“Logic will get you from A to B.  Imagination will take you everywhere.” ~ Albert Einstein

Months before the terms “COVID-19” and “pandemic” became part of our every day conversation, I was in the midst of planning a medical mission trip to Honduras. Our team was set to travel in February 2020. Sadly, the trip was cancelled. Within weeks, COVID-19 was declared a pandemic and our community went into “lockdown” in South Florida. Honestly, I wondered when another mission trip would be possible.  Weeks went by.  Months went by.

And then, suddenly, January 2021 arrived.  The pandemic had not ended, but new opportunities for humanitarian work in Honduras were emerging.  The US Embassy – Honduras issued a small grant application with goals related to youth development for underserved, under-resourced youth.   My imagination sprung into action!  I found myself visualizing how my National Geographic project and GEN2050 could evolve into something new in Honduras.

By early March, the small grant application was submitted and I was on my way to Honduras with the proposed project team.

As you read this, you may be thinking, “Wait! What? They went to Honduras before they heard any decision on whether or not the grant was funded?”  Yes, as a matter of fact we did.   Primarily, we went because we received an invitation to make a presentation in the Honduran community we proposed to pilot the project: San Juan de Flores in Francisco Morázon, also called Canterranas, the city of murals.

The murals were spectacular and captivating, covering buildings and even a staircase.  This iconic staircase mural was created to honor the memory of environmental activist Berta Isabel Cáceres Flores.

I was even more captivated as we drove through farm land surrounding the town. When we drove onto the farm, Finco San Lucas, I sensed my imagination was being greeted by possibility. A 29 acre farm, located nearby San Juan de Flores’ city center, Finco San Lucas receives fresh water from a natural spring flowing in from the south and is bordered on the north by the Rio Choluteca. As I stood on the farm’s recently harvested sugar cane field, I could imagine outdoor, science education projects, reforestation projects, agroforestry, and community gardening projects. I could imagine groups of youth and their families learning together. I could imagine a mobile medical clinic. The possibilities seemed endless.

So, as I am known to do, I took a leap of faith. I said, “YES” to Finco San Lucas. Stay tuned for updates on our progress on the new home of the Environmental Awareness Academy (Honduras)!

For more information, please follow this link to the EAA website: https://www.environmentalawarenessacademy.org/

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” ~ Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)

(Photo credits: Linda Freeman and Michele Lozano, San Juan de Flores, Honduras, March 2021)