Semana Santa
All the children were looking forward to the famous and eagerly awaited Easter week, as they knew that we would be setting up our swimming pools again and they would be able to splash around in the water for hours.
Together with the secondary school pupils and the volunteers, we used this week off school to paint the first 7 concrete houses of the 100 houses project in bright colours. The painters were also allowed to enjoy the swimming pools and watch films in the evening after their work was done.
Excursion to Santa Rosa de Copán
Our regional manager, José Luis Maldonado, has succeeded in giving the Fundación "yo quiero ser..." a very good reputation in the west of the country. This is also the reason why demand for the courses is so high and we can fill all the rooms with students every day.
At the moment, there are sewing, carpentry and locksmith courses with a total of 48 participants. We have also completed a pottery course for the deaf and a jewellery course with a total of 15 participants. Next on the programme are hairdressing and floristry courses.
Our two computer rooms are also occupied daily by two school classes and the Ministry of Education has provided two teachers for this purpose. This means that 186 pupils receive IT lessons every week.
During our visit, we realised that there is no longer enough space for the carpentry and pottery courses. For this reason, we will be extending the building with an annex.
The older children accompanied us to Santa Rosa. They enjoyed this day trip, the fresh air and the beautiful surroundings. As the highlight of the day, we took two puppies back to the children's home.
Piñata-Course
Piñatas are colourful papier-mâché figures filled with sweets that are a must at any children's birthday party. Traditionally, however, they were filled with fruit.
The 17 participants in the piñata course had great fun and were all able to give free rein to their creativity.
The children enjoyed it just as much - if not more - because they took around 15 piñatas home. This means that we will be able to use one of these piñatas from the stock for each of the upcoming birthdays.
Josue is of legal age
Josue, who came to us as a 4-year-old boy with chronic malnutrition, a weight of 5.5 kilos and a height of 78 cm, turned 18 on 5 May.
His chances of survival were extremely poor when he moved into the children's home and his immune system was very weakened, so that he repeatedly became severely ill in the first few years and we had to take him from one specialist to another and go through many anxious moments.
In 2010, 5 out of 1,000 patients were selected to undergo surgery by an American orthopaedic brigade. Josue was one of these 5 and they wanted to perform scoliosis surgery on him. In the end, the last 2 surgeries were cancelled due to force majeure, so the surgeries were never performed. Despite everything, he learnt to walk and now stands firmly on his feet, something that would never have been thought possible in the early years.
This year he is attending the 6th grade of the special school IMDEE (Instituto Municipal de Educación Especial).
Although he can only pronounce a few words, he is able to communicate using sign language. As a result, he has also become very independent in the home. He eats on his own, showers under supervision and can dress and undress himself. He feels very comfortable in his single room and is fully integrated at the home.
Unfortunately, his family never visits him, probably for fear of "having to" take him home again.
Mother’s Day
Once again this year, we paid special tribute to Mother's Day and celebrated it in style. All the mums who visited their children on this day were able to spend an unforgettable day with their children. There were lots of games and our cook was surprised early in the morning by Lency with a delicious breakfast.
Such days also offer space for in-depth conversations with the children. Some of our children unfortunately never got to know their birth mother, others were abandoned by their mothers. This gives rise to many unanswered questions. We try to answer these questions as best we can. Our main goal is to accept reality and move forward with trust in God...
Container
With the help of friends and acquaintances, Désirée Ammann has spent a year collecting goods for the childrens’ home and the 100 houses project and organising the transport of the containers to Honduras.
Unfortunately, the transport costs are still very high. Nonetheless she has sent us many great things: Furniture, clothes, crockery, bed linen, toys, bicycles as well as prams, just to name a few.
After receiving the containers, we had to organise the goods. Every child received new clothes and everyone was able to choose a drinking bottle and a guardian angel. Even our employees were allowed to choose things. The "newcomers" could hardly believe what they were experiencing.
Our girls received a doll's house which has been installed in their bedroom and a shop to play in. They are spending hours playing with the toys in their room at the weekends.
We were also able to replace the old games with new ones in our toy library. During the early stimulation lessons, they enjoy the great and interesting new games.
For the 100 houses project, we packed 100 welcome bags consisting of bed linen, towels, kitchen utensils and many other items for daily use in the house. Each family receives one of these bags when they move into their house. We can even equip some of the houses with furniture for the living and dining room.
Family Excursion
Our friends, Norita and Juan Miguel, invited the whole “Yo quiero ser…” family to their farm in Sula to spend a wonderful day with them.
Upon arrival they served us panqueques with honey. Afterwards our children splashed around in the swimming pool with fresh spring water. Most children spent the whole day in the water, in the hammock, playing football or doing a photo shoot. Thanks to the container, all the children had new bathing suits and sunglasses.
For some children it was the first time they had seen cows so close, and their amazement was lovely to observe.
Before we took the 2-hour return journey, two piñatas were opened. Afterwards the children boarded the bus with joyful hearts and tired bodies and most of them only woke up back at the childrens’ home.