June 2020 – Tegucigalpa

To say that this is an unusual year is an understatement. We began with great hope, plans and expectations, with team leaders eagerly forming teams and making plans despite some administrative changes going on in some churches. And then COVID happened, totally scrambling everyone’s plans, totally changing everyones lives.

The lockdown in Honduras was more stringent than the one in the States. There they could only go out for a few hours on a day that corresponded with the last digit of their Honduran “social security number”. If people did venture out during unauthorized times, they could be arrested. Added to that was extreme drought, which forced the municipal water supply into shortages, and raging forest fires all around the city. The air was thick with smoke, and ash from burned trees and grasses covered everything, every day.

Meanwhile, here in the States team leaders were deep in prayer with trying to figure out what to do. When we started seeing things shutdown here, along with travel restrictions that were put in place, those decisions were made for us. Team Leader Al Erickson, with Team 57 from Higher Hope Church was in full fundraising mode and those monies were forwarded to BBM earmarked to be used on the school project. A similar thing happened with Brad Hinman’s Team 58 from Victory Highway, and Mike Jilson’s Team 59 from the HUB church. All cancelled. BUT, MICHAEL HAS MANAGED TO GET TO WORK trying to finish up the new classrooms at the 21st of October Institute. He was able to get a document from the school that allowed him and our Honduran work crew to be considered essential workers and return work at the school. This gave them desperately needed income and a chance to get back out of lockdown mode.