Day 1 - Reencuentro Alegre - Joyful Reunion

Today started with a wonderful breakfast at Casa Lamb before we piled onto a small bus to head to Joy Academy and Casa Hogar (the “children’s home”) near San Buanaventura. This is about a 45 minute drive south of Tegucigalpa into the mountains. The scene is a mix of beautiful and tragic, depending on where your focus lies. With a 60% unemployment rate and hardly any sort of social safety net, the beautiful mountain landscape is lined with shacks barely held together and scenes of people selling anything they can on roadside stands that include food, crafts, and articles they found from the trash. Driving in Honduras is exactly as you would expect it, controlled chaos with a third language of “horn” fluently spoken by every driver. As it typically has in the past, the drive turned into an awesome time of fellowship as we all caught up and shared stories of past trips to Honduras and the excitement and hope we will see in the programs here at Lamb.

Our first stop is The Joy academy which is a bi-lingual school located within a short drive of Casa Hogar and currently has around 20 students, grades 1-6. We arrived at the school situated on a beautiful property in the mountains and filled with some of the cutest kids on the planet. No, really, it’s a bit ridiculous. As we toured the small school, each class greeted us with their introductions and a brief explanation of what they were studying and an occasional sharing of their favorite animal or subject, all in english. I was fortunate enough to receive a picture of a búfalo from Jackson which was 100% appropriate for me…. ¡Sé el búfalo! It was a great start to the day!

Loaded back up we headed to Casa Hogar to see the progress that so many of us had not seen for years. The beautiful 30+ acre property situated in the mountains was once again welcoming, peaceful and quiet… as most of the children were in school. We toured the offices and the early stimulation program where 4 children ages 2-4 are preparing for kindergarten.  Immediately 11 mature adults melted and did our best to entertain.

Shortly after our visit with the little ones, we headed to lunch hosted by Steve and Debbie Buckner, who are full time missionaries that live in Casa Hogar. Debbie prepared a wonderful meal for us and we got to catch up with them and hear more about their lives in Honduras. Please be sure to check out their page HERE. They are truly an amazing asset to Lamb and most importantly the children of Casa Hogar.

Steve gave us a tour of his woodshop where he works with the boys making everything from small crosses to furniture. Steve’s time with them in the shop is providing a wonderful outlet for these young men who are starting to learn the discipline of patience, and the value of their work (among many other things) as they are able to sell what they make.

After our lunch we hiked up the mountain with Jacob who is a missionary from the states that works at the children’s home. His wife Jenny is a teacher at The Joy Academy. Jacob’s main focus is the agricultural side of things, including the farm/garden and the chicken and goat pens. Jacob brought us up to see an old friend, Ariél, who is one of the amazing Hondurans that works at Casa Hogar. I had the pleasure of meeting him years ago where I learned the fine art of mixing mescla and building a wall. Ariél can do anything from build a house to build a wall to tend one of the best farms south of Tegus…..Add to that a great heart and a love for the Lord, he’s a Lamb….

Ariél and Jacob showed us the rows of crops and the system they had in place. From hundred of pounds

of sweet potatoes to some of the best looking lettuce you will find, the farm supplies enough vegetables for the children in staff year round. We then walked down to see the sheep and chickens that are a new addition to the children’s home. With almost 100 chickens, there is no longer a need to purchase eggs anymore and as the herd of sheep begins to grow, well, the children will have plenty of meat as well…..

Before loading up and heading back down the mountain we stopped by and visited with Debbie and got to see her craft room. Debbie spends her days working with the children (all ages) with arts, crafts, jewelry….you name it! She has an amazing gift and heart for them and it shows up all over the walls of the classrooms, homes and offices throughout the campus. Down the hall is the tiénda where we got a chance to purchase anything from purses, to jewelry, to woodworking projects; all made by the children.

The ride back to Casa Lamb was filled with laughter and joy as we all reflected on our day at Casa Hogar. It was a great way to start our trip here in Honduras and we were on cloud nine with how encouraged we were……..we had know idea what the night’s activities were going to bring.