Por Venir

A group of six alumnae from the University of Mary Washington traveled to El Progreso for a week to continue their support of SHH and survey the projects that are underway. Five of the six were on the first trip to Nuestras Pequeñas Rosas in 2004 and all seven were participants in SHH while students at UMW. During the week they visited the nutrition center and Copprome orphanage, worked at La Villa Soleada, visited the Siete de Abril community and accompanied Cosmo Fujiyama as she presented the land deed for the Por Venir School. "I am so thankful to have had this week here and I feel reinvigorated to keep supporting SHH and to find even more ways to contribute. It’s remarkable how much has happened in the months since Shin and Cosmo moved here." --Kelly Ryan '06

In order to begin construction of the new schoolhouse for Por Venir, SHH needed to confirm that the land title was indeed in the name of the school. This provided a guarantee that the land was indeed secured and safe to build on. Eager to get the project started, the parents of the Por Venir and surrounding communities gathered the necessary funds to pay off the unpaid land mortgage by holding raffles, soccer games and door-to-door collections. With the legal assistance of Mrs. Leslie Amaya, SHH's in-country lawyer, the parents of Por Venir school were able to secure the necessary legal documents for the Por Venir school. The land title was successfully handed over to Por Venir school on Feburary 1, 2008. SHH and the parents of the school broke ground at Por Venir the following Monday.

Don Marco, president of the parent's association, with the land title.

Over 125 students participated in service learning trips to El Progreso, Honduras between December 15, 2007 and January 13, 2008. In addition to several graduate students, alumni, and working professionals, volunteers represented 13 different colleges: the University of Mary Washington, the College of William and Mary, the University of Virginia, Georgetown University, Virginia Tech, the College of Westminster, the University of Richmond, Boston College, Barnard College, Hollins University, the University of Massachusetts, Western Illinois University, and Rutgers University. Volunteers spent between one and four weeks in the country.  read more »

Razoo.com, a social networking site that unites those who want to make a positive difference in the world, awarded its top prize of $10,000 to SHH in its Change Your World contest on October 15, 2007. The contest, which started on October 2, 2007, gave Razoo members the opportunity to cast votes for various nonprofit organizations.

Money from the contest will be used to construct three new classrooms at Por Venir Elementary School, which must cancel classes during rain due to poor roofing conditions and hold middle school classes at night due to overcrowding. A portion of the money will also be used to purchase seeds for a community in the northeastern part of Honduras called La Mosquitia, whose crops were destroyed by Hurricane Felix in early September 2007.

Dodge’s GrabLife GiveLife website awarded SHH $1,000 on December 31, 2007. The semi-annual online voting contest allows college students throughout the United States to nominate events and vote daily for the nonprofit of their choice. SHH will use the money to supplement its project at Por Venir Elementary School.

On October 17th, Students Helping Honduras won $10,000 in the "Change Your World" contest sponsored by Razoo.com. According to its own FAQ section, Razoo is "a community of people who want to make a positive impact on the world. It's a place to learn about causes, share your passion, connect with other people with similar interests, and find tangible ways to make a difference.” The "Change Your World" voting contest lasted a little over two weeks, which didn't leave much time to prepare a large voting campaign. Members of each SHH chapter voted and spread the word throughout their campuses. We thank everyone who voted, as well as Razoo, for holding the competition.  read more »