Students to spend winter break in Honduras

By: Stephanie Howe

Posted: 12/1/08

While many students will be enjoying time off at home this January, four Western Illinois University students will fly thousands of miles south to El Progreso, Honduras to help those in need.

Led by junior bilingual education/Spanish major Michelle Detrick, the students will be participating in a program called Students Helping Honduras.

From Jan. 3-10, Detrick, sophomore elementary education major Melissa Downin, sophomore journalism major Yazmin Ramos and graduate student Orterio Villa will be doing construction work, interacting with kids at Copprome orphanage, caring for malnourished babies at a nutrition center and leading a day camp for those students who will be on winter break.

While Detrick said it is helpful to know some Spanish, being fluent in the language is not required for the trip.

"The kids just want you to play with them; there's no real need for language to do that," Detrick said. "They will just take you by the hand and pull you where they want you to go and show you what they are playing or what they want you to do."

Students Helping Honduras is a non-profit organization where students from Western Illinois will join about 60 more students from the University of Mary Washington, Virginia Tech, University of Virginia and Boston College once they arrive in Honduras. Together they will do some team-building skills to get to know one another better and then get to work helping the people of Honduras.

"When I'm there, I feel so out of my element but so at home," Detrick said. "I love getting to know the people of Honduras who have so very little, but have such an enthusiasm to better their lives. I love playing with he kids and talking to the older girls.

"I love working physically harder there than ever in my life because I know it means so much to the people there who will soon be receiving new homes," Detrick added. "I love caring for the babies because although there always seems to be at least one baby crying, to me it sounds like they are just crying out to be loved and shown affection."

However, in addition to working, each student involved will need to bring one suitcase filled with craft supplies and personal hygiene items for the children in which they are serving. These items include: markers, crayons, folders, pencils (regular and colored), rulers, round-tip scissors, glue sticks, erasers, chalk, watercolors, pipe cleaners, felt squares, toothbrushes, toothpaste, bar soap, deodorant, combs and brushes.

On top of their supply donations, it will cost the group $5,200 for airfare to and from Honduras, food, living expenses, operational expenses and project fees (construction materials, events at the orphanage, and so on). Even though they have fundraised, much of it will come out of their own pockets.

Anyone who wishes to make donations, both monetary or supplies, they can contact Michelle Detrick at 309/333-6593 to schedule a pick up time.