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Our U.S. Connection
In 1986, a New Jersey couple, Henry and Patricia King set off together to Honduras to adopt their first son, Andrew. As required by law, Patricia lived in Honduras for 4 months prior to receiving their child. She lived with the School Sisters of Notre Dame in El Progreso and not only learned to speak Spanish, but came to love the country and its people.
"When I first came down here I didn't know how poor people could be. I came down here and saw how much suffering there could be especially for the children ", said Patricia. "There are people here watching their children die for lack of medicine, for lack of food, and there's nowhere for them to turn."
Patricia and Henry King were determined to give something back to the country that had given them so much and when they returned a year and a half later to adopt their second son, Timo, they promised to help. The Kings mortgaged their home and, through the generosity of friends, in particular, John and Margrit McCrane, they were able to design and construct the first House of Friendship.
"There are people here watching their children die for lack of medicine, for lack of food, and there's nowhere for them to turn."
- Patricia King
Today, the U.S. Board provides overall supervision, administration, and fundraising. Each year, groups of American volunteers, often students, travel to Honduras to work with the children and bring them further confirmation that they are loved and that their plight has not been forgotten.
The importance of the U.S. connection cannot be overstated. U.S. contributors and volunteers furnish the working capital for the organization, but just as important, they supply HOPE in generous amounts. Through them, the children of Honduras can envision and then live up to a positive future.
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