Bless the Children - John Grove High School Renovations - Part 1

The Bless the Children - John Grove High School is located high in the
Mico Quemado Mountains of Northern Honduras, Central America.  (top left)

(School, top right)

In early March, 2011 Bless the Children took a medical and construction team to the Mico Quemado Mountains composed of members from the Church of the Epiphany in Richmond, VA.  The medical team delivered clinics at four elementary schools in the mountains helping hundreds of poor children and their families.  (A total of 6 clinics were delivered...blog post to come soon on this!)

The construction team was very eager to get right to work to make improvements on the high school and so much was accomplished.  In just a few short days, working side-by-side with the students, they completely broke up and removed the old cement floor!  We hired a professional mason to lay the new one and he did a fabulous job.  In part 2 of this blog you will see that walls of decayed wood were torn out and replaced and a lovely, new door was installed.  As well, new paint was purchased that the students applied after our trip to beautify the school.

The beginning of the construction adventure!

The original floor of the school is shown here.  It was not level so the teacher and students had such a difficult time properly utilizing the space.  When the property was first purchased in 2006 a small house was on the land and while the floors suited that arrangement we needed to make the floor just right for our classroom setting!

The team jumped in with lots of energy and enthusiasm for the very big job of taking up the old floor.  It was truly a site to behold!  Vince, Joe and Will were unstoppable!

Our students were on the team and worked hard to help break up the floor and remove all the concrete and debris.

The buckets of concrete and dirt were much, much heavier than they appear!

Everyone was so happy when step one of the floor project was completed!

Then came time to haul the sand from the bottom of the hill for the NEW concrete preparation!

Our teacher, Oscar, jumped in to help the students mix the concrete! (in yellow shirt)

And even the Honduran Air Force was on board with making this project a success!

Our students really got into this hands-on learning experience!

Next to lend his energy to the project was a professional mason!

And here it is...the new floor!  It is amazing what can be accomplished in such a short time when good people come together with love in their hearts for children.  It is an honor to work with all of you!

With all our hearts we thank every member of the Church of the Epiphany and those who went to Honduras and worked so hard to make the needed improvements to the school.  We thank you too for befriending the children and working with them, teaching them skills during the improvements that will last throughout their lives.  Your interest in their education and their welfare will have such far-reaching effects.

We are also deeply grateful for the support of so many of John Grove's friends for doing all they can to keep the school in operation for the children.  The McCroskie Threshold Foundation (MTF), the Air Commando Association and members of the 20th SOS (Special Operations Squadron) have kept the dream alive.  MTF, your donation made it possible for the construction supplies to be purchased.  The children, the community and everyone with Bless the Children is so very grateful for your long-term support of this school.

The John Grove High School has been a program of Bless the Children since 2006.   Our best friend and humanitarian aid partner, John Grove, was instrumental in the founding of this school.  While talking with his good friend, Karen Hubbard, founder of Bless the Children, he learned there was no education available beyond the 6th grade for the children of the Mico Quemado Mountains he said, "To help these people out of the cycle they are in, generations of poverty, an education is necessary.  It is my plan to help with this effort..."   To the heartache of all who knew and loved him, John passed away in December of 2008.  This school is a tribute to our combined love for children and exemplifies the fact that dreams of the heart never die.

Please help us to continue the education of these students.

As a team we can provide them the opportunity of a lifetime!

click here

Coming soon...in part 2 of this blog we'll share the removal and replacement of the walls and the installation of the new door - another amazing project!