Ditto!

Diane says it all below. I couldn't capture it nearly as beautiful as she did. The trip will have a lasting affect in our hearts. Our team was great, the children were beautiful, and for one week a group of people joined together to make a part of the world a little better, a little happier. Thanks to all our family and friends for their support and kind words, to The MathWorks for boosting everyones contributions, to Jason for preparing us and leading such a wonderful team, and Liz for finding this beautiful place in Central America that is truly a Home of Love and Hope.
Volveremos de nuevo El Hogar de Amor y Esperanza.
Lori

Closing out the incredible week at in Honduras

Our Friday ...

Friday we traveled through the city and went up to the National Park. This is a view from the top of the mountain where an enormous status of Jesus stood.

This is a replica of the Mayan temple that they are maintaining at the top of this enormous mountain. The park was beautiful yet it looks out over the city and all the poverty. Why is the money going to the park and not the people and their living conditions?

Above is is a video from the top of the mountain that looks over the city...

Above is a close up of some of the views... Check out the SINGLE runway at the airport....

A street video from the road now - trash...and all the congested "homes?"

We went to a market area to shop for some souveniors and those that know Lori know that shopping HAD to be included somewhere in the trip. We had a whole 1/2 hour! Power shop anyone?? Friday included a lot of driving and a lot of overwhelming (the word of the week) sights. But when we returned to El Hogar we came bearing ice cream for the kids -who of course rarely get treats like this. You can bet that each child liked those cups of ice cream clean.

We shared the Stow Independent with the kids (for the picture you Stow residents will have to WAIT to see - it's awesome). Jose is looking at Lori's husband Mike and son Joey in an ice hockey team photo...

Saturday ...our last day...

We began our day with a visit to Marvin's "home". As part of a volunteer week, teams go to an actual home where one of the students lived. The purpose is to experience 1st hand the environment which some of these kids came from. The visit we did to Marvin's home was actually not considered among the worse examples...his mother Christina had "access" to running water and had electricity in her shack....

This is Marvin who is probably 12. This is a 1 "room" shack that fit a double mattress and some walking room.

Marvin's 42 year old mother Christina cried with love as she doesn't see Marvin very often and yet knew she couldn't take care of him. Women when they are able to work are allowed to bring their daughters with them (so they can learn the trades of housekeeping and cooking) but boys are not allowed - which is why many are on the streets, in gangs or dying.....Christina was so happy as Lori bought flowers for Marvin to give to his mother for Mother's Day and candy for his sisters. I wonder if she'd ever received flowers before?

This is the "yard" for his sisters. Note the "bridge" that crosses from the shack over to the roof of another building. Unsecured and about 10 feet off the dirt ground where laundry hangs to dry...

This very unfriendly watch dog protects them from theft.

View down to the ground from the shack.....

On our way out Lori and each gave Christina the equivalent of $20.oo each..That paid for 1 1/2 months of rent for Christina and her girls. RENT for the shack...and maybe some food. As she reached out to both of us with powerful hugs, tears, her blessings and thanks, the emotions from mother to mother were enough to break our hearts as they have never been broken before.

The girls waved goodbye to us as we crawled back into our air conditioned and comfortable van... We headed back to El Hogar to pack up, clean up and say goodbye to the kids before heading to the airport...

Jose sang 2 songs to the team as part of the"farewell" to us. All the children sat in the court yard and presented us with cards. A few of the kids volunteered to stand and speak to us. Their words were translated into English with the words "Thank you for coming to El Hogar. Thank you for playing with us. Have a safe journey home and God Bless you."

Lori and I stepped forward when we were asked to speak. With a huge knot in my throat and my hand in Lori's, I struggled to choke out the words to the children...

"Lori and I came to El Hogar as friends. We are the only 2 mothers in our group of 11. Tomorrow is Mother's Day and please know that you will all in be our hearts". I padded by heart and wiped the stream of tears that ran down my face. We were indundated with hugs from the children one by one. All recieved big motherly hugs and a wet, teary kiss on the head. Our Mother's Day will forever be broader in meaning for Lori and I. We spent our Mother's Day with our families back in Stow. But our lives are forever changed and

El Hogar....

we will be back.....

Thank you all for following our journey and for helping with your donations. Our team raised nearly $10,000 which is 100% matched by The Mathworks company - so $20,000 total! It's the most any team has ever raised and we are all so proud of that. The money will go so far and is so necessary for a wonderful program that is funding entirely by donations and will save the lives of many. Adios until next time! Diane xo

How can it be Thursday ALREADY??

Hola!

Lori and I were too tired last night to blog...or for me...to even read email. We have had 2 full days again. Yesterday and today we left El Hogar for field trips. Yesterday we went to the Technical school. When the boys finish 7th grade at El Hogar, they choice a trade and continue to the other El Hogar areas. One option is the Technical School where they go to learn either welding, electricial work or carpentry. They spend 8-10th grades there learning the trade of choose and then leave at about age 16 to be on thier own... The Technical school was about an hour away and we spent the morning there and lunch. The money donated to El Hogar goes to the any of the 3 El Hogar projects. El Hogar where we are staying (grades Kindergarden through 7th grade), The Technical school or the Agricultural school. Wednesday we went to the Technical school and today to the Agricultural school.

Agricultural school is over an hour away and this is where the kids learn the trade of raising animals or farming. The visuals throughout the ride especially today were very eye opening....the poverty is unbelieveable.

Both afternoons we returned to shovel MORE dirt...including moving dirt from one part of the building over to another side via wheel barrels and a lot of man/woman power! Both nights we then went out to play with the kids. Last night after showering, Lori and I went to play soccer...holy crud...these boys put our kids to shame with their foot skills, no training, no uniforms, no shin guards and old ladies on thier team! I needed another shower after.... Tonight we spent time coloring with some of the young boys. No way was I playing soccer again... my clothes smell bad enough already! Thank goodness I have enough underwear and socks!

Enjoy the photos below! Miss you all and can´t wait to share wine and stories with you all when we come home. We are forever changed! We can´t believe tomorrow is our full day here and our last night to play with the kids.





Randy Moss was here???






Alexander and Wilmer drew Lori and I pictures...most of mine walked away with another child.....butI did manage to keep 2 to take home. The boys in spanish wrote on our pictures "Thank you for coming to El Hogar and thank you for playing with us, but can you write us please."



A few pictures from the Agricultural School

So these baby cows came from artificial insemination right...well this jar on the right...That´s where the bull´s genes are kept....If you know what I mean....

"Apples....and Bananas...." ok...no apples

From the car we saw a few street side markets. Carlos Costli, number 13 is the Honduras Soccer team star...Hoping to buy them tomorrow from a market area we are going to.

Pictures from The Technical School

Working with electricity...Mark and Mark with some of the cabinets the boys in welding made.

Classroom at the technical school

Does Paul Anastas know what this machine is?? I bet he does....

These boys do their OWN laundry...how do we teach our kids to do that???

Mike Statkus would be so proud! The boys wanted a basketball court built before they had a dormitory built. However, The Chicago Bulls??? Go Celtics!!!

A puppy pet....

Aloe

The large Coffee Plant roasting beans we could smell in the van!

Overwhelming views of poverty... and millions and millions of people

It´s no wonder the boys are happy to be at El Hogar.... tomorrow we actually go on a home visit to see first hand where some of these boys come from....

Buenos Nochas....

Diane and Lori xxoo

What a day!

Tuesday! Hola!

Lori and I are blogging on our own tonight...We had to be separated because we were laughing too much...actually it´s because she went to the computer room first!

These are some of the older boys tonight and happy to have their picture taken.

Kids taking laundry down from the door to the Laundry room...

Today was a powerful day both physically and emotionally. I had the the movie "Holes" in my head for the better part of the day since I moved dirt from 1 pile into another just a short distance and then gravel maybe the same distance in a different direction. I just shoveled and ate dirt. Tiring, but very fulfilling.

Trying to figure out what to do with these huge boulders was quite a challenge...

¿How were we going to sift THIS through the screens for the cement?

Lori had the tougher job today moving dirt from part of El Hogar across "Campus" over to the other going up a big hill. She was working those legs for "Reach the Beach" hills. Plus since she can´t go running here, so hoofing dirt up a hill in a wheel barrel was the the next best option. Check out the smile. I told her to think of the Cosmos we´ll have at home when we get back to Stow.

There is NOTHING like a frozen Banana con chocolate during breaktime!

Tonight was a whole other story. Claudia, the Directór did a presentation tonight of El Hogar´s history, a movie of a home visit and stories of some of the kids which of course brought me to a blubbering mess. The hardest part of course was surpressing that during the presentation. Her passion for these kids is so obvious. Some of the stories of where these kids came from are absolutely overwhelming. The little boy laughing in our blog from yesterday, Wilmer, was living on the street with his alcoholic father for 3 years. His mother was no where to be found. His father though in his 50´s looked like he was in his 70´s. Wilmer watched over him every day and finally a relative brought him here. His father came to see him months later and promised to straighten up and Claudia allowed him to take Wilmer for a day in December. Wilmer disappeared with him for 3 days. Claudia had to go find him..... Wilmer doesn´t want to see his father again. Now look at his laugh in that picture from yesterday..... So many stories like this or worseHe even helped us shoveling today for a couple of hours. After Claudia talked with us tonight, we went to meet the new kids that came here within the year and I could have passed out, honestly from being so overwhelmed. Imagine walking in a room and unexpectedly 30 kids all came up to each of us to hug us individually. Most of them barely reaching my waist in height. Remember the scene in Spy Kids when all the kid robots are ordered to attack the bad guy at the end and they running up to him with their hands up yelling? Well these kids didn´t yell or attack ' they just ran all at once with open arms for hugs. These kids don´t cry and here I was with tears POURING down my face hugging these beautiful little kids. I will remember that moment as vividly as I remember the first time I held Michael in Colorado. An overwhelming feeling in your heart that you can´t explain or imagine could be any stronger. How blessed, lucky and humbled I feel to be surrounded by children who have endured more in their young lives than most adults I know will ever go through. I still can´t get over that some are so small for their ages. So much malnutrition before they go here. One only hopes they catch up as they get older. But their smiles......and the love and trust they feel here...just look at these pictures....

We hope you can feel what we are feeling. We are so happy to be able to share all of this with you... Thank you for taking the time to be with us on this...and it´s only Tuesday....

Samuel in the yellow ...what a cutie! check out the flipped up collar...

Francisco I played with paper airplanes.



This is Wilmer....when he was playing dominos with me yesterday.

This is Lindsey. No one knows how old she is. Her mother says 6 but she looks 4.... An absolute love.... She LOVED playing the game LRC (Left, Right, Center) a game I brought down with me. Thanks Barbara Rawding for introducing that game to me at our department outing....

Remember to go to mathworkselhogar.blogspot.com also!

Buenos Noches!

Love to all

Diane

Nothing like a Cosmo after a days work!

And do I ever wish I could have had one today! (I would have even settled for a Refried Bean Cosmo)

We worked very hard today helping with drainage improvements around the home. Here is me in action... (Mike, don´t think I´m going to try this at home....)


Then we broke for lunch. As Diane mentioned the conversations are quite interesting. Something about nuclear fusion and beyond. I heavily participated in that conversation...



Later we spent time with the director of the school. She shared the background stories of many of the children. All different stories, each one amazing. It´s miraculous that some of these kids are even alive. All were malnourished and are very small for their age. Many of them at ages not much older than 7 were the primary caretaker of their younger siblings.
But they are now clean, fed, being educated, and happily doing their chores!! They love to play with each other. The soccer skills around here are incredible.
The kids enjoy their classroom and their dorm room (each of the dorm rooms contain about 60 bunks with rows stacked 3 high) with additional mattresses spread on the floor. On each bunk bed is their 1 towel and 1 outfit.

Diane and I are having an amazing time and wish you could all be here with us (I'm sure there are enough beans to go around).
See you soon,
Lori