Fall 2006, Volume 11 Number 3

Table of Contents

In July of 2005, I was privileged to participate in the first Heifer Study Tour to Honduras for Educators organized by Heifer International. This program is aimed at teachers, educators, administrators and educational volunteers interested in learning more about Heifer International’s work and the issues associated with world hunger and poverty. There were 23 other educators who were also on the trip. It was a wonderful opportunity to meet people who had received animals through Heifer International and to see the changes in their lives.

We met in Miami for the first part of the program. We studied the issues of hunger and poverty and learned how Heifer uses the Cornerstones as the basis for sustainable development, which was defined as “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the needs of the future.” Heifer donates animals to families in need and provides training in the care of the animals. All families who receive an animal from Heifer are required to pass on the gift by donating the first female offspring or the equivalent to another family in their community, so the gift keeps growing.

From Miami, we flew into Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras. Honduras is one of the five poorest countries in Latin America, with an unemployment rate of around 30% and with about 70% of the population living in poverty. We spent the next few days visiting projects that are funded by Heifer. Everywhere we went the people were very excited to show us their animals and to tell us about how their lives had been changed through the gift of an animal. They continually thanked us for caring about them by supporting the work of Heifer International. One man proudly told us about his work in treating health problems in the animals. He invited us to come and visit his “vet store.” We walked down valleys and up mountain paths to see this wonderful “vet store;” when we arrived, we discovered that the “vet store” was a small wooden box about 12 inches high, which held a few bottles of medicine and pills. He was very happy to explain to us what each medicine was used for, and how it helped improve the health of the animals. We realized then how something we considered to be so small could make such a big difference in the lives of people who have so little.

We visited several other Heifer gift recipients during our stay in Tegucigalpa, and each time we were welcomed warmly by the people in the community and thanked for helping them through the gifts of animals. They were all very proud to show us their homes and animals, and to share with us how their lives were improving. One family treated us to dinner in their home, serving us a wonderful meal of chicken soup and fresh vegetables.  It was so heart-warming to meet the people and share their joy in the gift of an animal, which gave them hope for the future.

We learned so much from all the people we met in Honduras about sharing with others and caring for the Earth. Each of us on the study tour returned home with a renewed spirit to do whatever we can to end hunger and poverty in the world and to care for the Earth. We know that the choices we make in our daily lives here in the U.S. have an effect on people all over the world. We CAN make a difference in the world, and we can do it by living more simply and in tune with the earth, and by working with and supporting organizations such as Heifer International and Kids Can Make a Difference in their goal of ending hunger and poverty in the world. As educators, we must teach our students about the issues of hunger and poverty. We must help them learn how they can make a difference in the world, and to believe they can do it because KIDS CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! Our students are our future.

                Judy Huynh is a sixth grade teacher at Palo Community Schools in Palo, MI. She focuses on world justice issues in her classroom.,  She is a member of the KIDS Advisory Board. She may be contacted at preston48@home.ionia.com.

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