Tegucigalpa Market Children

HELP Honduras works to help the poorest of the poor.  In Tegucigalpa, the capital city of Honduras, with a population of over 1 million, they are the families working in the public markets, in the local landfill and in small communities around the city.    They cannot afford the cost of sending their children to school.  As they become teenagers, the children often drift into gangs and petty theft or, at best, take over  their mother’s stall in the market. The Rotarians of Tegucigalpa, together with your help, are breaking the circle of poverty by educating these children under the Tegucigalpa Market Children Program.

School is free in Honduras, including the public University, and yet many people cannot afford the cost of uniforms and school supplies required to attend.  Your donations provide students with what they need to attend school.

You can help break the cycle of poverty!

The rates to sponsor a child in 2023 are

  • Primary School Student  to Grade 6            $230
  • Secondary Student to grade  7 – 11              $360
  • Grade 12 Student                                                   $415
  • Vocational Student                                                $415
  • University Student                                                $475

Donations in any amount are welcome – we will combine your donation with that of others to support students.

 

This young  lad is about to enter kindergarten and he doesn’t look too happy about it!   He is seen here with Harbourside Rotarian Boma Brown, who was part of the Inspection Tour in January 2019.

 

The program is  administered by Alternatives Y Oportunidades  (AYO) – a Honduran NGO controlled by Rotarians from 4 Rotary Clubs in Tegucigalpa.  Their philosophy is to look after the whole family. Thus every parent who has a child in the program  is obligated to take parenting courses and is invited to take part in other programs, including preventive health, nutrition, family planning and family violence.

Kids are encouraged to belong to youth clubs that give them a sense of belonging to a larger community.  They see that they can continue to university, too, if they study hard and apply themselves. The youth leaders teach the Rotary 4 Way Test and provide pier tutoring to kids struggling in school.  The pass rates of our sponsored students are 98%.

HELP Honduras has an agency agreement with AYO which outlines the responsibilities of both partners in all programs.   Each year (excepting during the  pandemic, a group of our Directors and volunteers traveled to Honduras, to review the past year’s activities, photograph the children, and plan for the future.  Travelers are responsible for their own expenses and all donated funds go to the program.

 

AyO Staff and the  HELP Honduras Inspection Team at our meeting in January 2019.