2022 was an encouraging year of re-launching. We praise God for His faithfulness. After over two years of providing a food program to support the community due to the effects of the pandemic, Roatan tourism opened up enough for us to be able to phase out the program. We re-launched our mission to be focused on the tools of sports and education. Through generous donations, we were able to consistently sustain the food program for much longer than any of us ever thought it would be needed.
We also hired a new teacher, Dilcia, for Casa de Luz. Our heavy hearts from closing the school, sang out shouts of joy as Dilcia re-launched the program. She has a long history with C4C as she was a former student and is perfectly aligned with our vision.
This year also saw the return of our Board of Directors to the island. We re-launched our annual mission trip to the property to do repairs and upgrades. Nelson has been doing such a fabulous job maintaining the property, that it allowed our team to focus on bigger projects such as replacing the school roof, extending the third level roof and deep cleaning the school in preparation for its re-opening, as well as a long list of other items.
As always, we look forward with great anticipation to what God will do and continue to pray His will be done in this humble mission.
As in any ministry, there have been celebrations and challenges this year. Celebrations included the addition of a kids’ playground on the third level through a collaboration with Roatan’s Children Ministry, the continuation of the food distribution program on a consistent schedule, and watching Nelson develop in his leadership in this ministry through the launching and managing of many programs. Our challenges have given us the opportunity to be focused in prayer. The main one was having to close our English language school due to not having a teacher. This has been heavy on our hearts, but in this season of waiting for the right teacher, we continue to trust God to provide.
Our Care4Communities 2020 mission team tackled a number of exciting projects during our trip to Roatan in March. Most of our focus centered on upgrading the soccer court by providing expanded viewing for spectators. The roof was raised to the height of the school roof, thus providing clear visual access from the second level of the property. The bodega (court shed) was demolished and replaced by a larger building with shelving and bins to organize all the sports equipment.
The third level also got an upgrade with the addition of four picnic tables, a homebuilt barbecue and both a spray-painted four-square court and hopscotch game. Our vision has been to make this third level family-friendly and provide an area for people to fellowship and play games. We are still eagerly awaiting the McDonald’s playground equipment to be installed in August.
Our opportunity for service in the La Colonia community increased in early spring as COVID-19 severely impacted Roatan. Since the island relies on tourism for its income, the economy was devastated by the cancellation of all flights and cruise ships for the foreseeable future. Care4Communities started a fund to provide our families from the sports court, the school, and local church with the basic necessities of rice, beans, flour and oil. Our on-site leadership has been busy with food distribution for many weeks. This humanitarian effort has opened many doors for us to show and share the love of Christ with our community throughout this pandemic. We are grateful to the many people who have supported this effort to feed and love this sector of Roatan.
2019 has been another amazing year of growth and transition. Hector, our long-time court mentor, who married last year, began his new life in New York City with his bride. Junior has taken over as our court mentor and leader of La Canchita. We also began the development of the third level of the property. A concrete slab with a roof covering marks the beginning of what will be used as a multi-purpose facility. It will provide shaded space for Ms. Lyz to go outside with her classes, space for clinics and volunteers who come to our property and a place for Moms of the kids to relax in the shade. We were informed that McDonald’s, after they tear down their play-places in their restaurants, are donating their playground equipment to third-world or developing countries. With much prayer, we have been in contact with a local vendor who has stated they will be able to provide a playground on the third level. Prayer answered! This will offer a much needed safe-space for the young kids in the Colonia to play. We can already envision moms relaxing in the shaded area while their littles are playing in yet another safe and dedicated area. We have been so blessed over this year, and are excited for God’s blessings in 2020!
With donations and effort from countless teams, we continued to work on equipping the property to create an environment for our missionaries to share the love of Christ. Inside the school, a visiting team installed a ceiling fan. An attic fan was then added in an attempt to manage the high temperatures in the classroom. Even more exciting was the installation of a septic system for a bathroom. On the court, regular tournaments were reinstated and a local public school used the space for activities. A weekly gathering of the court boys for Bible Study continued to gain momentum with leaders beginning to emerge.
2018 marks a new chapter in C4C history. Long time missionaries, Ron and Jamie MacDonald, have been called on to a new journey. To fill this gap, local Hondurans have assumed leadership in the school and court through our partnership with the local church. On the court, big changes have happened! The Court Boys had been praying for synthetic turf because of the injuries they were experiencing as the court’s concrete broke down. At the same time, unaware of the prayers being prayed, the Board was exploring options to address the deteriorating condition of the court. Through a majorly generous donation, synthetic turf was purchased, shipped and installed. A fresh coat of paint has been applied to the court walls and it looks brand new again. It was the talk of the community and is unlike anything in La Colonia. Since then other groups have scheduled events on the court, including a wedding! As for the school, decking and porch coverage has been extended making a beautiful covered area with picnic tables to extend the classroom outside. The physical perimeter of the property is now fully secured through the 3rd level with fencing installed. We look forward with great anticipation what the rest of the year will bring.
This year we’ve made, with the help of several teams, several more improvements to the court and school. The stairs and stands on the court were moved, additions were made to the deck, a ceiling fan was installed in the school and concrete pad poured in front of the school; just to name a few of the projects completed! There’s still much to be done.
Casa de Luz continues to teach English through Christ centered instruction and 2 students graduated this year.
The court mentoring has aided in several of the older court boys being able to get jobs and are now productive members of the community.
Improvements to the soccer court and Casa de Luz continued as EFL classes are now being held six days a week. So many awesome people from the United States joined local efforts in various C4C activities. Each activity gave opportunity to build relationships and share the love of Christ with the people of La Colonia. In February, the official C4C soccer team was founded: “Team Colorado.”
C4C begins to see local youth, who had gone through our program, rise up and become leaders and mentors for the younger kids. Work on improving the soccer court began with creating a wall around the court utilizing an innovative recycling program: discarded plastic bottles. The entire community actively participated, literally filling tens of thousands of plastic bottles with sand that formed the walls.
Through loving donations of many of you and much prayer, C4C was able to purchase the land where the soccer court sits and the hillside immediately above the court. In partnership with locals and teams from the United States, the land above the court was leveled and formed the second terrace for a new school house, appropriately named, “Casa de Luz” – House of Light.
Jamie and Ronnie McDonald from Show Low, Arizona, arrive to continue the work of C4C as Kerry and Mike Tichi and family prepared to return to Colorado. EFL classes remain underway at Casa Mazapan and the foundation of our cement soccer court was laid.
As EFL classes continued at Casa Mazapan, a plot of land on the side of a hill was rented across the street to serve as the future site of our soccer court. Word spread quickly and hundreds of kids in La Colonia rallied to the site to be part of this awesome endeavor. This site would provide the kids a safe place to play and provide opportunities to build relationships with the community.
The Tichi’s: Kerry, a teacher, and Mike, an avid outdoorsman, from Durango, Colorado packed up their bags and headed to Roatan, Honduras. Together with their three kids, they dreamt of making a difference through sports and education to the impoverished community of Roatan, Honduras. They found their place of ministry in a small village called La Colonia.
A run-down building was rented to serve as C4C’s first school. With the help of the community, it was renovated into a usable space and called “Casa Mazapan”… named for the towering mazapan tree in front of the school. English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classes began and, through relationship-building, locals were taught life skills and shown the love of Jesus.
C4C is about empowering the community with sharing the love of Christ as our driving force. Lives are being changed daily through the life skills taught in the classroom, on construction project sites and on the soccer court. Thank you so much for your prayers and support as we continue to make a difference.
Care4Communities
4151 Woodcock Drive
Suite 100
Jacksonville, FL. 32207
Care4Communities is a registered 501(c-3) nonprofit charitable organization (EIN# 45-4973597).