a toll bridge, the bay islands & a special Mass

It's October!  Which means we get a break in the weather, kind of..Juticalpa goes from really really HOT to just hot.  We have had some cool nights.  And for the Hondurans, mornings in the 70's means it's time to break out the stocking caps and jackets, no joke. 

I crossed my fingers and my first Honduran Toll Bridge a few weeks ago.  The bridge was made of wood, nothing real official, loose boards we may use in the U.S. to build a tree house.  It cost 5 lempiras (about 25 cents) to cross.  You just pay a guy standing at the end of the bridge, not sure I even had to pay him, but for 25 cents I wasn't going to find out.  Nissan North America was generous enough to donate a van and a truck (pictured below) to Olancho Aid, we had just picked up the vehicles a few days before my experience on the Toll Bridge.  That would have made for an interesting "thank you", "thanks for the vehicles we already lost one in the river". 

The end of September was wedding season.  Carina and I attended are first wedding together, we had a great time!  The groom (Oscar) works for Olancho Aid and during the summers he assists the mission groups with day to day activities.  I have had a chance to become friends with Oscar over the years and Carina and Oscar have been good friends since they started working for Olancho Aid, so Carina and I were both looking forward to the wedding.  Weddings and Birthdays are huge events for Hondurans, so it was all the buzz for several weeks. We drove about 30 minutes Northeast of Juticalpa to Catacamas for the wedding, very nice little town.  The wedding (based only on the invitation) was to start at 7:00. We arrived at the wedding at about 7:05, I was certain we were late, surely they start their weddings on time??  The wedding started at 9:00, yes 9:00, we danced until 11:30, Carina danced until 12:30. I tried to show the Hondurans that gringos can dance, not sure I was successful. 

I made my first trip back to TN at the end of September to stand in my good friend Josh's wedding.  Josh and I were out for a guys night 2 years ago when he met Katie, she is quite a catch so I had to see to it that he went through with the wedding, and he did.  The wedding was very nice, it was fun to catch up with some friends and family.  I also stocked up on some items I had been craving. My mom made enough chocolate chip cookies for every child in Honduras, but the staff and volunteers at Olancho Aid ate them before they could be distributed fairly.    

Last weekend Carina and I flew to Roatan, which is just North of Honduras in the Bay Islands.  This was Carina's first time on a plane and her first time snorkeling.  Everyone should get the opportunity to fly and snorkel with someone who is experiencing it for the first time.  Carina really enjoyed both, I was blessed to share that experience with her.  If she didn't like flying, that was going to make for an interesting relationship.....& return flight to the mainland.  Roatan is a huge destination for divers, the water is extremely clear and the fish are beautiful.  It was nice to lose track of time for the weekend and just relax. 

Padre Ricardo (founder of Olancho Aid) celebrated a special Mass this past Thursday.  The Mass was an opportunity for the students, parents, staff, & volunteers of Olancho Aid to pray for and thank the donors, sponsors, and mission teams that fund our efforts here in Juticalpa.  Without the generosity of our supporters in North America, Olancho Aid would not exist.  It was nice to see so many parents attend the Mass.  In a country where education is not the focus for many people, parent participation says a lot about the work Olancho Aid has accomplished. Padre's homily was centered on Education, Education, Education.  He was very direct with the parents.  If they have an interest in breaking the cycle of poverty in their families they have to focus on education.   

The non-profit that I'm working for (Olancho Aid Foundation, Inc) operates 4 schools,  a special needs school (Escuelita Nazareth), a bi-lingual grade school (Centro Escolar Santa Clara), a Middle/High-School (Instituto Cardenal Rodriguez) and a bi-lingual Middle/High School (Instituto Bilingue Santa Clara).  The majority of our students come from extremely poor families, these students are only able to attend our schools due to the scholarships they receive from people in the U.S.  Please consider sponsoring a child, with your monthly donation ($25 - $100) we are able to provide Education, Hope, and Transformation to many disabled and extremely poor children in Honduras.  Visit http://sponsor.olanchoaid.org to see photos of the children that need sponsored.  E-mail me (mfreesmeier@olanchoaid.org or michael.freesmeier@gmail.com) and I will send you step by step directions on how to sign up. 

Michael