WINCHESTER, Va. (AP) - When Stephens City resident Lisa Knick and 16 others traveled to Honduras in April on a medical mission trip, each of them was given a wooden cross necklace they could give to someone in the country.
While visiting the remote village of La Venada, Knick, 51, met Wilhelm, an 18-year-old with mental and physical disabilities.
“He had special needs but never received special education classes,” Knick said. “He never learned to read.”
Wilhelm’s home looked like an old barn. Pigs and chickens went in and out of the house. He lived there with his mother and brother.
“I felt like his mother worked so hard his entire life trying to give him care,” Knick said. “I thought, ‘Wow, what are his chances in life if he doesn’t have his mother?’ I had compassion for him.”
While visiting Wilhelm’s home, Knick gave the teen her wooden cross necklace.
Knick, who is an English as a second language teacher at Frederick Douglass Elementary School, participated in the mission trip through Friends of Barnabas, a faith-based organization based in Midlothian that provides medical care to communities in Honduras. The trip ran April 22-29.
The team consisted of physicians, dentists, eye doctors, nurses, ministers and teachers. Many were from the Danville area; Knick represented Winchester.
The group visited five villages in central Honduras. The people cheered as they saw the team approaching.
“We served over 1,000 people, giving vitamins, de-worming, basic medical care, measuring their children, dental extractions, eye care and more,” Knick said in an email.
Knick measured the height and weight of babies and children up to 12 years old and also provided Spanish interpretation.
“I loved being with the children,” she said. “Because I am a teacher, it was just perfect.”
The team also took time to have fun and play with the children. They handed out stickers, toys and flip-flops and gave each village a soccer ball.
Knick said schools in Honduras are drastically different to those in the U.S. Most have no electricity, no running water and limited school supplies. There are no computers or internet access. Bathrooms are located outside. At some schools, children are required to wear a uniform. If a family cannot afford to purchase a uniform, the children are unable to attend school.
Although the people the team visited were living in poverty, Knick said there was a brightness and hope in their eyes.
“I realized that just because they don’t have money does not mean they’re not happy,” she said. “They’re a beautiful, family-oriented people. They were giving us tamales and fruit. They received, but they also gave back to us.”
Knick has always wanted to go on one of the Friends of Barnabas mission trips. But whether she was raising her children, attending graduate school or moving, she felt there was never a good time to go.
“This year I said, ‘I’m going to go to Honduras,’” she said. “Because I’m an English as a second language teacher, I wanted to see the country and experience the country and its poverty.”
Because of the trip, she feels she can better connect with her Spanish-speaking students in the U.S. As a teacher, she has met children from Honduras, Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador.
Each team member had to raise about $1,800 to go on the mission trip. Through the support of family, friends and her church - Grace United Methodist Church in Middletown -she was able to raise $4,000. Extra funds went toward purchasing medical supplies for the trip. The team brought 14 duffel bags full of supplies to distribute to the villages.
Knick and the team spent a lot of time traveling during the trip - driving about two hours to each village - but they were also able to get to know the country. Some activities included ziplining over waterfalls and visiting gardens.
This was the first time Knick has experienced poverty in a third-world country.
“It was an eye-opening experience,” she said. “Coming back to the airport (in the U.S.), I realized the things we have here like electricity, running water and toilets that flush.”
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