When is a FREE gift a bad idea?
I’ve been walking around the "neighborhood” near this Honduran dump. My lawn mower stays in better conditions than some of these homes. But I was told that building free homes for these people is a bad idea! How is that possible? A doctor from Guatemala came here and says that. He saw similar conditions in his country so he bought land, built small apartments and offered them for free to the poor. “It was a bad idea from the first day” he says. He watched as many men simply gave up working and would sit around their new home and drink/do nothing. It became violent very quickly and soon women and children were fleeing. He shared this hard learned truth with others. “Free isn’t always best”. On his counsel, a project has begun in Roatan, Honduras that we are excited to be part of. The better way this doctor describes it is to offer free TRAINING… in life skills, construction, computers, etc. to the young adults and reading/writing to the young. Give them the tools to go and WORK FOR THEMSELVES. It’s been very effective for this doctor and it will be able to kick off soon in Honduras. In line with our highest priority, the primary goal will be teaching the gospel of Jesus and inviting all attendees to come to faith in Him. Then the various options to learn a trade/skill will be offered to those who are willing to do the work. The regular feeding and gospel message will continue in this area but we are convinced that long term change will come with this project.
The training center is getting close to completion:
land near the dump has been purchased by a private party on behalf of this project
Government approvals and paperwork has JUST been completed and approved
concrete for the shell of the building has been donated and funds raised to pay the construction labor so that the shell can be completed
REMAINING… funds to complete the shell/building. ie. doors/windows/paint/ chairs/tables /fans(not A/C!)
If you’d like to donate towards this project, you can make a tax deductible gift at the website: hopetohonduras.com and mark you gift as “Training Center”. We’re excited to see how the gospel changes eternity and this special training can change everyday life for many in poverty. This is probably the clearest example I’ve seen of the old proverb: “give a man a fish - he eats for a day - teach a man to fish -he eats for a lifetime.”