Today we put on a medical and dental Brigade at Clementina’s kitchen. Clementina is a tiny 95-year-old woman who has been providing meals to the kids in her community, Monday through Friday, for over the past 50 years. She was a teacher, and her students were falling asleep and becoming lethargic at school due to a lack of nutritious meals at home. She went to the Honduran government advocating for the dietary needs of these poor students. She was eventually granted land, and she built a kitchen with space for kids to eat. She sold handmade items to fund the food preparation for the kids’ daily meals. She also spent most of her salary on food for the kitchen. What an inspiring story of a woman with a huge heart! And to continue doing this even into her mid-90s!
We were able to present Clementina with a very generous monetary gift that a family from the Detroit Church raised specifically for Clementina after their son came on the Project Honduras team last year. This yearn many on our team were moved by Clementina’s story and contributed funds for money they had on them. One of those was my son. I did not have an opportunity to see my son present this gift to her, but another team member said it was very moving. Hearing this filled my heart with great joy. We desire for our kids to see the needs of others and be willing to care and love. This is the heart of Jesus that I saw that today and my son.
While a Medical and Dental Brigade was put on for the community, others on the team played with the kids, painted a donated swing set and a brother gave haircuts to the young children. Check out the improvised ladder as well as the paint cans in the picture below. We also had the opportunity to see the two bathrooms project Honduras had bit built at Clementina’s last year. This was cool to see these are the nicest bathrooms in that community.
Interview with Clementina
After leaving Clementina’s, we had an impromptu stop at the military base. The Colonel at the base was the one who authorized our military protection while in Comayagua and for that we are grateful. The Colonel came to our first Medical Brigade the day before, to meet the project Honduras leader, David Medina. The Colonel had a special request for PH to serve in the very poor community he grew up in. He took David and another brother to that community to see the needs and ask if they could help next year, needs like clean water. In exchange, he would continue providing a military guard and help provide doctors and dentists. He also invited us to visit the military base for a tour and a soccer match between the PH team and the military. The Colonel himself participated in the game. The field with a wet mess so the soccer players are muddy and dirty, but we had a memorable time playing together with the Honduran military. – Written by Jennifer Alexander