Honduras (MNN) — Cities may not transform overnight, but with the right planning and support, significant change can take place over several years. Buckner International recently opened two Community Transformation Centers in Tegucigalpa and Roatan, Honduras to get these regions on their way.
Flor del Campo is an incredibly impoverished area of Tegucigalpa. One of the very small box houses some Buckner social workers went to in the neighborhood was housing 20 people, including an old woman and small children who were not being attended to or properly nourished. One social worker described them all as having "an attitude of hopelessness."
Buckner has opened two Community Transformation Centers to alter attitudes of hopelessness and give the people of these two regions a reason to hope. The Center in Tegucigalpa will offer organized sports, computer and English classes, and the help of social workers to develop life maps for families. Social workers will also visit families in their homes; they have already visited 30 families.
The Center on the island of Roatan will provide English and computer classes, as well as day and night care for children so their mothers can go to school.
The opening ceremonies for both Centers received national media attention, including the presence of four national television stations at the opening of the Tegucigalpa center. The entire country seems to be rejoicing for these new transformative Centers. Vice Minister of Health, Javier Pastor, welcomes Buckner's help and even attended one of the opening of the Tegucigalpa center. The mayor of Roatan, Julio Galindo, is so certain that the Center there will be transformative that he has donated the use of a building rent free.
With the support of the government and the communities (hundreds of families attending the openings of the Centers) and the guiding light of Christ, these Centers are sure to bring positive change to these areas specifically, and to the country as a whole. Life change will occur as people gain higher education and assistance in life planning, but also as they begin to understand the love of Christ.
Pray that these Community Transformation Centers would indeed be transformative for the lifestyles of many. Pray that many people who enter these Centers would come to know the Lord in a real way as He meets their needs. Pray for the Buckner staff in Honduras to be loving examples of Christ and to continue working diligently in serving the people of Honduras.
Click here to learn more about Buckner's presence in Honduras.
