gave him her sunglasses so he could play with
the others. The sunglasses didn't really mean anything to her; after
all, she could always get another pair. But to this little boy, it
made a world of difference. He can now play games with the other kids.
When we think about it, it only costs fifty cents a day to feed one
child one meal for one week. That's $185 per year to feed one child. I
look at myself and realize that I spend more than this on clothes,
more than this to go to basketball camp, probably more than this on
candy and ice cream. I am 13 and I know that I can do something that I
want to do something to help these kids, that I will do something.
Sawyer - The kids loved having "un photo" taken. I
showed them how they could see their photo right away on the back of
my camera. This was very exciting for them, they'd probably never even
seen a photo of themselves.
saw kids, who didn't have much to eat, who ran around in the
dirty, dusty streets with no shoes, who would love to have just one
little ball to play with, who we handed out toothbrushes and
toothpaste to. These kids have so little….and we have so much.
Before visiting the Children's Rescue Mission, I spent my babysitting
money on clothes and other things I thought I needed. Our trip to
Honduras has made me see that there are so many more important things
in this world. My sister and I want to help these children. We fell in
love with the children of Teupasenti. So through babysitting, tasks,
and other jobs, we have decided that we too are going to join with my
mom and dad, and all of you, to feed one of these children a meal for
the whole year.
To know you have truly helped a child in need is one of the most
wonderful gifts that you can give. A small gift, given from the heart,
can change someone's life. I hope that if you haven't already, that
you too will join my mom, and dad and sister and me in changing
someone's life too.
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