Volunteers of the Vermont Hands to Honduras-Tela program participate in a weekly Spanish class in Essex Junction earlier this month. Ruth Dennis (right) of Burlington and Nicole Gilbert-O’Brien (left) of Hinesburg try to guess a vocabulary word from fellow classmate David Stifler of Essex Junction
ESSEX JUNCTION — A group of volunteers from the Vermont Hands to Honduras-Tela program laughed out loud during their weekly Spanish class on a recent Tuesday evening. Gathered at a small conference room in a pediatric clinic, the group had a good time guessing words and learning new vocabulary. But behind the laughs and camaraderie lay concern.
“For our organizing committee, it is very difficult,” said Linda Gilbert of Charlotte, a student in the language class and a member of the program’s organizing committee. What’s difficult is planning and coordinating a volunteer service trip to a Central American country mired in political turmoil. “And the real loser in all of this are the Honduran children,” she said.
The children Gilbert talks about — and their families — are the ones who have been making use of new latrines, classrooms and playgrounds, and have been receiving rehabilitation and medical treatments for the past six years thanks to the Vermonters who volunteer with the program. Hands to Honduras volunteers travel for one or two weeks every January to the city of Tela to work on several development projects. The volunteers raise all the money to implement the group’s projects and pay all their travel-related expenses, Gilbert said. The 2009 trip included 83 volunteers.
But questions of continuity arose among the program leaders late in June after the president of Honduras was removed from power and an interim military government took control of the country. In July, the U.S State Department issued a travel alert recommending that “American citizens defer all non-essential travel to Honduras due to the unstable political situation.” The travel alert remains in place, and the latest information posted on the State Department Web site warns travelers of potential danger.
“Since that time, there have been frequent demonstrations throughout the country, including roadblocks between cities,” the alert reads. “Since the signing of a political accord on October 29, demonstrations have been limited to Tegucigalpa. On November 4 and 5, there were explosions at three public locations in Tegucigalpa, with minor injuries caused.”
Honduras chooses a new president Sunday, but the election is disputed by many. Meanwhile, a group of Vermonters watch and wait to continue their work.
International politics
Two members of Hands to Honduras organizing committee, Gilbert’s husband, Al Gilbert, and Norm Robinson of Essex Junction, traveled to Tela for two weeks in September to oversee the development of projects. Tela is a small city on the Atlantic coast of Honduras that benefits greatly from tourism. While the men were there, the government imposed a three-day curfew, and the San Pedro Sula International Airport was closed for five days, they said. However, they encountered no dangerous situations.
The hotels were pretty much empty, and nothing was going on in the city, Robinson said, but as members of the organizing committee, the men feel awkward about encouraging volunteers to make travel reservations while the U.S. has a warning in place. Upon the pair’s return to Vermont, the organizing committee decided to delay the group’s 2010 trip.
“While we are totally devoted to our Hands to Honduras-Tela program, our first responsibility is for the safety of our volunteers and fellow committee members,” an October memo sent to volunteers read.
Meanwhile, the organizers worry about the projects the group started on previous trips. Now, when the Honduran people need them the most, they might be unable to complete some of the projects, they said. As a result of the political instability, tourists are not traveling to Honduras, and businesses in Tela are hurting badly.
“This is a political crisis that became a large economic crisis as a result,” Robinson said, “and it’s so hard for us. Our friends are counting on us, and we might not be able to do that.”
Projects and volunteers
Hands to Honduras is responsible for the opening and maintenance of a rehabilitation center; the construction of several schools and a child care center; conducting women’s, pediatric and dental clinics; and the installation of clean-water access and a 911 emergency system in Tela and surrounding areas, among other projects.
The exchange that occurs during the group’s annual trip goes way beyond helping Hondurans. Vermonters gain in cultural appreciation and perspective that make them more grateful for their own lives, Linda Gilbert said. “We are like a big family,” she said.
That big family might shrink dramatically during the next trip as a consequence of the political crisis, so the organizing team is deciding which projects they want to accomplish first. “Our team of 83 may dwindle to a team of 25, so we are being very careful to not over-commit,” Gilbert said.
David Stifler of Essex, a pediatrician who traveled with the group for the past two years conducting pediatric clinics and who also participates in the Spanish classes in Vermont, said he probably will not join the group on the next trip. He needs plenty of time to make plans to leave work and says he does not think the situation is stable to travel, he said.
Ruth Dennis of Burlington, a retired occupational therapist who traveled with the group for the first time last year, said her schedule is flexible but still has not made plane reservations for the 2010 trip. She is watching the development of the political situation and waiting for the team of therapists to make a decision as a group, she said. The therapists raise money to maintain the center and are paying for the center’s director to travel to Vermont in December. “We might not go, but I remain interested in supporting the rehab center,” she said.
Shelburne’s Dave Jonah and his 16-year-old son have been involved in three service trips with Hands to Honduras and are planning to go for one more in 2010. Jonah said the needs are greater than ever, and he is not concerned about safety. “Just keep your eyes open and smile,” he said.
The committee will decide after Sunday’s election whether the service trip will happen in February, later, or if it needs to be canceled. In the meantime, they continue to plan numerous 2010 projects.
“Our support for our Honduran friends remains the same,” Gilbert said. “They need
