Miguel and Elvis are going to graduate on November 14th.
Back in 1991, Nelson graduated from the Technical Institute, in Tegucigalpa as a Carpenter. This, along with the farm schools are institutions started by the Episcopal church as a way of helping poor young boys get their junior high schooling and learn a trade. These schools offer a number of different trades used all over Honduras such as carpentry, electrician and welding. In the farm school, they learn agriculture or work with animals.
This is a boarding school, so they in turn learn the importance of cleaning, washing, cooking etc. They don’t have their mothers to do all the work for them. They have to learn to do things on their own. Both institutes have full time cooks, but the students take turns to help in the kitchen. Most of them come home and help their mothers around the kitchen, washing the dishes, etc.
Since Nelson`s graduation, we try to support these schools by sending as many boys as possible that do not have the opportunity to go to school. Since the demand is so high, they first have to go for two weeks to do different admission exams, test the field to see if they really like it and would like to stay.
This is not easy for the young people especially from Roatan as it is so far away from home and the very first time away from their parents. They are accepted according to their results in the exams. However there are exceptions. A student may fail all their exams but because of their level of poverty they are accepted.
This year two boys from Brick Bay, Roatan are graduating from the technical school on November 14th. Miguel was trained as a Carpenter and Elvis as an Electrician, both at the moment are in the practical aspect of their education. In their third year it is a requirement for graduation to go to a local business and put into practice everything they had been learning. This also helps them see how the businesses work and some of the time, they are hired following graduation depending on the need and work ethic.
Their mothers, poor as they are, are doing everything possible to be able to travel to the capital city to be with their sons on this day. This is something to be proud of in the life of the family and they are willing to give up the money to eat for a week in order to attend this most important event in their son’s lives.
They are ready to come back to Roatan, find a job, support their families and continue to finish high school.
Pray for them that God will provide opportunities to work and continue to improve their knowledge to be examples in this society.
Congratulations to the graduates, and may God continue to bless them.
Episcopal Church of Roatan/ Nelson and Kara Ministry 