Alright, y’all. Tomorrow night, I catch a red-eye from Seattle to Miami to Tegucigalpa, Honduras where I’ll jump into volunteering for Building a Future (BAF). I cannot tell you how impressed I’ve been with this organization and the pre-volunteering preparations. BAF Directors, Robert Furr and José Mahomar have checked in weekly with updates on what I’d be doing and whom I’d be working with. They even touched base when Tropical Storm Agatha hit Tegucigalpa causing flash flooding and landslides. The icing on the cake, though, was when José emailed me a spreadsheet so meticulously organized I swear it almost brought a tear to my (admittedly overly organized) eye.
I’m excited to return to Honduras for many reasons, to volunteer being the utmost priority, but meeting José’s father, Jorge is highly anticipated. Jorge has dedicated nearly 30 years of his life to service is a highly respected member of the community for protecting and rescuing street children in Honduras. Under his tutelage, I’ll spend time working with the Texaco Family Support Center, Centro de Desarollo Juvenil y Familia, FANIVA (an organization that assists underprivileged families and children and operates shelters), Junior Master Gardener Program (a curriculum that educates children with a focus on agriculture), and Crea Centers (aka Rehabilitation Center for Addicts). I’m extremely grateful for this opportunity and look forward to meeting everyone involved with these programs and initiatives. (Insert loud squeal of happiness here.)
Head’s up: I won’t have regular access to the internet in Tegucigalpa, but will update Twitter and my blogs when time and connectivity allows. It’s not that I don’t love you; it’s just that I’m in Honduras to give as much of myself as possible and I want to be fully present. Expect lots of post-volunteer stories, posts, photos and videos – I’m big on visuals — verbal and otherwise.
Thanks again to everyone who contributed to making The Global Citizen Project a reality and for your continued kindness and support—this is going to be an amazing year and I cannot wait to take you along for the adventures. Let’s go!