Heart4Honduras Inc.

Julie read an article this morning that really spoke to our hearts - we immediately knew it was important to share

H4H follows a similar philosophy as mentioned in this article : how can we help Honduran children help themselves, as opposed to blindly giving without taking a moment to understand its ramifications.

We value a sustainable approach to giving, and to ensuring the lasting effect of our efforts once our plane takes off back to the United States. While the language in this article may feel a bit negative, we think it does a great job to show that giving has consequences - even if from the bottom of our hearts we are trying to do the right thing!

We are not a profitable business, each member pays out of pocket to travel for this work and all funds raised are used to directly implement programs to help Hondurans create businesses, complete their education and provide clean drinking water. Donations that are accepted like children’s clothes, shoes and books are done so carefully and methodically so that we can be mindful of stimulating Honduras’ own local business ventures and economy.

Importantly - when there is no longer a need, we no longer provide.

This text is a well articulated example of why as an organization we value monetary donations, so that we can purchase goods within their own country and distribute them based on need 💛♥️

read more : https://karmacolonialism.org/toms-shoes-needs-needy-children/

We’re headed back to Honduras! ♥️
In a few short weeks we will be back with our favorite people, this time with a focus on giving to the children of San Antonio, a community we know and love.

As an organization we focus on giving in a way that is sustainable and beneficial exclusively to the community and their country - this typically means we prefer to purchase items such as food and medicine while we’re there to help stimulate their own economy, and to say thank you to their hard working local farmers.

Unfortunately, many children in the community are in dire need of shoes and personal hygeine products. If you’re interested in making any donation toward this effort, visit the link in our bio 💛

Thank you in advance for helping us to be the change, we appreciate you!

H4H team

Just in case you're not on our email list, you can click the link below and read about our latest mission trip to Honduras ❤️4🇭🇳

Heart4Honduras Inc.

Spring Mission 2024 Update Now that we’ve returned and had some time to reacclimate to everyday life, I want to take you on a journey through our mission trip, capturing its essence with vivid details of each event. Here are some of the unforgettable highlights:

From :

Lucky to be a passenger on this project that and started so many years ago. This journey has brought both some of the greatest joys and deepest heartache I can imagine. It all started when a young anxious 16 year old consciously decided to go way outside her comfort zone, face fears, and a supportive and loving mother said “then I will join you”. What they both experienced on that first trip to Honduras, witnessing a type of poverty and suffering that is so unfamiliar to most of ‘us’ and yet so routine to most of ‘them’ changed their lives. Their work began at simply trying to help teen boys who had no options after ‘emancipating’ (more aptly ‘kicked out’) the impoverished, abusive, ruleless orphanages that they had been reared in. Today we’ve seen some of those boys graduate high school (nowhere near a ‘given’ in their culture), obtain work that can lift them out of absolute poverty, learn English to open job possibilities, even start a family. All good stuff…but balanced alongside this the tragic. The gutting heartbreak of receiving news that Alex being unable to escape the clutches of his past died to senseless gang warfare at 18. Of beautiful Henry, who was being supported in full transparency and legitimate process of immigration to the US, who succumbed to a medical condition that had been left untreated for too many of his formative years..the body eventually just giving out. It’s clear to me that a person can’t do this work without accepting the fluid experience of both joy and suffering, of love, of uncertainty, of hope, of fear.

As the guy just ‘tagging along’ on this journey due simply to the good fortune of having two remarkable and strong women in my life, I say thank you to you both. You have changed my life. I am a better person, husband, father, faith follower, and global citizen because of you. I, and the other love of our life, , will never be the same (fortunately) because of your decision to say ‘yes’ and work through fear. There is nothing but love here…all love..

💛

We’ve officially entered the medical brigade portion of our trip!🩺

We began at 10 am - we had two Honduran doctors who treated 80 children while our group helped to provide medicine, do intake/ vital signs and play games! We saw conditions that unfortunately are prevalent amongst communities in poverty - bronchitis, pneumonia, inflammation of their airways etc.
We also had the opportunity to feed 150+ people thanks to your donations🤍
We’re so grateful to have the opportunity to watch this community grow stronger and healthier.

We ended our day around 3 pm and visited Franks cafe to have coffee. There we met a large group of missionaries from Alabama and Texas staying nearby. We shared about each of our projects and we were excited to learn that they collaborate with the owner of the shop. So they introduced us to him and he gave us a free bag of coffee. (if you know you know … HN coffee is such a special treat 🤍) By the end of our time there, we went to pay our bill and the other missionaries had paid for it! Such a beautiful moment with lots of blessings. You truly never know who you’ll cross paths with.

We also had the blessing to celebrate ‘s birthday 🎂 happiest birthday Miranda we love you!!!

It’s finally that time 🤭❤️
off to be with our extended Honduran family - in anticipation of all of the new faces, laughs, stories and companionship.

Preparing for this trip is personal to each person in our group. We were all brought together, merged onto this shared path with a common goal - to be the change we wanted to see in the world.

There’s of course packing, calling the bank, being sure that you’re not leaving food to spoil at home. There’s traveling arrangements and well wishes and prayers.
But there’s also space held for our group to come together to share our mission - for example we like to discuss:
-What is it that we’re looking for out of this week?
-How do we need to be cautious?
-What can I contribute? And how do we make this feasibly possible?
-How can I stay present while we’re spending time with the children we serve?

We’re so excited to share what we learn and how we serve throughout the week, and we cannot thank you enough for supporting us 💛

Stay tuned!

With the help of Villatoro’s Global Foundation, we were able to make this happen! We bought 40 EcoFilters in Honduras and had them shipped directly to San Antonio 🇭🇳 we’ll distribute them to families in need at the medical brigade held this Thursday. PTL 🙏🏽❤️ thank you to all our donors and many thanks to Claudia and her team to help make this happen! God made a way 🥰

We continue to feel your unwavering support - not only have we reached our goal we have far surpassed it with your help and well wishes.

We cannot thank you enough! 💛

In just a few weeks we will take off and land in a community full of companionship, family and hope. With the money you’ve donated to our mission, we will be able to purchase food, provisions and medicine in Honduras (we do this to help stimulate their own economy).
Every single penny goes straight to the children and caretakers in San Antonio.

Thank you for helping us to “make a world of difference” ✈️

We’re one month away from heading down to Honduras for our Annual Medical Brigade. This will be Heart4Honduras’ fourth medical brigade and our third consecutive year in San Antonio, Cortes.

San Antonio, Cortes is the poorest community in Honduras. It is a remote area on the top of a mountain just south of the city of San Pedro Sula. As mentioned in the past, the town lacks basic resources, such as clean water, food, and medicines. Most of the population live on one meal per day. Parasites and malnutrition are common and medical treatment is scarce. Since our medical brigades there have begun, we’ve seen notable positive health changes among the children (shown in photos).

Specific items to be purchased for San Antonio are:
10 Water tank filters: $500, Food Provisions: $500 Medical supplies: $400 Medication: $900 Total costs: $2,300

Each and every contribution helps to change lives, we appreciate your support 💛

Sharing the latest news from Heart4Honduras! https://mailchi.mp/6da0ded64282/february-news?e=1d3920d1fc

Whoot whoot! 🎓 Graduation Day this weekend for our Heart4Honduras couple, Angie and Victor! They are now officially part the 30% of all Hondurans who finish high school. Victor will continue to work for Pepsi and has hopes to attend University and Angie starts nursing school February 17th. We are so proud of them for their hard work to accomplish this goal and looking forward to what God has in their future!
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Congratulations Gerry and Miranda Isabel DeMontier!!! We love youuuuu ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Today marks 4 years since Alex “broke on through to the other side.” In his memory, Evan placed a rock on this cairn during his hike today. We will always remember your beautiful smile, laughter, hopeful promises, protective nature , and your mischievous ways that humbled us all. Thank you for being the life that brought us to learn how to give and love beyond boundaries. Alex, you are sorely missed by those who loved you!

On our last full day in Honduras, we woke up early to say our final goodbyes to Peña Blanca. It was bittersweet to leave such a serene and tranquil place that showed us the lush beauty of Honduras. As we drove back to the city, we couldn't help but feel grateful for the week. We also talked about the challenges that lay ahead for San Antonio, and we shared our hopes and dreams for future missions there.

Our next stop was Guamalito Market, a bustling warehouse filled with vendors and artisans selling local goods, crafts, and souvenirs. The market was a feast for the senses, with colorful fabrics, intricate wood carvings, and delicious smells wafting through the air. We spent some time wandering through the aisles, bartering for the best prices and collecting treasures to take home with us.

As night fell, we gathered together with the girls from Eternal Family Project and Heart4Honduras youth and volunteers for one last soccer game. It was a spirited match, filled with laughter and friendly competition. After the game, we treated everyone to dinner at Little Cesar's, a popular pizza chain in Honduras.

As we sat around the table, enjoying our meal, we shared stories of our lives together. We come to Honduras to make a difference, but in the end, its the people we meet who make the biggest impact on us.

Finally, we gathered everyone together in the parking lot for a prayer of thanksgiving and inspiration. I prayed over each of us to be God’s hope for the future of Honduras, for our families and for God’s strength to help us make a difference in our world.

Day 6 of our mission trip was eventful as we continued our medical brigade for the second day. After a bumpy ride up a winding mountain, the 14 of us arrived early to San Antonio, Cortes and with the help of a few local women, we were able to set up the medical clinic quickly. A worship service was then held for the adults and teens who signed up for medical care. The worship service was filled with music and an encouraging message from our H4H program director, Ernesto Sorto.

After the service, our medical team began seeing patients. Again as the people from the community waited to be called, games, soccer, and face painting were organized for the children. 63 adults and teens of San Antonio, Cortes were given medical exams. Some of the medical conditions that were seen included parasites, dehydration, lung problems, joint pain, malnutrition, pregnancies, infections, and nausea. We distributed medicine and vitamins to those in need and referred others to seek further treatment at another clinic.

Lunch was also provided by the local women who cooked delicious pupusas for us. Our medical brigade finished early, and it was deemed a success, serving in two days a total of 150 people!

With the day's work complete by early afternoon, we headed back down the mountain to Peña Blanca, a community situated next to Lake Yojoa. Some us went kayaking, while others took time to rest by the lake. In the evening, we met up with a local friend who works for Eternal Family and had dinner. Afterwards, we returned to our hotel and sang songs by the fire before ending our day. We give God all the glory for a such a successful medical brigade and feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to connect with such a community of people in need.

On our fifth day of the mission trip, we brought a medical brigade to San Antonio, Cortez to provide medical care to the community. This is known to be one of the poorest in Honduras, because it lacks the infrastructure necessary for clean water and job opportunities, leaving its people in a precarious living situation. This is where the mission of H4H comes in, as we aim to serve this community annually and provide them with much-needed medical care and provisions.

It was busy day for us as we provided medical exams and treatment to 87 children and their guardians. The medical issues we encountered ranged from parasites, malnutrition, open sores, infections, fever, cough, and common cold. Our team of medical professionals, consisting of four doctors, two medical assistants, a pharmacist, and seven support staff, worked efficiently to provide the best care possible. We were able to finish all the medical examinations by midafternoon, leaving the children and their families feeling relieved and grateful for the care they had received.

As we waited for everyone to be seen, we fed them all breakfast and kept the children busy, providing face painting, playing games, and soccer with them. It was a blessing to see the smiles on their faces as they enjoyed their time with us. This was an essential part of our mission, as it provided the children with an opportunity to forget about their health problems and enjoy a moment of carefree fun.

After a long day of providing medical care and interacting with the community, we traveled back to our hotel to rest and prepare for today's medical brigade. Today we are serving adults and teens from the community, and we are ready to provide the same level of care and attention we gave to the children yesterday. We hope to make a significant impact on the lives of those we serve, and we are grateful for the opportunity to do so.