mission trip honduras

God has a plan for Honduras.

You have a place in it.

Meet Real Needs With the Love of Jesus

Project hope clinic, vida christian academy, child sponsorship, discover aim.

Adventure In Mission (AIM) invites you on an extraordinary journey of faith and fellowship. We discover the true essence of service as we join hands with the resilient people of Honduras.

Our mission trips are more than a momentary experience. Each mission dives deep into a world where faith is the cornerstone and love is the language. As we navigate through the challenges and triumphs of missionary work, we find that we receive immeasurable fulfillment in giving.

AIM provides more than temporary relief; we are about fostering lasting change. From the busy streets to the quiet countryside, our mission trips to Honduras are a testament to the power of collective action.

Get Involved

The call to serve is a profound echo in the heart. At AIM, we provide the path to answer that call. Honduran mission trips are an open invitation for you to step into a world where your skills, time and passion make a monumental difference.

Whether you are a builder, teacher, medical professional, or simply someone with a heart ready to serve, there is a place for you here. By becoming involved with AIM, you are not only embarking on a trip, but you are also joining a family. A family that laughs, prays, and works together to sow seeds of hope and prosperity in Honduran soil.

Your involvement means the world to a child awaiting education, a family needing a home, or a community desperate for clean water. We welcome you to bring your spirit of adventure and join us in a mission that goes beyond borders and builds bridges of compassion and understanding.

At Adventure in Missions, we measure our impact by children’s joyful laughter, families’ grateful smiles, and thriving communities that mark our journey through Honduras.

Our mission trips catalyze change, sparking progress for every life we touch. We have seen barren lands turn into bountiful gardens, dilapidated shelters transformed into cozy homes, and utter despair turned into hope.

Our work goes beyond mere aid; it empowers individuals and communities to break the chains of poverty and claim a future filled with promise and possibility.

Through providing food, clothing, shelter, medical care, and education, we are not just meeting basic human needs—we are nurturing dreams and fostering the growth of vibrant, self-sustaining communities.

Our impact reflects our values: Christ-like compassion, unwavering integrity, and commitment to servant leadership. As we continue to walk this path of service, we invite you to witness the stories of transformation and to celebrate the milestones we achieve together.

With every mission trip to Honduras, volunteer’s dedication, and prayer, we are building a legacy of love that will resonate for generations to come.

News & Updates

In the ever-unfolding story of Adventure In Missions, our News & Updates section showcases the vibrant tapestry of life-changing moments. Here, we share the heartwarming narratives of our Honduras missionary work, the advancements in our projects, and personal accounts of those lives that the touch of grace has forever changed.

Our updates serve as a beacon of light on the impact of our mission trips to Honduras. Our news is a chronicle of hope in action, from the inauguration of new community programs to celebrating another child’s educational milestone.

We invite you to stay tuned, where every update is an opportunity to rejoice in our progress. Your engagement and support fuel our efforts, and together, we are writing a story that will echo the love of Christ across Honduras and beyond.

Spreading Joy, Sharing Love: An Update from Nelvin, Cherise, Priscila, and Lucas in Honduras

New Year greetings from Cherise, Nelvin, Priscila, and Lucas! As we gather with hearts brimming with gratitude, we wanted to...

Connect With Us

At the heart of Adventure In Missions is a community of believers, doers, and dreamers, all connected by a shared vision of service and love. Connecting with us is more than a click; it is the beginning of a relationship.

Whether you seek to embark on a Honduras mission trip, desire to support from abroad, or wish to learn more about our cause, we are here to walk alongside you.

Our doors are always open for your questions, comments, stories, and heart. We invite you to become an integral part of our mission through our websites, social media, and direct communication.

Reach out today and strengthen the bonds of fellowship and service. Together, we can continue to spread His transformative love to every corner of Honduras.

Testimonials

Changing Lives Through Serving Others

Adventure In Missions is a non-denominational Christian ministry dedicated to bridging the gap between North Americans and the needy and neglected of Honduras. Adventure In Missions is committed to serving the poorest of the poor through preaching, teaching, building, and healing.

Canada Mailing Address: PO Box 7, Tisdale, SK S0E 1T0.

[email protected]

866-550-8404 (toll-free)

USA Mailing Address: 11039 Tibbs St. Dallas, TX 75230

Recent Blogs

New Year greetings from Cherise, Nelvin, Priscila, and Lucas! As we gather...

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mission trips

Central America

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Detroit, MI

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Get all the information you need about our mission trips and what your group can expect as they serve on mission with Praying Pelican.

Deepen your youth mission trip by doing ministry built on genuine partnerships, long term relationships, and sustainable ministry.

College students are looking for a place to make a meaningful impact. Amplify that impact by partnering alongside a local church.

Our customizable mission trips allow each person on your team of adults to find a place to serve, regardless of their interests or skills.

Church Sponsorship

A continuous effort to build up, encourage, and assist the local Church 365 days a year.

International

Want to transform a community by supporting a church leader?

Not sure what location to choose?

Latest PPM365 Updates

Francis Githinji

Kenya | March 7, 2024

Kenya | February 15, 2024

Kenya | February 8, 2024

Kenya | January 23, 2024

Luis Carlos Armas Vascones

Peru - Amazon | October 28, 2023

Disaster Response

Current Responses

Hawaii: Maui Wildfires

Indian Lake Tornado (3/14/24 Midwest)

Disaster Response (Indian Lake Tornado)

Extreme Tornado in Elkhorn, Nebraska

Disaster Response (Omaha Tornadoes)

Kenya Flood

When disasters strike, the Church is on the front lines of response and relief efforts, working with local authorities and organizing grassroots efforts to meet the pressing needs of their communities.

Follow along with teams as they serve in disaster areas around the world, and also read about the experiences of past teams who have served in those areas through Praying Pelican Missions. Our disaster trip journals are a great way to stay connected with those support teams as they work locally and internationally to offer encouragement and assist the local Church in what might be their greatest time of need!

trip journals

Mission Trip Journals

Follow along with teams as they go on mission, and read about the experiences of past teams who have served with Praying Pelican.

Recent Trip Journals

CBCA Senior Trip 2024

Florida | April 23, 2024

Southeast Christian School

Belize | April 24, 2024

Free Pentecostal Fellowship in Kenya

Kenya | April 26, 2024

Comunidad Cristiana El Sembrador

Baja California, Mexico | April 26, 2024

Iglesia Rosa de Saron

Nicaragua | April 27, 2024

Rivers Crossing Global

Guatemala | April 28, 2024

Honduras Mission Trips

Deep culture and endless possibilities.

Create deep, lasting relationships with incredible partners that are serving their communities with heart and tenacity.

Honduras At A Glance

Subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains

$5,600 /year

Spanish English Garifuna

Christianity

Mestizo Amerindian

Nestled in the heart of Central America, Honduras is a vibrant nation with a rich local culture. From the ocean coastlines to mountainous terrain, this beautiful country is full of incredible opportunities for your team to serve on your Honduras mission trip.

Local churches across Honduras are vital resources to their communities to address a wide range of physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. Pastors and church leaders are eager to partner with your mission team to serve in a variety of ways to continue their year-round work of showing the love of Jesus to those around them.

Honduras mission trips with PPM are centered around the local Church. God is at work in this nation, and we invite you to join in that work!

Communities We Work In

Need More Info?

INTERNATIONAL

Honduras FAQs

What is included in the cost.

Prior to the trip, the team leader will receive a group leader manual, which includes fundraising ideas and information to help with every aspect of trip planning. You will also receive access to your own online group account that will equip you to easily organize and plan for your trip. You will have access to online trip handbooks and resources for participants, promotional materials, group t-shirts and unlimited pre-trip consultations with your trip leader or location consultant. Your consultant will help you utilize your customizable ministry options and will identify a ministry partner that fits with your team.

Once in your ministry location, your team will be taken care of by a trained PPM staff, given safe meals, transported to/from the airport and to/from ministry sites each day, have plenty of safe drinking water, appropriate sleeping accommodations, an opportunity to attend local church services, evening worship, prayer, debriefing meetings, and experience a local sightseeing or recreation activity.

What is NOT included in the cost?

The registration fee, airfare, passports, vaccinations, spending money, offering at church services, construction and/or ministry materials, personal insurance, and extra recreation options outside of the normal recreation outing (ex. zip lining, snorkeling, surf board rental). Extra recreation options vary depending upon location, be sure to speak with your consultant about these options if you desire to add them to your trip. Please reference the pricing table above for any other exclusions.

Where will my team serve within the ministry location?

Within each of our partner countries we have multiple church and parachurch partners where teams serve. Not all teams serve at the same church or ministry. We determine ministry partnership assignments typically 6-8 weeks prior to mission trip dates. Throughout the planning process leading up to your trip, your consultant will be determining the best location(s) for your team and will let you know where your team will be serving as soon as we have confirmed that information. We will be doing our best to partner your team with churches and opportunities where your team will be best utilized.

Where will my team sleep?

Teams that select a trip with floor sleeping accommodations will sleep in a church, school, or community center. They will be divided by gender, and men's and women's rest rooms/showers will be available. Teams that choose a trip with hotel option usually sleep 3-5 people per room, with two people per double bed and individuals sleeping in single beds. All rooms are designated either male or female. There is no gender mixing.

What about safety?

Praying Pelican Missions holds safety as a top priority. PPM staff are trained and equipped to provide a safe and incident-free mission experience. PPM staff will be with your team for the entire trip and will have access to transportation, cell phones, hospitals, and first aid kits at all times. In the event of an emergency, PPM staff will guide and assist your team with proper next steps.

What about meals?

In most locations, three main meals per day will be served to your team (please see the table above). These meals will be a mixture of local cuisine dishes and potentially, a few American style dishes. During your consulting process, you will be able to identify team members who have allergies or dietary restrictions. PPM will do our best to accommodate these needs and all food and drink provided by PPM during trips is safe to eat. Purified drinking water will be provided for the team every day and for the cooks to use while preparing meals. We recommend if you have more severe dietary restrictions or allergies, that you bring along appropriate snacks.

Is there a language barrier?

In many of our countries, local communities are bi or trilingual, with English being one of their languages. However, for some locations English is not a widely known language and yes, there will be a language barrier. In those locations, PPM will provide a local staff team who will serve at assistant trip leaders and be available as translators for your team.

How do you choose your staff?

Your PPM staff members of your trip will be a mixture of full-time staff, local staff and seasonal interns. We believe in the value of local staff members and the health it brings to the ministry we are doing.

Honduras Location Info

Honduras basics.

Guatemala, Nicaragua, and El Salvador border Honduras. On the north, the country has a long border along the coast of the Caribbean Sea. On the south, a portion of its border touches the Pacific Ocean. Honduras is the second largest country in Central America, following Nicaragua. It's capital and largest city is Tegucigalpa.

Honduras has four distinct regions: the central highlands, Pacific lowlands, eastern Caribbean lowlands, and northern coastal plains and mountains. There are many mountain ranges throughout the country of Honduras, with peaks as high as 9,347 feet (2,849 meters). Interestingly, though, Honduras is the only country in Central America without volcanoes.

Climate, Language, & Safety

The climate in Honduras is very warm, with an annual average of 85 degrees, but thankfully has very little of the year that is humid and tropical. It is warm year-round. The warmest and rainiest part of the country is the Caribbean coast. The coldest is on the Pacific coast. Many consider that the best time of year to visit Honduras is between December and April, due to the warm weather with little rain. The most rainy days occur from June to October.

The official language in Honduras is Spanish, though you will also hear some English and some other Amerindian dialects.

Honduras is generally considered a safe place for visitors to travel. Your PPM staff will be with you every step of the way and will ensure that your team's safety remains a top priority.

Economy & Currency

The economy of Honduras is based mainly on agriculture, which accounted for 14% of its gross domestic product in 2013. The country's leading export is coffee, accounting for 22% of Honduran export revenues. The banana industry, formerly the country's second-largest export until it was virtually wiped out by 1998's Hurricane Mitch, recovered in 2000 to 57% of pre-hurricane levels. Cultivated shrimp is another crucial export sector. Since the late 1970s, towns in the north began industrial production through maquiladoras, especially in San Pedro Sula and Puerto Cortés.

The currency in Honduras is the Lempira.

Food & Fun

Honduran cuisine combines Mesoamerican (Lenca), Spanish, Caribbean, and African cuisines. There are also dishes from the Garifuna people. Coconut and coconut milk are featured in both sweet and savory dishes. Regional specialties include sopa de caracol, fried fish, tamales, carne asada, and baleadas. Other popular dishes include meat roasted with chismol and carne asada, chicken with rice and corn, and fried fish with pickled onions and jalapeños. In the coastal areas and the Bay Islands, seafood and some meats are prepared in many ways, including with coconut milk.

Family life is considered very important. Additionally, soccer is a very popular sport in Honduras, and most communities have their teams in addition to following the national team. Basketball, volleyball, movies, music, and dancing are also popular activities.

Honduras is an easy place for everyone to find something fun to do. From plentiful beaches to Mayan ruins, nature parks, and historic districts, its vibrant culture and natural beauty are engaging and ready to explore. 

History & Religion

Honduras was home to many important Mesoamerican people groups, most notably the Mayans, who flourished for hundreds of years. After colonization by the Spanish in the 16th century, those indigenous cultures began to blend with the Catholicism and Spanish language of the Europeans living there. Silver mining was a significant factor in the Spanish conquest and settlement of Honduras.

Honduras gained independence from Spain in 1821 and subsequently became an independent republic and has held regular elections since 1838. It saw early success in international trade between the 1870s and 1930s as a result of its banana exports. As a result of the significant political and cultural power of early fruit companies, the term "banana republic" was used to describe Honduras in the early 20th century.

The roots of the Catholic church go deep in Honduras through many generations, and the Church throughout the country is on the move. More and more people are identifying with faith in Jesus and local churches are active in responding to the significant needs across the country.

Experience a Mission Trip in Honduras

St. Mark's Cathedral EYC

Shreveport, LA

Serving in San Pedro Sula

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.css-1l6i93x{color:var(--chakra-colors-brand-darkgray-600);} MISSION TRIP LOCATIONS

INTERNATIONAL & DOMESTIC

Our partner-based trips differ a bit by location, but are all based on the same principles we believe are crucial to healthy mission trips.

LATEST TRIP JOURNALS

USEFUL LINKS

Our customizable mission trips allow each person on your team of adults to find a place to serve, regardless of their interest or skills.

Africa's many countries boast a wide array of beauty, culture and needs. Destinations include Kenya and South Africa.

Serve with Praying Pelican across the Caribbean—locations include Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, and Puerto Rico.

Serve with Praying Pelican across the Central America—locations include Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica.

This is your opportunity to serve alongside a local church and experience God in a different culture—from Belize, to Cuba, to South Africa and beyond.

From our hometown of Minneapolis to the island of Puerto Rico, USA mission trips are diverse in service opportunities, cultural experiences, and community needs.

Mission Location: Honduras

Evangelism/ministry assistant.

We are seeking a friendly and passionate individual to join our team as an Evangelism/Ministry Assistant. The selected candidate will shadow and work with a local pastor or missionary proclaiming the Gospel and assisting with the daily responsibilities of ministry outreach.

Are you passionate about crafting a good cup of coffee? We are seeking a friendly and dedicated Barista to join our team. As a Barista, you will not only provide exceptional coffee and beverage services to our visitors, but you’ll also help contribute to our organization’s mission by working with a coffee shop run by […]

Social Media Manager

We are seeking a friendly and enthusiastic Social Media Manager to help us tell our story and promote our initiatives. As a Social Media Manager, you will manage our social media platforms, develop content, and engage with our audience online. You will play a key role in building and maintaining our online presence and help […]

Flood the Nations Mission Trip to Honduras

On this trip you will impact and change the lives of families as you help provide clean water with the Mission Water Project (MWP). Your team will install bio-sand water filters in a village of Honduras and train the village on proper hygiene, sanitation, and use of the filters. Your faith will grow as you […]

Short-Term Mission Trips to Honduras

Mission Encounters International (MEI) is a gospel-driven, charitable organization with a heart devoted to missions. Our primary serving mission is located on the island of Helene, Honduras. Helene is one of the Bay Islands off the Honduras northern coast in the Caribbean Sea. We host short-term teams, offer Discipleship Encounters program (initial mission field training), […]

Volunteer Abroad Honduras La Ceiba 10 Programs year round

In Honduras we offer: Premed/Prenurse, Paramedical/rescue, medical, orphanage,teaching, HIV awareness, elderly care programs, you can volunteer from 1 week up to 12 weeks in a safe and friendly location, as a non profit all your fees are tax deductible and you can fundraise through our website.

Transforming Lives… One Child, One Family, One Community At A Time

Mission Trips

Honduras Mission Trips – MDM short-term mission trips are formed and facilitated several times each year. Trips can range from one week or more and accommodate groups of various sizes.  Typical team objectives include new home construction, public school improvement projects, Gospel outreach, medical or dental clinic outreach and much more.  Of course, every trip includes loving on the kids and families of San Matias.

Click here to jump to our 2024 Team Calendar.

San Matías is a small community nestled in the mountains of Honduras about 30-40 minutes northwest of the capital city of Tegucigalpa. It is a community surrounded by fifteen villages… that we refer to as “the mountain” … for a total of approximately 3500 people, beautiful scenery and characterized by a relaxed pace of life.

However, just like the rest of Honduras, many residents live in extreme poverty. Jobs are scarce, and those jobs that are available don’t pay enough to live on–the average daily wage is approximately $10, which is barely enough to buy a few meals of beans.

It’s such a challenge to obtain sufficient food, little money is left for other basic needs like clothing and shelter–families must put forth their best efforts just to survive. Aside from obtaining food, one of the biggest challenges the community faces are education, healthcare, and care for the elderly.

During your trip, you will have the unique opportunity to work alongside community members to help empower them with the resources they need to provide food, education, healthcare and assistance for their families and neighbors, bringing hope amid difficult circumstances. You are sure to be touched by the warmth and hospitality of the people of “the mountain”.

2024 Team Schedule

*Red dates on hold

Ground and Project Costs

Ground Costs $200 per person, per night Project Costs House $5000 Roof (depending on size) $1800 – $2000 Floor (depending on size) $1600 – $1800 Food Basket $40 each Community Cookout $4/person

MDM Honduras P.O. Box 241485 Little Rock, AR 72223 (501) 765-8477

MISSION TRIPS Important Forms

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• Sponsorship Account

HONDURAS MISSION TRIPS

We offer group and individual mission trips to the Marcala, Honduras area. In just one week, partner with a local church to construct a home from start to finish for a family in need. We offer one model home in Honduras with three rooms and a front porch. Finish your trip with one of our many excursion options to see the beauty of Honduras.

City Profile

Nestled in the highlands of La Paz department in Honduras, lies a small town that is a treasure trove of cultural richness and diversity. Welcome to Marcala, a place where ancient traditions are still very much alive. Marcala is known for its coffee, which has been cultivated here for centuries. Coffee is not just a source of income for the people of Marcala. It is also an integral part of their culture. Aside from coffee, Marcala is also famous for its handicrafts. Local artisans create beautiful pieces using traditional techniques passed down from generation to generation.

The people of Marcala are proud of their heritage and have preserved their customs and traditions despite the challenges they face. Their economy is primarily agricultural, with coffee production being the primary source of income. Many families rely on coffee farming for their livelihood, which exposes them to the volatility of global prices. Despite this, the city has made progress in diversifying its economy, attracting investment in tourism and service industries. However, despite these developments, poverty remains a significant issue in Marcala. The poverty rate in the city is estimated to be around 68%, with many families struggling to afford safe, sustainable housing. Many families live in overcrowded, substandard conditions, which makes them vulnerable to health problems and natural disasters.

By working alongside the Honduran church, Casas por Cristo volunteers help alleviate families’ financial burdens and bring the hope of Christ to this remarkable land full of beauty, history, and culture. With the provision of safe and secure housing, the largest tangible gift anyone will ever receive, you can proclaim the truth of God’s love not only to a family but also to the community at large.

Check out our Honduras Culture Guide for more info!

Interested in leading a group trip to Honduras? Check out our Honduras Group Trip Interest Info  document!

HONDURAS TRIPS

GROUP TRIP COSTS

• 2024 Cost | $11,542 | Groups of 15-25 people | Three-room home
• Meals, Transportation, and Lodging: $285/person | 6 & 7-day trips (additional $50/person/extra day beyond 7 days)
• Deposit: $1,000/project (nonrefundable; applied toward final trip fees)
• Travel insurance
• Arrive Wednesday and depart Monday or Tuesday
• Book flights to arrive between 6:00 AM and 6:00 PM (for safety to avoid driving in the dark)
• Book flights to depart between 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM (for safety to avoid driving in the dark)
• Family Gift Options
• Honduras Excursion Options
• Hire Local Labor (Optional) | $20/worker/day

TEAM CASAS TRIPS FOR INDIVIDUALS

• 2024 Cost: $1,175/person ages 12+ | $315/child ages 0-11
• 2025 Cost: TBD
• Deposit: $100/person (nonrefundable; applied toward final trip fees)
• Includes all meals, transportation, lodging, and travel insurance in-country
• Use the Palmerola International Airport in Comayagua (XPL)
• June 30 – July 6, 2024 (Scheduled, but still seeking 7 participants)
• December 27, 2024 – January 2, 2025 (Seeking 8 participants by October 27)
• June 29 – July 5, 2025 (Seeking 15 individuals by April 29, 2025)
• December 27, 2025 – January 2, 2026 (Seeking 15 individuals by October 27, 2025)

          The Great Commission

Our goal with missions is to fulfill The Great Commission: "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” -Matthew 28:19-20

Our Vision Lead in reaching people with the gospel and providing opportunities  to serve them in a Christ like way.

We welcome churches, college teams, medical teams, dental teams, youth groups and anyone willing to serve on a one week mission trip.  Your trip will be geared towards the needs and abilities that your team provides. 

If you’ve ever been on mission trips, you know how that an experience like this can build community, teamwork, unity and memorable moments that last a life time.  Teams ride together, play together, eat together, work together, stay up late together, get up tired together. You become a team (Together Everybody Achieves More)  Mission trips apply “team” to create a sense of adventure, their desire to serve, their relationship with God, their daily experiences, their broken comfort zones and much more. 

How You May Serve

We work through the House of Hope feeding center

and local churches.

Our primary goal is to serve the local community by way of teaching, pastoral training, leadership classes,

VBS, construction projects, youth camps, dental teams and the feeding center.

Interested in construction projects?

​Families need bathrooms

Rebuild fallen homes

Water pila's to store water

A Servants Heart Teams have a variety of abilities and the possibilities are endless. The most important part of a team is a servants heart.  Each person has something to offer to the team and that's what makes a mission team effective.

Where do mission teams stay?

We provide:

Transportation

Detailed Schedule

Translators 

The cost per person is $700 not including airfare.

The area we work and minister in is predominantly poor.   Come prepared with the right heart and ready to work.  

And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us. Acts 16:9

Interested in more information? Please contact us for additional information.

• DISCOVER HOI
• Statement of Belief
• The HOI Difference
• HOI's Impact
• Recognition
• Board of Directors & Staff

In 1987, the World Outreach Fund was approached with a unique request: a church group who had taken summer mission trips to Central America wanted to purchase a working ranch in rural Honduras. They hoped to use Rancho el Paraíso (Paradise Ranch) to establish a mission outpost for visiting North Americans to connect with Hondurans, pursue better healthcare, and assist in faith initiatives.

The foundation decided to fund the project, and a year later a small group of American executives affiliated with the World Outreach Fund embarked on a journey to visit the “little Christian mission” in the rural Agalta Valley. Despite the many difficulties of their trip, the visitors knew the Holy Spirit was moving them to address the overwhelming poverty they had witnessed. As the vision grew, Honduras Outreach, Inc. was established in 1989 as a faith-based, nondenominational 501(c) (3) organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for the people of Honduras.

GOD’S MISSION

For over three decades HOI has been following God’s call to strengthen communities in Honduras and Nicaragua through long-term partnerships. Every day we continue to see God’s hand at work in the transformation of lives and families through the on-going commitment between North and Central Americans.

HOI is a Christ-centered missions organization working alongside people of developing countries who desire to implement sustainable development partnerships. We organize mission trips to Honduras.

Our vision is to create life-changing relationships between the people of developing countries and North Americans, while promoting community directed and integrated spiritual, physical, educational and economic development of men, women and children in the developing world through the promotion of dignity, mutual cooperation and self-sufficiency.

Thirty-three years later, HOI has grown in size and has extended its reach.  Our programs have grown to include healthcare, agriculture, nutrition, education, faith-building, commerce, and construction as part of an integrative approach to community development.  In addition to the over 200 villages we serve in the Agalta Valley, HOI has grown to include northern Nicaragua and southern Honduras in San Lorenzo in its mission scope.  We are dedicated to partnering with local villages and organizations in these areas to help achieve sustainable transformation.

Over the years we have established a number of strategic partnerships with like-minded people and organizations which have helped us promote our mission and achieve our goals.  With their valued assistance and the continued support of those who have traveled with us, we are able to foster an environment for sustainable change in the communities that we serve.

We have been identified as one of the top five most effective NGOs working in the country by the Honduran government. In 2014, HOI was awarded the prestigious Francisco Morazan Award , the nation’s highest honor, for our dedication to the health and welfare of the people of Honduras. As our relationships and partnerships continue to grow stronger and our mission gains national and international recognition, HOI’s ability to help those in need continues to increase.

HOI continues to attract teams from all over the country and is excited to include others in our story of transformation and development.  Each year, over fifty North American mission teams travel to the region in support of a mutually rewarding relationship of life-changing proportions. You too can be a part of this amazing journey and join in the transformation as Central and North Americans continue to partner together to dramatically improve the quality of life in both Honduras and Nicaragua.

• STATEMENT OF BELIEF

We are a Christ-centered organization built upon the Biblical truth that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that salvation can only be achieved through Him, and His gift of grace is available to all.

From its founding, HOI has been inspired and led by the Holy Spirit to work with communities in Central America to help improve their quality of life and transform hearts for Christ.

We believe that God’s word calls us to: reflect His love towards others, strengthen the faith of families as they nurture and equip their children, treat all people with dignity and equality, and work in partnership with local leaders to bring, in both word and action, the good news of Jesus Christ.

• THE HOI DIFFERENCE

Watch and see how HOI is making a difference in Central America. Take a trip with us and ENGAGE in the transformation today!

HOW IS HOI’S WORK DIFFERENT FROM OTHER MISSION ORGANIZATIONS?

We work long-term in communities, empowering them to reach their full potential, and use short-term volunteer mission trip teams to accomplish long-range goals. HOI has a rich history in communities of Central America using an integrated approach that includes education, medical care, agriculture, facility construction and spiritual development. By investing in communities over decades, we strive to see permanent and total transformation.

WHY GO ON A MISSION TRIP WITH HOI? WHY NOT JUST GIVE MONEY TO A CHARITY?

While we value and greatly appreciate financial gifts, we believe that the gift of presence is uniquely transformational. Through their time together, mission trip volunteers and residents build mutually enriching relationships, impacting both North and Central Americans in powerful ways.

We encourage volunteers and teams to continue engaging with our work in Honduras and Nicaragua by partnering with us financially following their trips. To donate, please  click here .

HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT THE PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS ARE RELEVANT, EFFECTIVE AND SUSTAINABLE?

At HOI, we believe that each community should direct its own development. Every community has different needs and in most cases, residents have a much better understanding of these needs than those on the outside. To ensure that our ministries in both Honduras and Nicaragua are relevant and will have a long-term impact, we pursue programs and projects based on local community leaders’ requests and invitation. This process also helps to organize and train local leadership in decision making, which is critical for the sustainability and well being of future generations.

IS HOI SENSITIVE TO THE LOCAL CULTURE AND WAY OF LIFE?

While HOI includes a handful of U.S.-based staff, the majority of our employees (60+ staff) are Central Americans, including our Honduras country director. Our Central American staff works with residents year-round, building relationships with villagers in each community and ensuring that HOI respects and embraces the local way of the life. While short-term missions are often characterized by imbalanced relationships that lack consideration for the host culture, HOI is proactive in including local stakeholders in making critical decisions.

DOES THE WORK OF SHORT-TERM VOLUNTEERS TAKE AWAY JOBS FROM LOCAL RESIDENTS?

The majority of residents in our areas of influence are involved in subsistence farming in order to feed their families. As a result, the construction of projects such as latrines, chimneys, etc. is completed not by specialized workers but by homeowners. HOI’s short-term volunteers work under the supervision of and side-by-side with these residents and their communities in order to accomplish these projects. In addition to supplementing labor and providing necessary materials, HOI gives residents the opportunity to invest time and labor into their homes, engendering a rightful sense of pride and ownership.

It is our goal to create and support opportunities for Hondurans and Nicaraguans to provide for themselves and their families. To do this and to protect the dignity of these communities, we do not do for them what they can do for themselves unless it is within the context of a mutually agreed upon partnership. HOI has created over 60 jobs at Rancho el Paraíso and has supported the creation of many more through our economic development programs.

DOES HOI’S PRESENCE CREATE A SENSE OF DEPENDENCY?

Our model is based on a healthy partnership between communities and HOI staff and volunteers. Instead of fostering dependency, we desire to empower the people of developing nations by focusing on their strengths and abilities. Because we prioritize protecting the dignity of these communities, we work  with   rather than  for  them. For this reason, we require that local residents make an investment of time and labor. Whether it is digging a hole for a latrine in anticipation of a service team or preparing soil before receiving agricultural training, residents take ownership of their own communities through their work in conjunction with HOI.

• HOI’S IMPACT

How do HOI’s efforts impact the world? There are various areas where our actions and contributions have impacted for the better.

• Spiritual Life
• Economic / Agricultural Development
• Community Development

HOI’s spiritual development program is dedicated to teaching the Bible throughout the Agalta Valley. Over the past 15 years, 150 pastors have been trained through an 8-month Bible program, reaching 85 villages that now have knowledgeable faith leaders in their communities. Our staff pastor’s role is to invest in local village pastors, lead HOI staff devotionals, lead bible studies at our elementary and middle school, and arrange for visiting teams to meet with families and individuals who express a desire to pray together. Over 2,500 children each year learn of God’s love through Bible classes taught by mission teams.

HOI also has a partnership with Young Life, an international ministry focused on introducing youth to Christ and helping them grow in their faith. Our hope is that through Young Life, we will continue to spread the Word of God and help others grow in their faith throughout this region.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Economic development is becoming a growing priority in order to create opportunities that will benefit and sustain communities for years to come. HOI provides training to teach best practices in small business development and marketing. In this way, local people are encouraged to look for opportunities already within their reach that will provide income and improve their quality of life. 8 small businesses have been established in the area and 90 communities have established development committees to encourage entrepreneurship.

Our desire is to create avenues for sustainable income through encouraging entrepreneurs, building up business skills, and helping provide access to markets.

AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT

Agriculture was one of HOI’s earliest and most important ministries. Our local staff has worked with thousands of residents over the years to provide the training necessary to improve agricultural production, grow healthier food to eat, and increase local revenue. Over 100 families are trained annually in sustainable gardening, providing opportunities for better nutrition throughout their community.

HOI has played an important role in establishing co-ops for dairy and coffee farmers to better manage production and sales. Veterinary mission teams provide treatment for an average of 2,000 animals annually, along with animal health and management training for residents.

HOI’s agriculture programs hope to provide education, nutrition, and economic opportunities for families throughout this region.

Each year, over 1,000 mission trip volunteers partner with local communities in Honduras and Nicaragua in the following projects:

• Building latrines: preventing illnesses by improving health and sanitation conditions
• Building chimneys: reducing respiratory problems caused by smoke inhalation
• Constructing concrete floors: eliminating breeding grounds for disease-causing insects
• Constructing water lines: providing access to clean water
• Training in medical and dental hygiene: teaching the importance of hygiene in preventing diseases.
• Teaching Bible classes for children and adults: furthering an understanding of God’s love for us and how to love others.

HOI’s community development model is based on a healthy partnership between communities, HOI staff, and volunteers. We desire to empower the people of Central America by focusing on their strengths and abilities. We train 50 community leaders annually on decision making, community involvement and civic responsibility. We prioritize protecting the dignity of these communities by working  with   rather than  for  them.

HOI has actively promoted education in the Agalta Valley for nearly 25 years, working with community residents and local governments to build 43 public kindergartens. Staffed by volunteer teachers, these local kindergartens allow children in remote villages to begin learning at an early age.

In 2000 and 2001, HOI established private elementary and middle schools. Our Kindergarten through 9th grade education program provides a quality education for over 300 students each year. An average of 98% of elementary graduates continue on to middle school, compared with only 66% of students from area public schools.

HOI’s education system provides a library with computer lab/internet access, spiritual development classes, music and English class, contributing to a 23% increase in enrollment over the past 3 years.

HOI’s education sponsorship program makes it possible for elementary and middle school students in the Agalta Valley to receive a quality education through the help of U.S. sponsors. HOI also awards approximately 60 scholarships to local high school students each year.

Since HOI’s clinics were established in the early 1990s, we have effectively lowered the infant mortality rate in the Agalta Valley by 88%  and have raised the vaccination rate from 15% to 98%. Family planning workshops and health education have contributed to a decrease in average family size from 10 to 5 children. Other educational initiatives on malaria prevention have led to a reduction in the number of malaria cases from nearly 500 in 1997 to none in the past 9 years.

16,000 patients from 33 villages receive quality healthcare and disease prevention education through HOI’s 4 health clinics and visiting medical missions volunteers. At our main clinic, we have full time staff including a doctor, nurses, dentist, pharmacist, and physical therapist. Our primary focuses continue to be nutrition, sanitation, immunization, malaria and dengue education, family planning, and pre and postnatal care.

Our goal is to create a system of healthcare that can serve as a model for all of rural Honduras.

• RECOGNITION

Honduran Recognition

HOI is the proud 2014 recipient of the  Francisco Morazan Award , Honduras’ highest honor and award for achievement.  The award was presented during HOI’s 25th Anniversary Celebration.  The award recognizes HOI “for their continued work within the Department of Olancho for 25 years, leaving a deep imprint on behalf of the Honduran people.”  To date, HOI is the first and only foreign organization of its kind to receive this prestigious award.

About the Award

The  Order of Francisco Morazan  was institutionalized in March of 1941 in honor of one of Honduras’ greatest national heroes, President Francisco Morazan.  The award is given to recognize extraordinary achievement in both civil and military fields by both Hondurans and foreigners.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Camila Reina

Cissy Watson

Daniel Toon

David Lee Davis, D. Min

Dr. Daniel Lohnes

Dr. Lee Woodall

Dr. Stephen Wilks

Chief Executive Officer

Cissy C. Watson  has been participating in Honduras mission trips with HOI since its beginnings. She began her career in the housing industry in 1983.  After attending Pepperdine University, she started her work in the development and management of multifamily housing communities for senior citizens. A native Atlantan, Ms. Watson took the helm of Mansermar, Inc. in 1985, where she served over 20 years.

In 1996, Ms. Watson founded Hometowne Communities, a development, construction management, property management and asset management firm specializing in apartments. She also served as the developer for the acquisition and rehab of multifamily housing communities in Texas and Georgia.

Ms. Watson developed a mixed use community in downtown San Diego and is an owner in this unique affordable housing community. In addition, Ms. Watson retains ownership in Mansermar, Inc., an experienced management agent specializing in affordable properties for senior citizens.

Ms. Watson and her husband, Ted, have owned a Dairy Queen in Owensboro, Kentucky since 2008. Along with their son, Hunt, they have recently opened a franchised Italian restaurant, Mirko Pasta.

The Watsons currently reside just outside of Athens, GA. They belong to Athens Church and work extensively with missions efforts in Honduras, Africa, India and China. They enjoy traveling and spending time with their 3 children.

Daniel Toon is a professional engineer from Atlanta, Georgia. Active with HOI since 1993, Daniel grew up traveling on Honduras mission trips almost every year until his graduation from Georgia Tech in 2002. With skills learned across many short term mission trips, Daniel excelled in classes focused on concrete and other materials common in construction in Honduras. Building on this foundation, Daniel rose to the position of Chief Engineer for United Forming, Inc. – one of the largest concrete specialty construction contractors in the Southeast.

Daniel is a member of First United Methodist Church of Barnesville, GA and attends there regularly with his wife Kelley. Since joining the Board of Directors for HOI in 2009, Daniel has focused on the Operations Programs of HOI – maintaining the buildings, vehicles, and equipment of the organization.

“As I look back over my relationship with HOI, I am nearly overwhelmed with the ways God used HOI to mold me and direct my path. When I thought I was in control and serving others, God was guiding me on a path to shape my future and grow as a partner and a brother to those I encountered. I have found a strong calling to build up and support the continued work of HOI such that others may have the remarkable opportunities I have had, both the missionaries who travel from afar as well as all those in partnership with HOI.”

David Lee Davis is a native of Buffalo, NY. He began his career as a United Methodist Pastor serving congregations in Decatur and Lawrenceville, Georgia. In 1995, he founded Hamilton Mill United Methodist Church and grew the congregation from inception to 2,700 members and 36 employees. Hamilton Mill UMC became one of Methodism’s fastest-growing congregations. In 2015, David left pastoral ministry and worked to build thriving communities in Honduras through HOI. In 2018 David joined the staff of Haggai International whose mission is to equip uniquely positioned national leaders to present and demonstrate the Gospel of Jesus Christ and equip others to do the same.

David received his BA in Biblical Studies from Houghton Wesleyan College, a Master of Divinity from Emory University, and a Doctorate from Princeton Theological Seminary. While at Princeton, he studied and wrote about leadership development in faith-based contexts. David has served on the board of directors for Gwinnett Habitat for Humanity, Honduras Outreach, North Coast Mission to Honduras, and Foundation for Retired Ministers of North Georgia.

In his spare time, he is an avid painter, and cyclist, and loves to speak to individuals, groups, and congregations about God’s amazing work. David and his wife Jennifer reside in Braselton, Georgia.

Dr. Dan is a veterinarian in rural Barry, Illinois with a mixed animal practice. His primary areas of interest are bovine reproduction and small animal surgery. He is a 1982 graduate of the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine.

Dr. Dan became involved with Christian Veterinary Missions (CVM) in 2010 on a trip with veterinary students to the Ranch. He fell in love with the Agalta Valley and its people on his first trip and has since led 5 more CVM student groups to Honduras. Now he makes 2 trips a year, one with students and one to train local farmers in animal husbandry and other topics to improve animal health and improve animal productivity.

Dr. Dan joined HOI’s agriculture committee in 2012 and has been working to improve cattle reproduction, health, and productivity at the Rancho el Paraiso. He assumed leadership of the committee in 2015.

Dr. Dan’s wife of 38 years, Debbie, has also become involved with HOI and helps with evangelism to the school children in the villages they visit on their trips. They have 3 grown children. Dr Dan and Debbie are both active members in the Barry United Methodist Church.

Lee Woodall, MD, is a family practice physician in Barnesville, GA. He is a longtime HOI Board member and serves on HOI’s medical committee.

Lee helped establish some of HOI’s most remote medical clinics in the mountains of Honduras. His pioneering spirit led him to work with the most needy and remote people in the Agalta region. Lee has also been a primary trainer to the HOI Honduras medical staff, and he is loved by and known to all in the Valley.

Stephen M. Wilks, M.D. currently resides in Clarkesville, GA with his wife Robin. He is a graduate of Marshall University and Emory University School of Medicine. Following an internship in internal medicine at Grady Memorial Hospital he served in the USAF as a flight surgeon on Okinawa, Japan. After completing residency and fellowship in diagnostic radiology and neuroradiology at Emory University affiliated hospitals he served on the staff at Piedmont Hospital and Shepherd Center in Atlanta, GA from 1981-2008.

He has been active in Honduras missions with HOI since 1991, serving on its board of directors, as well as serving on the boards of ECHO Foundation and Target Cancer Foundation. He remains on the advisory board of Shepherd Center.

Josh Young is a farmland specialist with the Land Resource Group. He has an appraisal and farm management background having grown up on a 2,500-acre grain farm in Macoupin County as a fifth-generation farmer. With a degree in Agricultural Economics from the University of Illinois, Josh is an Illinois certified general appraiser specializing in the valuation of agricultural and recreational land.

As a Broker Associate, Josh is anxious to use his farm-related background to assist buyers in finding the farm that best fits their personal investment criteria.  He has been a part of HOI for several years and has the added expertise to support our agriculture program.

Alejandrina Dominguez

Ana Padilla

Candis Hughes

Dany Padilla

Eriberto Rivera

German Jiménez, M.D.

Jose Crozier

Martha Espinoza

Mirian Diaz

Community Development and Administrative Director

Programs and govt. relations director, chief development officer, mission trips & partner engagement coordinator, director, agriculture, director, economic development, director, healthcare honduras, director of education & principal hope institute, chief operating officer, rancho el paraiso, group leader, development coordinator, let’s make an impact together ..

PO Box 920745 Peachtree Corners, GA  30010

Phone: 404-327-5770

Email: [email protected]

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© 2023 HOI, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Mission Trips

Keep updated on news and stories about the Heart for Honduras mission trips. We encourage you to join us on the next scheduled trip!

• 2024 Mission Trip Information

Posted by admin on 1:41 am in Featured , Mission Trips | Comments Off on 2024 Mission Trip Information

The 2024 Mission Trip is coming up!

Jesus commands that we “go and make followers of all people in the world.” (Matt 28:19). We are also reminded that we need to “…care for one another…” (See 1 Cor12:24-27) as members of the body of Christ. 

This year we will be near Cofradia, a community about 45 minutes from San Pedro Sula. Our purpose is to help provide resources, orphanage support and medical attention to people of need while bringing them the Good News of Jesus.

Download the 2024 Mission Trip information packet to sign up!

Download (DOC, 320KB)

• 2023 Mission Trip Accomplished

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2023 Mission Trip Accomplished!

Read all about it:

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• 2019 Mission Trip Accomplished

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2019 Mission Trip Accomplished!

31 missionaries returned to Buenos Aires this year to continue working on the school project. We finished 2 more classrooms, along working on sidewalks leading to the classrooms, along with some painting. Our medical clinic had over 1000 people visit and receive medication from the doctors and dentists. We also had an optometrist that fitted hundreds of glasses.

2019 marked the 20th Annual Heart for Honduras Mission Trip.

• 2018 Mission Trip Accomplished

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2018 Mission Trip Accomplished!

The Heart for Honduras mission team served in the remote village of Buenos Aires, Honduras. The village is a two hour trip from San Pedro Sula via a dirt road and is just outside Cusuco National Park. The people of the village mostly harvest coffee beans and wild flowers for their livelihoods. The construction team built two classrooms for the school that currently ends at 5th grade. With the addition of the two classrooms the school will now be able to teach through the 8th grade. The medical team treated over 900 patients, the dental team provided care to over 300 and the optometrist treated over 300. The mission team played soccer on a field with horses, rode in backs of trucks, jumped in the ocean, but most importantly built relationships through sharing the love of Jesus.

In addition, the team was able to spend a day visiting the orphans at Casa Hogar in Siguatepeque. Each orphan was blessed with a new outfit, shoes, pajamas, and undergarments.  On Sunday the team worshipped with PIER Church located in San Pedro Sula. PIER is intergral to the success of the trip as they coordinate all of the logistics (transportations, food, housing, prayer) for the mission team while in Honduras.

2018 marked the 19th Annual Heart for Honduras Mission Trip.

2016 mission trip accomplished.

Posted by admin on 2:06 pm in Mission Trips | Comments Off on 2016 Mission Trip Accomplished

In 2016 we worked in El Paraiso, which is located 30 minutes from San Pedro Sula. It was our third year working at this location blessing the lives of the community members!

Our 2016 financial goal was to raise $50,000 to construct two classrooms for an existing school,  assist needy families, and buy medical supplies.

We fulfilled our purpose of helping supply housing, orphanage support and medical attention to people of need while bringing them the Good News of Jesus.

2015 Mission Trip Accomplished

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In 2015 we worked in El Paraiso, which is located 30 minutes from San Pedro Sula.

Our goal was to raise $45,000 to construct a kitchen and kitchen storage space for community mothers to cook lunch for the kids every day and to assist needy families and spread the word of God!

We fulfilled our purpose by helping supply housing, orphanage support and medical attention to people of need while bringing them the Good News of Jesus.

Take a look at the construction plans of the new kitchen and kitchen storage space!

2014 Mission Trip Accomplished

Posted by admin on 8:19 pm in Mission Trips | Comments Off on 2014 Mission Trip Accomplished

We thank everybody involved in 2014’s mission trip! Whether it was by financial and emotional support and/or on site work and prayers, you have all been part of serving our Lord in helping the needy and sharing the gospel.

In 2014 we built a new school consisting of two classrooms. We bought supplies for concrete floors to be installed by the homeowners for 14 homes and five churches. We were able to work with five local churches in the area and they helped coordinate our relief for the community. We used a church to house our medical clinic and a kindergarten room to house our dental clinic. We saw close to 1000 patients. We had a group doing intentional witnessing to the villages being served and over the course of the trip over 200 people either gave or recommitted their live to Christ. We did many haircuts and styling. We shared the Gospel with the children and adults in the village. Our partnership with American Airlines allowed us to bring thousands of pounds of clothing and other supplies to share with the villages. We worked with our partners at PIER Church on the mission site and we had the great pleasure of PIER preparing all of our food for the mission team.

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2013 Mission Trip Accomplished

Posted by admin on 9:28 pm in Mission Trips | Comments Off on 2013 Mission Trip Accomplished

Thanks to everybody that supported us in 2013!

Here is a recap of the 2013 Mission Trip in Buenos Aires:

We improved a local school with concrete retaining walls and walkways. We installed a much needed roof on one of the existing buildings. We operated a medical clinic and a separate dental clinic. We were able to serve five small communities in the area seeing hundreds of patients. We shared the gospel through vacation Bible school and making arts and crafts. We gave many haircuts. Our partnership with American Airlines allowed us to bring thousands of pounds of clothes and supplies. We worked with our partners at PIER Church on the mission site and we had the great pleasure of PIER preparing all of our food for the mission team.

Mission Accomplished San José de la Sierra in 2012

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Thanks to your donations we:

• Purchased the land for the extra classrooms for the school
• Built 5 new classrooms for a school that only previously had 3
• Built the local pastor’s house behind the church property
• Built a wall around the school to secure it
• Gave medical attention and medicines to the villagers from 2010-2012
• Handled about 7,500 lbs of clothing, shoes and hygiene products
• Spread the word of Christ through good works, kid’s Bible Study and christian arts & crafts!!

We were blessed to work with the people from San José de la Sierra and we know that God also blessed them through the Hearts for Honduras team.

3 of the 5 new built classrooms!!

2010-2012 Mission Trip San José de la Sierra

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San Jose de la Sierra, Honduras

Fifteen years ago farmers began moving from the mountains to a colony called San Jose de la Sierra. They sold their farmland and moved closer to San Pedro Sula seeking jobs in factories. The huge infiltration of people resulted in overcrowding and ultimately poverty. Many of the families living there today do not even have a home and live in very poor conditions.

A new start…

Hearts for Honduras teamed up with PIER in 2010 to work in this area. Part of the team worked on a home for a local pastor. All donations were distributed to families in need. As always, a medical clinic was set up to care for the villagers—many of whom had never seen a doctor. A huge focus was on the many, many children who populate this colony and the team was able to set up Vacation Bible School to help spread the Word!

Hearts for Honduras plans to send two teams this year—the Illinois team and a “new” team from Oklahoma! The two groups plan to start construction on a school, continue to provide medical services, hand out donations from the States and continue the VBS that was started last year.

We look forward to the rewarding opportunity to serve God. We will face the challenges with Him by our side. Thank you for your support and prayers!

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• 2024 Hit the Links for Honduras

PO Box 888631 Grand Rapids, MI 49588 [email protected] 1 (800) 897-1135

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PREPARING FOR A MISSIONS TRIP TO HONDURAS

Honduras is a beautiful Central American country of eight million people. It makes international news for its high rates of poverty, violence, and corruption, but it’s also known for coffee and coral reefs, macaws and Mayan ruins, horchata and gracious hospitality.

ASJ has worked in Honduras since 1998, and nearly all our staff in Honduras were born in the country. We love Honduras , despite its problems, and as part of our mission to share our vision of justice with people around the world, we enjoy connecting with short-term missions or volunteer groups to prepare them to more deeply engage with the country.

We’d love to share more about  ASJ’s mission  or  our different projects in violence and corruption . If you’ll be in the area, we would also love to  connect with you  in person – our offices are a 20-minute drive from the Tegucigalpa airport.

We hope this information helps you to begin your trip with a deeper understanding of the country where you will be staying. May your hearts be touched by the need for justice and the possibility of participating in it!

History of Honduras

On his last journey to the “New World” in 1502, Christopher Columbus landed on the northern coast of Honduras, naming it for the Spanish word for “depths”. The country was already home to diverse indigenous cultures, including Maya and Lenca, who fiercely resisted the Spanish.

The Lenca leader Lempira (for whom Honduras’ currency is named) famously led the resistance until he was murdered, and the country succumbed to colonial rule.

On September 15th, 1821, Honduras gained independence from Spain , first becoming part of Mexico, and then joining the short-lived Central American Federation. Honduras finally became its own independent country in 1838.

Since its independence, Honduras has suffered close to 300 internal rebellions, civil wars, and changes of government. In the early 1900s, Honduras’s political stability was hampered by U.S. banana companies (Standard Fruit, Cuyamel Fruit and United Fruit – the predecessors of Dole and Chiquita), who then wielded enough economic power in Honduras to manipulate political factions as a part of their business rivalry.

The 1980s saw violent political turmoil in much of Central America, especially Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala, which all share borders with Honduras. U.S. pressure removed the latest military dictatorship in Honduras and put into place the democratic government that became the key U.S. ally in the region.

T  he U.S. was able to use Honduras as a military base for supporting the Contras in Nicaragua (in what later became the infamous Iran-Contra Affair) and for training the Salvadoran army in anti-insurgency warfare. U.S. military involvement and economic aid waned in Honduras after 1990 when Nicaragua’s revolutionary party lost the presidential election and the Contras left Honduras, but has recently increased as Honduras became the focal point in the U.S. war on drugs .

Since then, Honduras’s government has remained relatively stable – with the notable exception of the 2009 “coup d’état” (Golpe de Estado in Spanish), in which Congress voted to remove a democratically-elected leader through military force. The ousted leader has since returned to Honduras, but the opposing party has remained in power ever since.

Currently, Honduras struggles with one of the highest homicide rates in the world, caused in part by growing gang presence and a drug trafficking route directly through the country. In addition, a crisis of corruption and impunity threaten economic development, trust in government, individual opportunities, and basic security. Recently, security issues have driven an unprecedented number of migrants to the United States, which has prompted renewed attention from the U.S. to the Central American state.

Honduras Today 

With a per capita GDP of only $2,361 in 2016, Honduras is the third poorest country in the Western Hemisphere , and nearly two-thirds of its population live in poverty.

Honduras has rich resources in forests, marine areas and minerals, though these are often poorly utilized and threatened by extensive deforestation and a lack of effective government conservation.

Honduras’s economy is largely based on agriculture. Coffee, bananas and cultivated shrimp are important exports. Maquilas (garment factories) represent a significant portion of manufacturing output and are an important source of employment.

While the official unemployment rate stands around 5%, underemployment is pervasive – in fact, government statistics report that 46.65% of the population is underemployed . Just over 39% of Honduran laborers work in either the service or agricultural sectors, while 20% work in manufacturing. Many Hondurans make their living in the informal sector, selling tortillas on the street, running neighborhood convenience stores from their home, or other small business initiatives that lack the stability of regular income.

Roman Catholicism is the historically dominant religion in Honduras , but protestant Christian denominations have seen a recent surge and now rival the Catholic Church’s influence. In a 2014 Pew Research Center survey, 46% of Hondurans identified as Catholic, 41% as Protestant or Evangelical, and 2% as another religion, including Judaism, Islam, or syncretistic native faiths. Ten per cent of Hondurans reported no religious affiliation (by comparison, 22.8% of people in the United States report no religious affiliation).

Honduran culture varies between rural and urban populations. Though the rural population is declining, it still makes up 46% of the population, many of whom have difficulty accessing infrastructure such as electricity, running water, or roads. Many rural Honduran farmers practice subsistence farming in the same way as they have for generations, though increasingly, droughts, diseases, and rising costs are forcing them to move to the cities. Honduras’ large cities host malls, restaurants, museums, and galleries, alongside a large population of urban poor for whom there are few, if any, social services.

Though it is sometimes overshadowed by violence and insecurity, Honduras has a wealth of natural and cultural beauty . Honduras has a variety of terrains from pristine beaches to pine forests. Tourists enjoy hiking in cloud forests, visiting ancient Mayan ruins, or snorkeling in the world’s second-largest coral reef. Artisans make beautiful crafts out of wood, leather, or clay.

Most Hondurans speak Spanish and are of mixed European and indigenous origin, though indigenous groups including the Garífuna, Miskitu, Lenca, Tolupan, and Maya Chorti retain their language and heritage.

Challenges in Honduras

Honduras struggles with high levels of violence and homicides; however, foreign tourists and visitors are rarely targeted as victims . As in many places in the world, those who most suffer from violence in Honduras are those who are already most on the margins of society – the poor, the homeless, or those living in communities run by gangs or drug traffickers.

There are several reasons for Honduras’ high levels of violence. First, approximately three or four metric tons of cocaine pass through Honduras every month , with a U.S. street value of over $500 million. These huge quantities of illicit funds and substances destabilize law enforcement and lead to military confrontations.

Second, powerful multinational gangs divide the country . Groups like MS-13 and Barrio 18 stake out territory, using it to extort “war tax” payments, peddle drugs, and enforce their authority with violence.

But drugs and gangs don’t prosper alone. An underlying cause for both is rampant impunity – in other words, the likelihood that someone can commit a crime and get away with it. In Honduras, just 24% of homicides will ever be investigated , and less than 13% will result in conviction. There are more than 180,000 backlogged cases in Honduran courts.

Honduras also suffers from high levels of corruption, which can be defined as the abuse of power for private gain. Corruption limits the effectiveness of crucial government services like health, education, roads and infrastructure, and public safety. It diverts public funds from the budgets of public services to the pockets of the powerful – and by stealing money that should have gone to medicine, preventative policing, or other essential services, corruption kills .

Another serious issue Honduras faces is the limitation of human rights . It is one of the most dangerous countries in the world to be an activist or journalist, and many people have lost their lives defending their causes. Prominent government officials, including police officers and military police, have been accused of links to gangs, organized crime, and teams of murderers-for-hire. Furthermore, Honduras has weak public systems of laws and government , meaning that it is difficult for law enforcement to respond to human rights abuses, violence, corruption, or other crimes.

Responding to these national, systemic challenges requires work on a national, systemic level. At the Association for a More Just Society, our mission is to make government systems work and be just , particularly for the most vulnerable in Honduran society who most suffer when they break down.

We work with the Department of Education, the Department of Health, and the Property Institute to improve essential public services. We also advocate in public security, and have played a crucial part in the purging of the formerly-corrupt Honduran police force.

There are many ways you can support our work for justice in Honduras. You can  support us financially ,  through prayer , or through sharing our message in your own networks.  Contact us for more information , to set up a presentation, or just to say hello!

Updated January 2019

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Association for a More Just Society - U.S. (ASJ-US)

PO Box 888631, Grand Rapids, MI 49588   

| [email protected]    |    1 (800) 897-1135

ASJ (formerly known as AJS) changed our name in 2021 to reflect our partnership with Honduras and our Honduran roots. Learn more.

© 2022 ASJ-US All Rights Reserved. ASJ-US is a U.S. registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

• SPONSOR CLASS
• BIBLE STORIES
• TEACHER PROFILES

We love children through our sponsorship program and OUR FAITHFUL TEACHING OF THE WORD OF GOD.

become a class sponsor and be a blessing to many kids! ​

Who We Are:​

Mission honduras is here to love, serve, and connect children to jesus. ​​, ​ ​what we do.

Our local and international volunteers act as teachers, mentors and encouragers in the  lives of OUR KIDS!

come serve with us, and show Christ's love to a child! 

"Escuelita", Our Sunday School hosts more than 100 Kids. We connect them to Jesus through fun Bible Workshops.

Help us Finish our sunday school building!

Copyright © Mission Honduras. All rights reserved.

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• Board of Advisors

Honduras (Missioners of Christ)

About this Trip

Trip details.

Who We Work With: Missioners of Christ

Type of Service: Evangelization, Catechesis

Trip Capacity: 20

What’s Included:  International airfare, travel insurance, pre-trip orientation, post-trip debriefing, food & lodging in-country, project materials, in-country transportation

What’s Not Included:  Immunizations & personal travel medicines, travel to and from U.S. departure city (determined by FOCUS Missions), passport and visa expenses, other personal incidentals

Fundraising:  Each FOCUS Missions Participant has the opportunity to fundraise the entire cost of his or her mission trip. After you have been accepted on a mission trip, you will be contacted by your personal fundraising coach.

Spring Trips

Honduras 2 (Lindenwood University**)

• March 1 – 10, 2024

*Dates and price subject to change

**This trip is operated by FOCUS Missions and is not affiliated with the specific university.

Promoting Safety & Mitigating Risk

FOCUS Missions holds safety for our participants as the primary concern for any mission trip we send. We offer trips to locations once they have been initially researched and vetted with people on the ground, as well as checked and monitored for safety from our security consultant.

Other precautions FOCUS Missions takes include consulting government agencies, such as the U.S. State Department, the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP), and the Center for Disease Control regarding traveler health. FOCUS Missions also has a number of resources dedicated to promoting safety and mitigating risk, including training every Mission Director in safety and risk management at our Mission Director Leadership Summit, arranging insurance policies for each trip, and equipping our staff and students with safety guidelines at trip orientation.

FOCUS Missions takes great pride in partnering with local religious orders, apostolates, and organizations in every location we serve. We regularly communicate with our contacts before the mission to plan the trip and assess on-the-ground conditions. We reserve the right to re-route or cancel a trip if there is a confirmed safety concern. 

First step: Get a spot on the trip.

What are your questions.

Don’t let anything keep you from coming. We’ve helped thousands of students like you fundraise your entire cost, get everything prepared and travel safely to your location and back.

Jeff Runyan, Sr.

Director of International Relations and FOCUS 153

Jeff Runyan is a 15-year veteran of FOCUS and currently serves as the Sr. Director of International Relations. Jeff has degrees in Spanish and Political Science and a certification in Latin American Studies from Colorado State University. As a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar, he studied in a post-graduate program in International Relations at the Pontifical Catholic University in Santiago, Chile. Jeff is also a Rotary World Peace Fellow and has received a certification in International Peace and Conflict Resolution from Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand. Jeff served as a missionary at the United States Air Force Academy and spent 10 years as the Director of FOCUS Missions.

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Honduras Mission Trip

Location: honduras, dates: fall tbd, cost: $1,100 + air.

This team will help distribute hundreds of pairs of shoes to children and adults around El Eden, two hours from San Pedro Sula, while encouraging them. Partnering with Glow International, you’ll celebrate with all of the children you serve. You will cherish this time in Honduras.

Finance Information

The cost of the trip is $1,100 + Air. Samaritan’s Feet books all flights. We arrange ground transportation, meals, accommodations, exit taxes, trip insurance, shoe supplies, etc., which are included in the base cost. We make the process very easy! The only additional funds needed will be for souvenirs and COVID-19 tests. An application and $150 deposit are due to secure your spot. All payments can be made directly to Samaritan’s Feet.

Statements will be sent prior to each due date: Application Submission: $150 deposit due November 18: $550 due December 18: $550 due January 18: Remaining balance due

International & Team Information

Immunizations recommended for travel to Honduras include up-to-date routine vaccinations, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, and Tetanus. Zika precautions are advised. Visit your local Passport Health office or find more information at CDC.gov. Samaritan’s Feet provides additional travel information and tips during training sessions.

You must be 16 years or older to travel alone. If you are 14-15 years old you must be accompanied by an adult. This trip is under the leadership of Samaritan’s Feet.

COVID-19 Policy

Samaritan’s Feet will follow and adhere to individual country requirements regarding COVID-19 testing and vaccination. Team members are responsible for paying for arrival and in-country COVID-19 tests which are not included in the base cost of the trip as they vary and can change. Samaritan’s Feet will help determine the most reliable, cost-effective options and will help coordinate the process. Team leaders and/or Samaritan’s Feet staff will not remain in-country with COVID-19 positive/quarantined team members and all COVID-19 and medical-related costs will be covered by the individual. Travel insurance is included in your trip cost and that policy does cover some of these expenses.

Are you representing or from a company or organization? If so, please input it below.

We offer warehouse volunteer shifts on:

Tuesday-Thursday: 9:00am-12:00pm, 1:00pm-3:30pm

Saturday: 9:00am-12:00pm

Amazon Smile

AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support Samaritan’s Feet, at no cost to you. When you shop at smile.amazon.com, you’ll find the same shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added bonus that Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to the charity of your choice.

Follow these instructions to start giving to Samaritan’s Feet through your regular Amazon purchases:

Sign in to smile.amazon.com on your desktop or mobile phone browser. From your desktop, go to Your Account and select the option to Change your Charity. Or, from your mobile browser, select Change your Charity from the options at the bottom of the page. Select Samaritan’s Feet.

Mixed Grill Menu

Supporting Samaritan’s Feet

First Course The Smith House Salad Mixed Greens, Radish, Carrots, & Cherry Tomato with a Mustard Seed Vinaigrette

Second Course 4 oz. Petit USDA Prime Filet Mignon Served Medium Rare with Standard Sauce & 4 oz. Norwegian Salmon Home-Style Mashed  Potatoes & Steamed Asparagus

Third Course Tennessee Cheesecake Jack Daniels Caramel Sauce & Southern Candied Pecans

Matching Gifts

Many companies have programs through which they will “match” the charitable contributions made by their employees. Through corporate gift matching, your employer can multiply your donation to Samaritan’s Feet, making it go further.

Check with your company’s Human Resources office to see if they offer gift matching. If your employer does offer this program, your Human Resources department should provide you with a matching gift form to send to us, along with your donation. Complete this form and mail it with your donation to:

Samaritan’s Feet International P.O. Box 78992 Charlotte, NC 28271

We offer pick-up and drop-off during the following times:

Monday-Friday: 9:00am-12:00pm or 1:00pm-3:00pm

I agree to the above by signing below.

Planned or Legacy Giving

With thoughtful planning, you can make a lasting contribution to our mission. Your gift can take any of the following forms:

Residual Bequest : after making provisions for your family and friends, the balance of your belongings (legally referred to as your “estate”) is donated to Samaritan’s Feet.

Percentage of your Estate : where a specific percentage of your estate is left to Samaritan’s Feet.

Pecuniary Bequest : where a specific sum of money is donated.

Specific Gift Bequest : referring to any non-cash items such as stock, annuities, property, jewelry, artwork, or other valuables, which can be given to Samaritan’s Feet.

Life Insurance Policy

Want to know more about a planned gift to Samaritan’s Feet? You should make an appointment with your legal or financial adviser. They have all the tools to help you decide what type of request to make. We have partnered with the National Christian Foundation to make it easy for our supporters to donate cash and non-cash assets to us to take full advantage of all tax credits and benefits.

Churches • Teams • Dump Ministry • Counseling

Serving in roatan, honduras since 2012, interested in roatan as a, mission group, youth group,, individual or as a family.

For over eleven years, we have lived, worked and ministered on the Island of Roatan, Honduras providing teaching, evangelism, professional counseling, mission trip planning and coordination, missions team assistance and more. Review our site, download our prayer card and contact us for more information on how God can use you. The needs are great but our God is greater. Come experience His transforming power as you work alongside local ministries that match your gifting and talents.

We are a 501c3 nonprofit organization and all gifts are tax-deductible.

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Roatan Mission Fellowship exists to be used of God to make disciples of Jesus Christ through His power, by His grace and for His glory. We do this through leading church services, ministering to the lost, serving in the community and living the gospel through our lives.

MISSION TEAMS

We need your church or organization's help to help meet the challenges and needs of the communities on Roatan.

Please watch the video and click below for more information on

how your group can make an

impact & be impacted!

We need your continued support to provide the hope we have in Christ as well as meet the ongoing physical needs of the most at risk 

communities. Please click to give a one-time or monthly donation. 

Roatan Mission is a non-profit organization in USA, Canada and Honduras. All gifts are tax-deductible. 

• Statement of Faith

Home » Mission Trips » Central America » Honduras Mission Trip

Costa Rica ,  Montana ,  Honduras , or wherever you are called …

Envision a honduras mission trip, honduras mission trip.

Honduras is one of featured mission trip countries for water projects . There are many different mission trip types that you can choose from and we just wanted to make you aware about this exciting opportunity. No matter what you do, a mission trip to Honduras in 2020 would be amazing and leave an impact.

• Community Ministry
• Work Projects
• Water Projects
• Church Ministry
• Street Ministry
• Teen Mission Trip
• Children’s Ministry
• Drama/Puppets/Dance Ministry
• Construction Trip

Join a mission trip to Honduras! Honduras is home to an ancient Mesoamerican tradition mixed with Spanish culture. Although the country is similar to other Central American countries it, of course, has its own unique characteristics.

Honduras is a third world country with many people living in poverty and need. One of the main problems in the country is clean water. You could choose to join a long-standing water project in Honduras which endeavors to get water filters in many homes. By helping install water filters, you not only bless the people, but you also have an open door for face to face ministry.

Of course, there are many other types of ministry that need to happen there as well.

Explore the many facets of discipleship in your Honduras mission trip. Make this happen for your group and let His love be known in your mission trips to Honduras.

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Your Email (*)

Your Message

Start the process by filling out the contact form on this page. Let us know who you are, why a Honduras mission trip, and other details that you have or want to have yourself. We are accustomed to answering these questions so feel free to ask for what you need. Excited to be starting this process with you.

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Ministry Contact

Send Mail : P.O. Box 337507 Greeley, CO 80633 (970) 352-5640 [email protected] Physical Address : 34059 Co Rd 33, Greeley, CO 80631

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Support Hondura – Amiga

Together we can make a Difference.

Join us in helping the country of honduras..

AMIGA is A Mission In God’s Amor (Love) dedicated to delivering basic health care, preventative health education, and, most importantly, HOPE to our brothers and sisters in Honduras living in circumstances of profound and dire need who, in return, share a treasure of insight and wisdom.

Many blessings of Hope, Health, and Peace to all.

Since 2006, we have enjoyed many years of service in the beautiful country of Honduras. More than 40 wonderful teams have participated in mission trips with AMIGA, and we are blessed with many “regulars” to each team.   This ministry is the work of many amazing ambassadors,  here in the US and in Honduras, working with love and devotion.  It has been, and continues to be, an adventure and an honor. 

OUR NUMBERS THAT SPEAK

We have numbers that push us to give our best and make sure that we strive to keep raising our standards to help

"Serving thousands every year with love”

Donate & support.

Thank you for your interest in supporting  AMIGA. Every donation is appreciated and helps deliver hope and health care to communities in need in Honduras.

GET INVOLVED

We would love to hear from you! Any assistance with our organization is appreciated and helps make our Mission in Gods Amor possible!

OUR MISSION

AMIGA is a mission in God’s Amor (Love) dedicated to delivering basic health care, preventative health education, and HOPE.

On every mission brigade, God comes through with His provision, His Love, and His Grace

The beauty of honduras is only surpassed by the beauty of our honduran brothers and sisters who stand strong in the presence of god and shine a light that cannot be extinguished by much darkness., we have profound and humble appreciation for the many who support amiga. each individual adds to the shining light of this amazing mission in god’s amor. on each brigade, we serve over a thousand people in different communities. the sadness, devastation, and hunger for hope in honduras is palpable. on our amiga brigade in november ‘22, people in cortés felt hope and a little joy with each (handmade – with love put into each stitch) bag of soap, toothpaste & brush, and needed medications. since the devastating floods from hurricanes eta and iota covered entire neighborhoods with water in cortés, there has been an overwhelming and palpable aura of hopelessness and despair. everything – including many lives – was lost. these are areas where we have been serving for more than fifteen years. amiga sent an additional shipment of basic household supplies for the flood victims. the many stories are heartbreaking and are still being told as many are still struggling to recover two years later. we look forward to returning there again..

• Our Mission
• Our Corporate Sponsors
• Denton Program
• Helping Hands For Honduras
• Medwish International
• Sociedad Amigos de los Niños

Mission Trip

I. objective.

Through the experience of a short-term mission trip, it is hoped that participants will contribute significantly to many of the needs of the Honduras people. The trip will also expand one's view of the Creator, the great need in the world, and the relative unimportance of "thing" in our lives. This will be a trip of "reverse mission" where we learn some of life's most important lessons from the poorest of the poor.

II. AIRLINE TICKETING

HCRF arranges for airline tickets through a travel agency, which specializes in mission travel. By doing so, we can achieve significantly lower group rates.

III. TRAVEL DOCUMENTS​

You are required to have the following pieces of personal identification:

A. Passport: Applications can be made at the Post Office or at some local libraries (including the Beachwood Library at Richmond and Shaker). Cost is approximately $60 and takes about six weeks. This cost is not included as part of the trip payment plan.

B: Required back-up 1.0.: You should copy the inside of your passport which includes your picture and personal information. It should be carried separately from your passport.

C. Immigration form: This will be given to you by the airline during the flight. Team leaders will assist in filling out this form.

IV. IMMUNIZATIONS

The Center for Disease Control recommends the following:

A . Malaria preventative B. Tetanus. Should be updated every ten years. C. Typhoid. D. Hepatitis Type A.

V. HEALTH AND HYGIENE

Sanitary conditions throughout Honduras are poor. Parasites and microorganisms cause many health problems for the Honduran people. These can cause intestinal disorders, such as diarrhea, in foreigners.

To remain healthy, carefully observe the directions below.

A. WATER: Drink only bottled water. Tap water is unsafe to drink. DON'T EVEN USE IT TO BRUSH YOUR TEETH. Ice made from tap water is also unsafe.

B. WASH-N-DRYS: These and/or hand antiseptic hand sanitizer gel are great. These are convenient to use when water is not readily available.

C. TOILET TISSUE: In Nuevo Paraiso, toilet tissue is provided. However, it is not flushed down the commode; rather it is deposited in a container next to the commode. Plastic bags (grocery store) are ideal for depositing used tissue. It is recommended that you keep one roll on you at all times. Even areas such as the airport may lack toilet tissue.

VI. LIVING CONDITIONS

A. HOUSING: During your stay in Honduras, your Home Base will be comfortable. In Nuevo Paraiso, beds are available, which include the necessary linens and pillows. Showers are available.

B. FOOD: Three meals a day are prepared by Honduras cooks who are associated with the organization. You will also have the opportunity to dine in a Honduras restaurant, where food and water are safe. Hondurans show their love and affection for others through their cooking. They appreciate hearing that you enjoyed your meal. Do not buy food from street vendors. In Nuevo Paraiso there is a store that you can buy "coke in a bag" and pop.

C. WEATHER: The temperature is likely to reach 98 degrees in the heat of the day. Dehydration can easily occur under these conditions. Drinking plenty of bottled water (supplied) is a must. A water bottle is required, so individuals can obtain clean water from the Home Base. Sunscreen, SPF 15 or higher, is recommended along with lip protection. Aloe Vera is helpful with sunburn. Bring a lightweight long-sleeve shirt if you burn easily. A Hat for all missionaries is necessary.

VII. CLOTHING

It is important, out of respect for Hondurans, that we comply with their standards. Please use discretion and common sense. Keep modesty in mind. Wearing clothes that are tattered is a sign of disrespect. Cool, comfortable clothing is recommended. Cotton clothing is most appropriate. Hospital scrubs are ideal for both the Home Base and the work sites.

MALE ATTIRE: Lightweight work pants, slacks and jeans are appropriate. Shorts may only be worn at the Home Base, not to the work area. Short-sleeve shirts, t-shirts or tank tops may be worn; however, they must not contain any questionable logos, such as beer, cigarettes or rock groups. For church, a collared shirt and casual pants are recommended. Tennis shoes and boots are recommended foot attire. Sandals/flip-flops can be used at the Home Base and are excellent for showering.

FEMALE ATIIRE: Jeans, slacks and dresses may be worn. No mini-skirts, tank tops or skin revealing attire can be worn. No open-toed shoes can be worn to the work site. Tennis shoes and boots are excellent choices.

LAUNDERING: During the week, the women at the Home Base will wash your clothing for a nominal fee. This is a way for the women to make extra money.

VIII. MAKE-UP AND JEWELRY

Keep make-up to a minimum. Leave expensive jewelry at home. Earrings and bracelets are not appropriate for males. Inexpensive watches are recommended for everyone. Please keep in mind that jewelry may be an attraction for you to be robbed.

IX. PACKING

Pack lightly; you will only be gone a week. Do not take anything you can't afford to lose. Rolling clothes takes up less space. Avoid glass containers. The airline permits two check-in bags and one carry-on per person.

You may bring a purse or small camera bag in addition to your carry-on. It is suggested that your carry-on be a backpack. Nametags need to be on all baggage. One bag should contain your personal items, while the second one is used to pack supplies and gifts. Please bring large baggage to pack the supplies.

A. CARRY-ON BAGGAGE: The dimensional limit cannot exceed a total of 45 inches: maximum height is 15 inches; width, 20 inches; and depth, 10 inches. Be sure to pack any items you do not want to lose in this bag.

1. Passport: Make four copies. Leave one at home, bring one to the team leaders, pack one in your suitcase, and put one in your wallet. 2. Brigade Shirt (to be worn to the airport) 3. Drivers license or backup I.D. 4. Change of clothes in case your baggage is lost. 5. Camera and film 6. Water bottle 7. Toilet paper ( 1 roll) 8. Hand sanitizer. 9. Medications. Include Pepto-Bismol or lmodium AD and Correctol. If you are prone to motion sickness, Dramamine is recommended. Remember all personal medications. 10. Health insurance card. 11. Books 12. Cellular phones, iPods, and other small electronic devices, playing cards, etc. are allowed if desired, but not necessary. (Some travelers enjoy using their cell phones to call loved ones while at airports, however most cell phones will not work in Honduras. Team leaders can help with phone communication home if necessary.)

B. CHECK-IN BAGGAGE: May not to exceed 50 pounds; duffle bags may be used.

1. Clothing (Work clothes: lightweight work pants, jeans, slacks or scrubs, t­shirts and tennis shoes or boots. Non-work clothes to wear at home base and nicer clothes for church). 2. Soap/anti-bacterial lotion. 3. Toilet paper (1 roll). 4. Sunglasses 5. Hat for protection from the sun. 6. Contact lenses (bring an extra pair). Glasses are preferred at the construction sites. 7. Shoes, boots and shower clogs/sandals. 8. Light rain jacket. 9. Electric hairdryers and shavers 10. Snacks (granola bars, crackers, hard candy) 11. Flashlight. 12. Insect repellent. 13. Work gloves. 14. Sunblock. 15. Lip protection 16. Aloe gel 17. Ladies' note: Come prepared with tampons. You may not be able to purchase them in Honduras. 18. Journal

X. MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION

A. COMMUNICATION: Good communication is essential for preventing and solving problems. If you have any problems of health concerns, please talk with your leader.

B. BEING SENT HOME: If you create a serious problem within the team, you will be required to return home immediately. The use of drugs or alcohol is unacceptable.

C. WORKING WITH TRANSLATORS: The interpreters are vital to the organization. Be sure to go out of your way to treat these individuals as part of your team. We encourage you to get to know them personally. Do not invite any Honduran to the United States.

D. CURRENCY: Do not bring travelers' checks. Upon arrival at the airport in Honduras, you may exchange the American dollar for Limpira. One Limpira is worth about seven cents. Most team members spend less than 100 dollars. Credit cards are accepted at the shops in the city.

E. GIVING TO THE POOR: Refrain from giving to beggars, many of whom are professionals; even the children consider begging a game.

F. GIFT GIVING:

1. If you want to leave some of your personal belongings (clothing), check with your team leader first. 2. If the team leader approves, the item(s) will be given to Mae Cruz who will (anonymously) present the donation. 3. Never arbitrarily give items away to Hondurans. 4. Giving things away, even candy, can create chaos. It is very important not to add to the disempowerment of the people by creating a begging mentality. The gifts that the team brings down will be distributed by the Home Base leaders.

G. SHOPPING: On one of your days in Honduras, you will have the opportunity to shop for souvenirs. Basket weaving, leather goods, pottery, hammocks, etc. can be purchased. Again, most areas accept credit cards.

XI. TEAM PROJECTS

A. CONSTRUCTION: Recent teams have worked on projects which have included churches, schools, orphanages, dormitories, hospices and individual homes. All of these projects have one thing in common; they are built out of concrete. This means that most of the team will be carrying tools and materials, mixing and pouring cement and laying concrete blocks. All of this work is done "Honduran-style" - by hand. Additionally, there is often carpentry, painting, pluming and electrical work to do. We have found that men and women of all ages are able to learn and do all of the types of work needed to complete these projects. There is plenty of opportunity for light tasks that require no lifting. The rule is that when one is tired, they are expected to get out of the sun, sit down and rest. On hot days, a cycle of twenty minutes on and twenty minutes off may be appropriate. Drink plenty of water.

B. MEDICAL TEAM: In the remote areas of Honduras, medical care is very limited, and, in some cases, unavailable. When medical personnel are on your team, they may hold temporary medical clinics in these areas. Usually only those with medical experience or translators go on these expeditions. However, and while this trip is primarily a medical mission, there are numerous opportunities for non-medical personnel to participate.

I was an American missionary in Honduras. I witnessed firsthand the violence they endure.

There is an armed security guard at every Dunkin’ Donuts in Honduras . When you enter a pharmacy, the guard with a shotgun slung across his chest will considerately hold your pistol while you wait for your prescription to be filled. On holidays, there are no official fireworks, only a handful of illegal firecrackers and gunshots exploding in the night air. On Christmas Eve, New Year’s, Independence Day, in every barrio across the country, shots echo in the dark like a posse galloping out of town in an old Western.

Five years ago, I left the States to volunteer alongside other Americans and Nicaraguans at a children’s home on the northern coast of Honduras that served orphans and kids who could no longer live with their families due to extreme poverty, abuse or both. We learned firsthand that paradise and hell are next-door neighbors, and you can hear the gunshots at night from both places.

I first had a gun pointed at me while waiting for a cab before dawn in the wealthiest neighborhood of San Pedro Sula, the industrial center of the country and, at the time, the “murder capital” of the world. The security guard saw me standing outside the seminary where I had spent the night as a guest. He climbed down from his turret on the street corner and approached me with a machete in one hand and a raised revolver in the other.

Paradise and hell are next-door neighbors, and you can hear the gunshots at night from both places.

“What are you doing here?” He squinted at me, blinking back sleep.

“I’m just waiting for a taxi. I’m headed to the airport,” I said.

“Then why would you be waiting here on the street?” he asked. “Nothing good happens here this time of night.” Surrounding us were houses that were mansions even by U.S. standards. I wanted to go back inside the seminary, but the 15-foot-high gate had slid closed behind me, and I could not open it again without waking up all the priests, nuns and seminarians inside.

“I can go wait on another block,” I offered. “My cab is just five minutes away.”

“No!” he responded firmly. “You wait right there. Don’t move. Just wait.”

When my taxi finally did arrive, he holstered his gun and offered an apology, but I did not stick around long enough to acknowledge it.

Before I moved to Honduras, I visited the country. For a week, I helped lead a group of high school students from all of the Catholic schools in the Diocese of Dallas who wanted to offer some manual labor and supplies to our “sister diocese.” In the shadow of a massive green mountain, we worked to rebuild and paint a crowded school where Luis, our local guide, and his wife were teachers. Luis was the closest thing the small village had to a mayor. He ran the school, helped settle disputes, led the community Bible study and Sunday service, and as one of the only residents with a car, also provided ambulance service.

One morning he greeted us with bags under his bloodshot eyes. He had taken a neighbor who had stomach pains to the hospital in the middle of the night—more than an hour’s drive each way, around to the other side of the mountain. He returned in time for breakfast and prayers and to greet us in the morning at the school.

Luis and his wife stood out as towering examples of what was possible even amid extreme poverty.

Luis and his wife stood out as towering examples of what was possible even amid extreme poverty. With determination and a good heart, one could be a pillar of the community—a community worth staying for. I once asked Luis if many of the young men in his village would eventually leave for the United States. “All of them,” he told me. There was no shame in his voice; it was simply a fact. When I asked if he had ever thought of making the journey, he shook his head. He had a wife and young son, a good job, a community where he was making a difference; he could not imagine leaving.

Years later, when I moved to a town just on the other side of that mountain, I jumped on the bus to visit Luis and his family. He was thrilled to see me again but cautioned me not to take the bus next time. “It was not safe” is all he would say.

During my two years in Honduras, I learned to love those kids at our children’s home like they were my own. Our goal was to prepare them for healthy and productive lives in Honduras, despite the brutal and heartbreaking childhood they had suffered. If we could only offer them enough love and stability and peace in the midst of the tempest around them and behind them in their past, they might have a fighting chance, we believed.

Suddenly the cursed choice to flee this country that so many of our Honduran neighbors had been forced to make became my own.

Yet violence does not issue warnings, and it will not take into consideration sincerely held beliefs. I had just returned from teaching my English class for the day when I learned that one of our volunteers and our executive director, who was visiting from the States, had been attacked on the beach next to our property. Maybe 200 yards from the house, our sanctuary, they had been held with machetes to their necks, and the volunteer, one of my best friends, was raped. “We know where you are from,” their attackers had said when they let them go. “Tell anyone and we come back and kill you and all the children.”

After going to the hospital and giving her testimony to the police, my beloved friend spent the night surrounded by the rest of us on the floor, several of us with machetes by our sides and all of us unable to sleep. In the morning, she was evacuated out of the country, and the rest of us were offered the option by our board of directors to leave as well. Suddenly the cursed choice to flee this country that so many of our Honduran neighbors had been forced to make became my own. The men responsible had still not been caught, and our already limited community of volunteers was quickly dwindling as many admitted they no longer felt safe enough to continue working. The next day the rest of us left as well.

A few years later I reached out to Luis via WhatsApp. It turned out he and his family had snuck away from their small town in the middle of the night. A local gang had demanded he pay for “protection,” and when Luis refused, they threatened to kill him and his family. They fled to a larger city, but he and his wife were unable to find any work as teachers and were still fearful the gang would eventually find them. He asked if I could help him claim asylum in the United States.

Poverty and violence, the causes of these caravans, are diseases we infected these countries with.

I got in touch with a few immigration lawyers, who told me Luis would have to make it to the Mexico-U.S. border and apply for asylum there. But even if he got that far, I had to tell Luis, it was very unlikely his family would be granted asylum. Luis was heartbroken. He needed to protect his family, he said, and the best way he could do that was to leave and provide some kind of living for them. Maybe you and I could get married, if only on paper, he offered sincerely. He was right that such a union was now legal here in the United States, I explained, but I could not just marry him to get him citizenship. Despite the absurdity of the suggestion, I struggled to type out my response, knowing my decision was a matter of life and death.

I still receive messages from Luis every few weeks begging me for help, though to be honest, I no longer have the courage to open them. Constant reminders that I am helpless simply became too much. I know ignoring him is wrong. I know it is my privilege to be able to log off of the violence of Honduras and pretend I do not live in the country that created Luis’s desperation, which is also the country that could help to fix it.

Being born in paradise is no reason to condemn those still stuck in hell.

For all I know, Luis may be part of the infamous caravan, waiting on the other side of the southern border to claim asylum. It is the type of thing a real friend should know. It is important to know who these people are and that what they are doing is legal. There is no way for them to claim asylum from within their country of origin. Implying that those who peacefully present themselves at ports of entry have broken any American laws is simply not truthful.

When I first met Luis, I assumed that in Honduras it was possible to get an education, work and become financially stable enough that you would never need to leave. But the image in my head of the “virtuous Honduran” proved an illusion when even Luis was forced to flee from the unyielding violence and poverty of Central America. If we want to end the cycle of families fleeing in the night for our border, it is necessary to learn why their nights became so terrifying to begin with.

The weapons that plague their streets came from us . The corruption that infests their governments is a direct result of the coups and instability our country has consistently directed or condoned for over a century . Before Banana Republic was a chic clothing store, it was a dismissive term for a country made entirely dependent on a more powerful economy outside its borders. It was merely an updated version of colonialism, and the original victim was Honduras .

Poverty and violence, the causes of these caravans, are diseases we infected these countries with. Getting mad at the migrants is like the conquistadors and white frontiersmen wondering why the Native Americans they found were always getting so sick.

Those of us who live north of the Mexican border have to learn just how intertwined our lands are and why our neighbors to the south still hear gunshots at night. I have fled from one side to the other myself and watched in vain as those I care about try to follow. But being born in paradise is no reason to condemn those still stuck in hell.

[Explore America ’s in-depth coverage of immigration.]

Patrick Gothman is a Catholic writer based in Seattle, Wash., and the editor Reaching Out, a Medium publication for L.G.B.T. stories from people of faith.

Have the likes of president Trump the honesty and integrity to believe what you have witnessed? I find interesting and very humble of you, Patrick, to impute the blame to those who are responsible, neo-colonialists of which we are ... both Americans, AND Canadians, of which I am.

The essay addresses no nuances ( like the current caravan males on video throwing rocks and bottles at low paid border guards...gee we need those males in our country for sure) and the essay depends on leftist guilt tripping which only the leftist reader will buy. USA actions for a century cannot be simplistically totaled as pure evil ( the new writer’s cliche) and even if it could...why would a current usa citizen allow himself to do anything out of a guilt he had no part in. If your great great grandfather was an overcharging doctor or merchant, what bearing in the world has that on your choices right now. Should you reimburse financially all his victims? Never heard one case of it in all humankind. Be the first....but Ezekiel 18:20 seems to contradict you. Catholic countries south of us are a disaster. The Church should be holding a Council to examine why so many Catholic countries are broke, corrupt, and violent with murder rates from Brazil to Mexico that should have made Popes demand death penalties just in those exact countries...in keeping with the catechism prior to Francis though it was defective prior to him but technically it admitted that execution can be necessary. Instead none of the past three Popes even knew that globally...a non death penalty Catholic region is worst murder rate-wise in the world with prisons that have no relationship to the perfect prisons envisaged by three Popes in their ccc dreams. China with 7 times Brazil’s population( both poor dominant)...has 11,000 murder victims a year. Non Death penalty Brazil has 55,000 a year. Three Popes can’t see the lesson in that. It was invisible to them because they sought Nobel prize image instead of truth for victims. Let China execute justice in Central America and it will be very safe in three years... because they are not feminized in the negative sense of that word...like the present Church and its post Catholic governments. Today I read Mexico is going to investigate our use of tear gas... the same Mexico who won’t investigate the thousands of unsolved murders and disappearances some by its own soldiers. The media equals ideology only. There is no neutral source anymore. A DACA dreamer last week was released from prison in NJ and ICE was not notified and he murdered in the midwest three days later..three victims. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/washington-secrets/illegal-alien-charged-with-triple-murder-was-a-dreamer When I lived in Rockland County, a woman c.10 years ago ordered deck cleaning...mother of two children. A Central American male arrived, started the job, but then went inside and raped and killed her..New City, NY. Then the piece of scum took her phone...called her friends and taunted them about what he did. NY is death penalty free. It too needs executions especially for men like that one. Feminization in the bad sense rules the weakening West. China would do the Rom.13:4 thing with our deck cleaner...and they would shoot him within two years...not 10,15, 20 years of appeals....the usa slow motion disaster.

https://nypost.com/2006/05/16/handyman-gets-life-in-rape-slay-you-stole-the-love-of-my-life/

The older I get,the less I seem to know.I mean I knew my entire adult life that a nation has a right to protect itself,and secure it’s borders.In the latest caravan heading to our border,I can’t miss the number of military aged young men that are in attendance.Some possibly gang members.I see all those things.I also see a family interviewed and the mother from Honduras beg the US President by name to help her family and spare them from the violence of her home country .I know that if your willing to look past the sensationalism of the left and right,you see people for what they are-fellow travelers in this thing called life.You also see ,if you look closely enough,possibly ,the face of Christ.

John, according to a 2014 UN report, femicide has a 95% impunity rate in Honduras. I suspect many Honduran women have seen the face of satan rather than the face of Christ in their partner. By the way...wiki has great work on Honduras...very detailed.

A remarkable story of human tragedy. A generation ago Honduras was a peaceful backwater. Drugs, guns, and gangs have destroyed the tranquility. We must admire the heroic people of Honduras and help them restore justice, security, and a decent existence. Thank you, Mr. Gothman for sharing your experience and insights.

Has anyone hypothesized how things in Central America might have turned out differently if Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Belize and Mexico had come together like the thirteen original American (US) colonies did in 1776? It seems the Spanish government and the Catholic Church held sway before the US ever got involved in a meaningful way in Central America. Canada and the US seem to have made out a lot better by individual states forming a "more perfect union" that is sticking together. Not to minimize the US involvement, but we were not the first colonizers in Central America and Central America is fragmented to this day. And it shows.

Has anyone hypothesized how these countries may have advanced had the US not intervened in their governments, taken part in the destruction and overthrow of their governments and installation of banana republics?

No....show us in detail instead of getting others to do the work.

The first book of the Bible is Genesis. In it, the story of mankind’s dual nature and free will are fully described and disclosed. There is no excuse for evil behavior, regardless of a person’s past. If that were the case, why on earth would we need religion to teach us right from wrong and that the wages of sin is death. The Left has effectively destroyed much of humanity’s faith and trust in religion and replaced the logos of personal responsibility with victimhood. Do we give Hitler a break because he suffered trauma in his childhood? WTH has happened to all those Catholics that they are inflicting such harm on their own people? It would have been better if the Church had left them in their native state. Don’t blame this just on the US, the Church bears equal, if not greater, responsibility for not teaching these people how to act like Christ and build prosperous and educated community that reflects the Glory of God.

All daughters of Eve and sons of Adam are in their present state, living cast out from the garden in Eden because of sin. The lack of money trees is part of the consequences.

We are all born naked and without everything except whatever resources the communities within which we are born are prepared to contribute to our survival and well being.

WE HAVE NO RIGHTS EXCEPT THE DEATH PENALTY FOR OUR OWN SIN, all else which comes our way is gift and grace.

Inequality; non-uniform distribution of stuff; plenty and scarcity; all came from the HAND OF GOD Judeo-Christian culture is modelled on living like a domestic flock, the others are modelled more on bee-hives.

Jesus endowed sharing with sacramental glory, " done to the least of my brothers is done unto me" and He did NOT make it a LAW.

Let's forget this discussion of Banana Republic or US colonization. Every country in Latin America was dysfunctional from the start because of Spanish and Portuguese colonization which left the social philosophy of each country and the Catholic Church on every country that emerged. If one wants to look at American influence, go no farther than Japan, Korea and Western Europe after WWII. But look at how the Philippines failed even with American governance due to its Spanish and Catholic influence. Read "The Mystery of Capital" by Hernando De Soto, a Peruvian economist.

I seem to remember there were many people living from the tip of the northern continent icy wilderness to the tail of the southern continent at Terra del Fuego and everywhere in between. For the Maya and Aztec, human sacrifice was embedded in everyday life and widespread back to the time before Christ amongst most of their neighbours. Bit hard to believe they were the noble savages of Romanticism and impossible to believe they could be more corrupted by colonialism. .

Besides de Soto, read Niall Ferguson's "Civilization." Essentially the Spanish and Portuguese cultures were based on the "great chain of being" advocated by the Church and never established land rights/real freedom for most of the people. There never developed a culture of getting rewarded for doing something and advancing that flowed from England and Holland. That's why Philadelphia was the most vibrant city in the Western Hemisphere in 1750. Pennsylvania absorbed 80,000 Germans immigrants before 1800 and thrived.

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It may not be on topic but it is delight to hear it. Thank you.

Ahimsa or non-violence is the way forward.

This response was relocated to Wendy's statement where it belongs.

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