By reh on 10/23/2008

Thursday, October 23, 2008

9:00AM After a leisurely breakfast, I decided to get to the airport early, process through and catch up on notes. There was a church group of 20+/- directly in front of me so I settled in for the wait. After about 20 minutes, the group leader turned to me in pleasant conversation and said “I see you have decided to leave early, too.” I said that this is my scheduled flight, why?” He said “A hurricane is headed this way. His group was scheduled to leave on Saturday but was advised to leave this morning if they wanted to get out before the hurricane arrived, that the airport could be closed for several days by later in the afternoon.”

A bit of a problem when one tries to get by with a minimal understanding of the language: Last night and again early this morning, while watching CNN, all TV channels were closed down for 15 minutes except the official Honduras station, while the Honduras Pre ... Read More »

By reh on 10/22/2008

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

8:30AM Fernando and I picked up my translator and headed for Goascoran for a meeting with Alcaldi Valesquez. He was in his office so we sat in the waiting room with 8 or 10 other people. We were called in first even though we were an hour early for our appointment. I explained that I didn’t want to leave without saying “hi”, that I knew he has been traveling and that next time we will have to have dinner. Some small talk and I asked when he felt he could finish the kitchen at Rincon, I simply wanted to know so I could report to our Board of Directors. He used the weather as an excuse and said it would be finished by the end of next week (Fernando had told me that the kitchen would be finished if I prodded a little). We’ll see.

12:00PM On the road to Teguci

4:00PM Rental car people came by to pick the car up.

5:00PM Raphael stopped by with my 10# o ... Read More »

By reh on 10/21/2008

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

7:00AM All are assembling. It seems that they brought along a support group that stayed in another motel. They brought two drivers, a video/camera man, and a laborer. An entourage of 4 for three managers; no wonder they are amazed at how low our costs are!

7:45AM On our way to Pierdras Blancas (cooks were in the kitchen, preparing lunch). The principal, Ms. Nunec welcome them graciously and explained the L4L program and benefits. Ms. Diez straightens her makeup and hair then walks into the school yard with camera rolling (all day, I will watch in amazement while all support staff as well as the other two managers work in concert to assure that Ms. Diez gets hours of video and hundreds of photo ops. The prop setups (like putting very poor children at each arm while she smiles, way over the top for my taste; a shameless and constant camera hogging episode). I showed them the dilapidated kin ... Read More »

By reh on 10/20/2008

Monday, October 20, 2008

7:00AM Fernando and I are on our way to deliver supplies and see that the three chosen schools (Piedras Blancas, Rincon, El Coyolar) are ready for a visit from PRAF on Tuesday and Dr. Moncada on Wednesday.

Pierda Blanca: delivered lunch food supplies, explained tentative visits for the next two days.

Rincon: delivered lunch food supplies, explained tentative visits for next two days. Inspected kitchen; L4L has paid and built the first half, the mayor’s office has not built the other half. Will talk with him when I see him. Community fathers are replacing the roof of the 4th and 6th grade classes. Reusing every possible used roof tile. Lots of energy, beautiful work (all roof beams are sawmill-cut hard wood and really difficult to work with but will withstand decay much longer). Saw Anabel for just a minute, as always, she asks a ... Read More »

By reh on 10/19/2008

Sunday, October 19, 2008

6:00AM Enjoying a quiet morning on the veranda by the pool working on the basics of some Power Points to refine with Fernando.

11:45AM Fernando and Evelin Quintanilla, my translator, were here in anticipation of Roxana’s arrival for our 12:00 lunch meeting;

1:00PM I went over some charts she had prepared as a special project. We clarified several items so that I can accurately describe them. I asked that one more be generated. She will handle it.

I explained to Roxana, about our possible Tuesday site visit by PRAF and asked if she could assist (she can). I believe PRAF management equates substance with staff size; I want all hands on deck.

4:30PM End of day.

By reh on 10/18/2008

Saturday, October 18, 2008

9:00AM After a late breakfast and checkout, I’m on the road to Nacaomi to set up for meeting with Roxana and, hopefully, tours for PRAF and Dr Moncada. Had to stop at the area where the highway is sliding down the mountain. Was held up for 15 minutes.

12:30PM In motel compound for the day.

While meeting with PRAF on Friday, Ms. Diaz asked what criteria we used to select schools for the L4L program. We explained that we have a long list of petitions from very poor schools, that our staff is local and knows the poorest among the applicants. We choose schools where 60%+ come to school hungry each day. What I didn’t say is that you can close your eyes and point; in Valle District, whatever school you are pointing at will meet the 60% criteria (at each meeting, our host points out that Valley is one of the poorest districts so everyone already knows). Mr. Diaz explained th ... Read More »

By reh on 10/17/2008

Friday, Oct 17, 2008

5:30AM On the road to Teguci for my meeting with PRAF officials.

6:00AM Held up at the area where the road is subsiding for an hour while fallen rocks are removed and the road is made passable. At Hotel Guijarros at 9:00AM

10:30PM Jessica and I are at the offices of PRFA. We are lead through a hallway/meeting room with a TV discussion in session (very awkward) and into the Director’s office. We wait in a very comfortable sitting room. Soon we are joined by Abog. (lawyer, it is common for a person to be introduced with their professional title) Sidia Velasquez who is the private secretary (office manager) for the Director and Aboq. Roberto Lanza, General Council robertolanzab@yahoo.es They explained that the Director is involved with the meeting we came through to get to her office. I said that we appreciate t ... Read More »

By reh on 10/16/2008

Thursday, Oct 16, 2008

5:30PM Frenando and I are on our way to Teguci. Jessica will meet us. Fernando will purchase powder milk and head back while Jessica and I go to the World Bank meeting. I will take King Autobus back this afternoon.

9:00AM Met with Dante Mossi, PhD, Official de Operaciones de Pais (Operations Officer for Honduras). He listened with great interest in the L4L program. He explained that, in exchange for certain loan dept forgiveness, the Honduras government agreed to raise certain moneys through normal taxation procedures and use it for certain very specific social programs; several have to do with supporting elementary schools lunch programs. The government channels these funds through an education council that we should contact. These funds are considerable and are committed many years into the future. Dr. Mossi believes that these primary school programs are run with relative efficiency and w ... Read More »

By reh on 10/15/2008

Wednesday, Oct 15, 2008

8:00AM Fernando and I went to the school at Pierdras Blancas. Got GPS coordinates. I had forgotten just how poor and un-kept the children are at the poorer schools. Our project for the day is to get pictures for the school page on our web site. We asked the principal, Mr. Nunec (who acts like a little Napoleon but actually has a heart of gold) if we could take a picture of some of the kids in front of the class (this is a two-classroom school and we didn’t want to disrupt both classes). She started culling out the kids with uniforms since we said “some”. When I realized what she was doing, I said that we want all the kids from that class. The kids came pouring out of the class (they just don’t realize how un-kept they look). Several pictures available; a good time was had by all. Walked around the neighborhood taking pictures; now I have to put the Power Point together.

12:00PM At motel for ... Read More »

By reh on 10/14/2008

Tuesday, Oct 14, 2008

8:00AM Went to the airport with Elise.

11:45AM Elise processed in and didn’t even pay an airport surtax!

2:00PM On King Autobus headed for Nacaomi

6:45PM Processed back into Honduras in 10 minutes with only a $3.00 fee! What is this world coming to!

7:30PM Late beer with Fernando. End of day.

By reh on 10/13/2008

Monday, Oct 13, 2008

Vacation, see Elise’s notes.

By reh on 10/12/2008

Sunday, Oct 12, 2009

Vacation, see Elise’s notes.

By reh on 10/11/2008

Saturday, Oct 11, 2008

4:00AM Heard water running so went to tighten a faucet. Water was pouring through the bathroom ceiling. Called desk. In another room by 4:45. Too late to sleep so got ready for the day and studied some Spanish.

9:00AM Took taxi to meet Elise.

11:35AM Elise arrived without incident. Headed to resort (see Elise’s notes).

By reh on 10/10/2008

Friday, Oct 10. 2008

Classes all Morning

11:45AM Departed hotel for King Autobus. Stopped for lunch along the way.

2:00PM Departed King Autobus for El Salvador.

4:00PM Crossing the border at El Amatillo. What a difference a few years and some rule changes make! Bus stopped at the border, two guards went thru checking papers, within 10 minutes they were done and we were on our way! Didn’t even interrupt the movie that was in progress!

8:15PM At bus station in San Salvador. Taxi to Holiday Inn. Reservations were in place. Late light dinner and to bed.

By reh on 10/9/2008

Thursday, Oct 9, 2008

Classes all Morning

11:45 Deposited money in my personal account.

By reh on 10/8/2008

Wednesday, Oct 8, 2008

Classes all morning

By reh on 10/7/2008

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Class all morning

11:00AM Took a taxi to King Autobus and purchased a ticket to San Salvador. Will leave Teguci at 2:00PM Friday and arrive at San Salvador at 8:00PM.

By reh on 10/6/2008

Monday, Oct 6, 2008

Holiday, no classes.

9:30AM called Cynthia Rodriguez with City Bank at 290-0112. No answer, left a message

9:45AM called Rosabel Ramirez at 2 395 5328. No answer, left a message

11:00AM Went to Santa Lucia. Ate at a really good restaurant El Piano.
Stopped at store on the way back.

3:00PM in the hotel.

By reh on 10/5/2008

Sunday, Oct. 5, 2008

No classes.

11:00AM Jorge and Leslie took me to lunch then their place. I believe Jorge’s business is relatively recession proof (la gente have to move within the city and Jorge supplies the busses). He is his own financer so the credit crunch doesn’t affect him. He has spent a lot of time and money fixing his house/office and I believe he and his family are comfortable.
Jorge spoke much more about his concern for Central America as the drug trade grows way out of control. It seems that traffickers pay local foot soldiers with drugs that they must sell locally, creating a local market that wouldn’t exist if the lower echelon were paid in cash. First the city and now the country is being divided up among the various drug groups exactly the same as the government does for local representation. Jorge says the common people are too busy making a living, meanwhile it is becoming quest ... Read More »

By reh on 10/4/2008

Saturday, Oct. 4, 2008

Classes all morning. Maybe it’s my age and possibly it’s just life, but I am finding it difficult to accomplish much beyond Spanish classes and studying. Haven’t really had time to follow up on L4L stuff nearly an actively as I had anticipated. Worse case is that I don’t get much done during these two weeks of Spanish and I simply have to move at double time during my stay with Fernando.

These two weeks of emersion are going much better than my first time 2 years ago. Primarily because:

• I set my expectations much lower (more realistic)
• I have more background Spanish to add to the mix
• I know more specifically what I want to work on
• I don’t hesitate to speak my very poor Spanish with anyone

The hotel I am staying at is one of the 5 recomme ... Read More »

By reh on 10/3/2008

Friday, Oct. 3, 2008

Classes all morning

11:30AM met Nelson Avila and his friend Armando Moncada, MD, (678) 523-0058, amoncada@pcglabs.com at the Hotel International. Joined them for lunch. Dr. Moncada owns a cancer clinic in Atlanta and is very interested in L4L.

2:00 till 3:30 Classes

By reh on 10/2/2008

Thursday, Oct 2, 2008

Classes all morning.

11:30AM Fernando and Jessica came by for lunch. Talked about Roxana and her pay arrangement for next year. Talked about Parasite program. Talked about finishing last kitchen. Talked about website Power Points for other schools (map not opening). Very pleasant afternoon. Jessica may be able to go with me to El Amatillo late next week.

4:30 PM Fernando & Jessica left.

By reh on 10/1/2008

Wednesday, Oct 1, 2008

Classes all morning.

By reh on 9/30/2008

Tuesday, Sept 30, 2008

Classes all morning.

By reh on 9/29/2008

Monday, Sept 29, 2008

Flew to Teguci.
12:00PM Taxi to Aparthotel Guijarros 011 (504) 235-6851. Very clean, secure, quite, friendly.

By reh on 7/4/2008

July 4, 2008, Friday

5:30AM At Airport, in line. Already 15 people ahead of me and I can see why! Every stop, ticket counter, tax paying cashier, security #1 and #2, was long and slow. I don’t know if the congestion is due to the Teguci Airport closure or if this is SOP. At the gate in plenty of time but it was a very tedious morning.

By reh on 7/3/2008

July 3, 2008, Thursday

Dr. Avila’s contact never called; I’ll put UN visit on front of next trip, not on back.

8:30AM Called bus station, ticket to San Pedro Sula is Lps. 480. Since time is short and I can’t afford to get there to an already full bus, I took a cab to the bus station to buy a ticket. Actually, a good thing; most of the seats were already taken.

1:30PM Bus left on time and arrived in San Pedro Sula on time.

5:30PM Ask taxi driver for a secure/clean hotel near airport. He calls one that is full then recommends one. Like an idiot I said OK. Took me to a third rate hotel in the city center. No way! He took me to another just as bad. Clearly, he gets a cut for everyone he takes to these particular motels. I showed him one in a brochure by the airport and we went there. This motel/apartment complex reminds me of an old, rundown Best W ... Read More »

By reh on 7/2/2008

July 2, 2008, Wednesday

8:00AM Finished breakfast with Fernando and Jessica and headed back to Tegucigalpa for our meeting with our lawyer regarding Sigfredo’s letter.

11:30AM In Hotel Maya.

2:30PM Meeting with lawyer Ochoa. Good meeting; he is very thorough. He will get letter for Sigfredo to sign to Jessica tomorrow. Jessica will print the letter on L4L letterhead and set up meeting with Sigfredo.

3:30PM Jessica’s husband picked her up.
Still no word from the UN. Am out of time and must get to San Pedro Sula tomorrow for my flight home. I will set up meeting with Dr. Avila early in my next trip, rather than at the end. Am disappointed but remain confident that Dr. Avila will help us in its own time.
If Valle District was out of the way when the Teguci Airport was opened, it is much further out of the way now. For a ... Read More »

By reh on 7/1/2008

July 1, 2008, Tuesday

7:30AM Jessica and I headed south to Nacaomi.

9:30AM At Fernando’s house finishing up info to go with GPS map locations.

11:00AM Meeting with Roxana. Discussed her projects:
• Evaluate average grades prior to L4L and see if trends are developing.
• Work with Principals to write a monthly letter.
We talked till 12:30, Roxana understands what I want and seems enthusiastic; we’ll see.

2:00PM Drove out to look at school kitchen progress at Rincon.

3:00PM Need phone minutes so drove to Sal Lucas. Had dinner at my favorite fish restaurant. I took this opportunity to explain to Fernando and Jessica that we are very pleased with the way they are managing things and they should continue with every confidence that we are satisfied with their management. I asked if ... Read More »

By reh on 6/30/2008

June 30, 2008, Monday

10:00AM Jessica arrived in anticipation of our meeting with Sigfredo. We reviewed several historical facts, dates and details. Called Fernando for confirmation of a few items. The whole story:
At the very start Roxana did not understand the management function of an accountant. She was insulted by Sigfredo’s prying. On his part, by virtue of his position as a “Licencia” from Teguci, Sigfredo’s approach was pretty heavy handed. We hired Fernando who is also an accountant who studied in Teguci. Things improved but Sigfredo continued to beat the drums of probable corruption that he is trying to save us from. The original agreement with Sigfredo was that he provide two weeks of accounting services per month for $350 per month. This accounting service would include enough time in Valle District to assure that materials moved as per our management system and that all accounting is accurate and com ... Read More »

By reh on 6/30/2008

Honduras Operations
The infrastructure implemented in Honduras is operating very effectively and efficiently under the leadership of Fernando Cortez. He is absolutely the right individual to lead our in-country operations. On many occasions during my visit, he demonstrated his effectiveness in building and maintaining relationships with people, which is a critical skill in the oversight of our organization. Additionally, Fernando affirmed with his words and his actions that his mission is to protect the best interests of L4L as well as the well being of the kids in our program.

Additionally, Jessica Gonzalez, who often works as L4L’s in-country interpreter, has become an increasingly important person in our organization. She has a tenacious spirit and a skill for getting things done on behalf of L4L that might ordinarily take the U.S. management team a long time.

Kitchen Projects Read More »

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The Motorcycle Diary

By reh on 6/29/2008

June 29, 2008, Sunday

9:00AM Checked out of Hotel El Picacho. Too bad; large room with sitting/study area and small kitchenette, but no kitchen and no restaurants close by.

11:00AM In the Hotel Maya. Compiling notes and getting ready for next week. Finally got on internet. Set up meeting with Dr. Avila for tomorrow at 2:15PM and a meeting with Sigfredo at 11:00AM. Jessica will arrive at 10:00AM to review notes prior to meeting with Sigfredo. 

4:00PM End of day.

By reh on 6/28/2008

June 28, 2008, Saturday

8:30AM Checked out of motel and driving toward Teguci.
10:30AM Hotel El Picacho. Was told of this nice hotel on the other side of town that costs $75/night (+/-); this gets us back below $100/night. It’s on the road that leads to the US Ambassador’s residence and other very large houses compounds. The hotel is clean and secure with spacious rooms; kitchen opens at 6:30AM. The road goes up the mountain north of town with a spectacular view of Teguci. Signed in, went to room. Settled in, watched some CNN, world events haven’t changed over the last week. Went down for late lunch; kitchen is only opened for breakfast! No snack shop, no bar, just a hotel. I am told there is a “nice” restaurant around the corner; a short drive up the hill and, of course, many down the hill in the center of Teguci. I really don’t like driving in town so decided to go up the hill. This “nice” restaurant is a small ... Read More »

By reh on 6/27/2008

June 27, 2008, Friday

Took the day off. Went to Choluteca sightseeing. There are reasons it’s not on the lists of tourist attractions. Ate dinner at my favorite restaurant in San Lorenz. Took a nap.

By reh on 6/26/2008

June 26, 2008, Thursday

6:30AM Fernando and I took the GPS and went to each school, designated the school, and Fernando listed School name, Community name, Principal’s mane, number of teachers, and number of students. I will get that info to with coordinates to Hanan and have the website map updated and accurately labeled. Anyone that has been here knows the condition of the dirt roads and the distance between schools; even recognizing the correct designation of certain schools without driving all the way to them, this was still a full day’s job.
Stopped by the high school to pick up report cards of the two girls. We are 16 weeks into the school year. We were told that grades come out next week. It took a while but I finally got across that I wanted a copy of the report card for the previous term. The next part I couldn’t get so called Jessica. It seems that no report card was issued at the end of the first term; ... Read More »

By reh on 6/25/2008

June 25, 2008, Wednesday

6:00AM Fernando, Kristi, Jessica, I left for El Salvador International Airport.

9:30AM Having breakfast at a cafeteria within the airport compound. After breakfast, Kristi and Jessica walked over to the terminal to process baggage in, get boarding passes, then see if they can find pail of vitamins.

11:00AM I was going to go check up on Kristi when I met Jessica. A customs officer wanted documentation for transport of “medicine”. Vitamins are not regulated as “medicine” and there is no restriction on quantity, nor is there and documentation required. I know that from 4 years of transporting vitamins. The customs official was a kind of macho guy who had made a mistake. By the time I got there he had dug his heals in. He was insisting that Kristi take them back. There is no way that pail would find its way back to a plane from the customs side in one ... Read More »

By reh on 6/24/2008

June 24, 2008 Tuesday

8:00AM Fernando’s house for breakfast. Typical breakfast of refried beans, egg, sausage, cheese (salty), tortillas, coffee and juice. Fernando’s wife had left for work (owns a medical laboratory) so the maid served us.

9:00AM Explained that we want Fernando and Jessica to try to get the attention of various companies with US ownership that we have not been able to reach. These companies include Alcoa, 3 M Corporation, and Tabacolera CA (sub. of Philip Morris).
Went onto the internet and looked at the Honduras map we have installed on our website. We explained that each “push pin” represents a school. Each school can open to a page dedicated to that school. We want Fernando to get pictures, letters, other stuff for each school page and email to Hanan. After some discussion, it became clear that I had improperly named some schools. Fernando and I will re-do all scho ... Read More »

By reh on 6/23/2008

June 23, 2008, Monday

8:30AM Fernando, Kristi, Jessica, Roxana, and I were all congregated to motel restaurant waiting for Abierto Abrazo group.

9:30AM Abierto Abrazo group arrived (Kristi will compile names, titles). We split up into two groups. I went with one group, Kristi went with another. Each group went to two schools. I will let Kristi provide details as all schools are similar and my story would be very similar to Kristi’s. Fernando did an excellent job of coordinating the entire tour. When everything in a one-day tour as large as this one goes so smoothly that it seems effortless, you know someone put a lot into the coordination. Thank you, Fernando!

3:30PM At motel for summary meeting and late lunch/early dinner. Everyone agreed that the effort was worth the time and wants to continue to explore ways to work together for the benefit of the children.
Read More »

By reh on 6/22/2008

June 22, 2008, Sunday

8:15AM Jessica took a bus to Teguci last evening as she has a family reunion. Fernando arrived with a young lady (just graduated from high school this year) to interpret for us. Drove to El Amatillo to check on each of the 7th graders (I will keep today through noon Wednesday short as Kristi will critique these days). It seems that Fernando missed 3 days of bus ride and 2 days of lunch money during one of the months. When he came to set up for the next week the mother of Elsa Waldina Lazo Lemus (Waldina) asked for the back money. Fernando said the girls had gotten to school on their own and he wasn’t compelled to “make up payments’; and besides we expect the families to help (maybe the best approach, maybe not; but it was Fernando’s and I’m ok with it). About two days later, an older sister of Waldina’s called demanding the money “that was theirs” and accused Fernando of pocketing the money. We walked alo ... Read More »

By reh on 6/21/2008

June 21, 2008, Saturday

6:00AM Fernando, Jessica, and I headed for the San Salvador Airport. Long uneventful drive.

9:30AM Breakfast at the airport, waiting for Kristi’s 11:30 flight.

11:30AM Waiting in the area outside the customs door. 12:30; not too worried, an hour is common. 1:00PM, starting to worry. Finally, something after 1:00PM Kristi emerged, minus the vitamins. She had waited, not knowing when bags from her flight had all arrived then line a mile long at baggage claim window. We’ll pick the vitamins up when we bring her back on Wednesday. It was time to leave for Honduras if we are to get to the hotel before dark.

5:30PM Dinner at the hotel, sat on the veranda winding down.

8:00PM End of day.

By reh on 6/20/2008

June 20, 2008, Friday

7:30AM Drove out to look at the second school kitchen. Not the workmanship of the first (and third) kitchen but it is certainly functional. It seems that bats have already taken up residency. The principal is not concerned as the smoke from the kitchen fire drives them out each morning. I notice the droppings on the floor just below the main support beams (since then, I have noticed droppings on many school building floors; it seems that bats are a common nuisance). The space between the roof rafters that sit on the wall sill and the roof is left open on purpose so cooking smoke from the wood fire can escape. After a little thought, I told Fernando L4L would pay to put screens in this space in kitchens that we build to keep the bats out. It just seems that bat poop on the kitchen floor and all the critters that ride around on/in worm-blooded animals hanging from the beams probably isn’t real sanitary. < ... Read More »

By reh on 6/19/2008

June 19, 2008, Thursday

6:00AM Walked across a private overpass to the beach. Beach is black (sand is derived from volcanic rocks, not sandstone). Unfortunately, the beach is never cleaned so there are coconut hulls, pieces of Styrofoam, plastic bottles, old shoes, etc at the high water line. So much for pristine Pacific beaches.

8:15AM Waiting for Fernando to pick me up. The place is ok, but I won’t come back.

10:00AM Fernando arrived. We were headed back to El Amatillo by 10:00.

1:30PM Border crossing at El Amatillo. Central America border crossings have really been upgraded since my first trip 5.5 years ago. Now, once you process into any Central America country and pay the $10.00 fee, you can travel back and forth without re-processing. When we got to El Amatillo, all I had to do was pay a $3.00 fee for a 90 day pass to travel in/out of Hon ... Read More »

By reh on 6/18/2008

June 18, 2008, Wednesday

5:00AM At the Montgomery airport. Sealed 5 gallon pail of 25,000 children’s vitamins went thru inspection unopened (happens about 60% of the time; good luck, Kristi). Got to the gate at about 5:30 for a flight that should leave at 6:18AM. Marque said plane will leave at 8:30AM. That means I’ll miss my connecting flight out of Houston. Called Elise, she changed for 5:30PM flight out of Houston. Brought along Obama’s book “The Audacity of Hope” (regardless of my sensibilities, I might as well know how our next President thinks) thinking I could read a few chapters during interminably dull evenings in the compound. Read 80% in airports between 5:30AM and 5:30 PM.

8:45PM Thru customs. Both bags arrived! All is good. Got a cab and drove 3 or 4 minutes up the road to a Quality Inn. It is full. Next nearest clean and secure hotel is 30 miles away on a Pacific beach. Fairly nice hot ... Read More »

By reh on 4/15/2008

April 15, 2008, Tuesday

7:15AM Breakfast at the Maya with Dr. Avila. After preliminaries that included an update on Dr. Avila’s (he is becoming more involved in academia and expects to be appointed as the rector-our version of dean-of the Honduras University system) travels and on L4L, I explained that L4L needs a more stable financial base. I explained that I only know about the United Nations and the World Bank what I read in the news magazines but want to approach one of them for a grant. I know that, while the paperwork is important and applying with the right department within the organizations in important, presenting the proposal to the right person is most important. I understand the process will take time; my goal is to have results within a year, not within months. I would like Dr. Avila to coach me over the next year on the best approach. His reaction was instant and enthusiastic. He will talk to people today, when ... Read More »

By reh on 4/14/2008

April 14, 2008, Monday

7:30AM On the road to Teguci.

9:30AM Calles Dr. Avilea. No answer. A little later, Jessica called to tell me that Fernando had called; the interview wasn’t taped. While on the line, she told me this is a national holiday so all businesses are closed. Am sure Dr. Avilea wasn’t thinking of the holiday. Guess I’ll miss him this time.

Am still not sure how to gauge “success”. If success is completing “to do” items that prompted the trip, than this certainly was not a success; as it turns out, most trips are not. If success is keeping the program moving along, than this was a successful trip. Possibly, another way to gauge success is by cost effectiveness. I suppose time will tell if we derive value for time and dollars spent.
Clark always counsels patience. I guess I would say that has been my mantra during this entire trip. Some part of p ... Read More »

By reh on 4/13/2008

April 13, 2008, Sunday

9:00AM Fernando at the motel. Jessica called, on the way from Teguci their pickup had a flat. They are only 10 minutes north of Nacaomi so Fernando and I drove to the pickup, loaded the tire in the trunk and Jessica, husband and 2 kids in car. Stopped at tire repair shop on the way back to Nacaomi and left the tire, husband and kids ant went back to check on Roxana. She had not arrived and said she couldn’t make it. Drove to T.V. station but we were at the transmission location; the recording studio is on the other side of town. Fortunate Nacaomi is not a large town. Walked in studio at minutes before 10:00AM.
The studio is a square room approximately 15x15feet. A long table with a rounded front side sits far enough from the wall that 4 captain’s chairs can fit between the table and the back wall. There are 2 couches along the wall with the door; these are all out of the view of the camera ... Read More »

By reh on 4/12/2008

April 12, 2008, Saturday

8:00AM Fernando came by. Drove to El Amatillo. Roxana has classes but Suyen went with us.
9:00AM Dr. Castillo and assistant arrived. First school was Andrea Ganzales (Roxana’s school). Kida, teachers, parents waiting. Dr. set up one person to take names and one to give pills. It took about 3 minutes to realize that we would be there all morning with all the kids that shows up; students, kids too young for school, and post 6th grade. I suggested we set up two lines. Even with 2 lines, it took almost two hours to accommodate everyone. The response to this type of effort is pretty impressive; the parents know the importance and really come forth when the opportunity is presented.
Dr. Castillo insists on making these events a party so the children will see the event as a positive, party type of event so passes out a lollypop (bomba) to every kid and brings a piñata. We knew ... Read More »

By reh on 4/11/2008

April 11, 2008, Friday

8:00AM Packing, setting agenda for next few days.
9:00AM Call from Dr. Avila, we will have lunch Monday. We will confirm place at 11:00 Monday.
11:00AM Headed for Nacaomi. Lots of traffic through Teguci.
2:00PM In motel in Nacaomi.
3:30PM Fernando came by and we discussed coming events.
5:00PM End of day.

By reh on 4/10/2008

April 10, 2008, Thursday

8:30AM Call from Rosibel Ramirez asking if we can meet at 1:00PM (of course we can)
10:00AM Fernando’s reporter friend’s name is Luis Rodrigoez. He is the financial reporter for El Heraldo (El Heraldo is written for a more educated audience-like the Wall Street Journal) – I’m impressed. We were received cordially by Mr. Cuevas and started by talking in the receiving room while standing. I started by explaining that I know he cannot do a follow-up at present and that human interest stories are fillers to be worked on when time permits; I simply wanted to stop by as a reminder to keep us on his list for future stories. I think he really appreciated that I wasn’t trying to push for immediate results. I, then, explained that the young lady in the US who did the story is very young and inexperienced. As a result she did a story about a little girl; we are feeding 1000 students at 14 schools an ... Read More »

By reh on 4/9/2008

April 9, 2008, Wednesday

9:00AM Not a good day. Jessica explained to me that the AP reporter really doesn’t want to see us.
Called Alcoa, the receptionist said Ms. Paz is in a meeting; same answer Jessica has been getting for 2 weeks.
Called 3-M, the receptionist won’t even tell us who we should talk to.
Called Tabacalera Centroamericana (Philip Morris subsidiary), the person we must talk to “is not in”; same answer Jessica has been getting for a week.
Called Ms. Ramirez (VP’s wife’s secretary) she will check Mrs. Santo’s schedule and call back; I think she will.
Called Dr. Avila’s office. He is in Venezuelans this week but his secretary will check his schedule for Monday or Tuesday of next week; we’ll see.
All in all, not a good morning.
On the road to Teguci by 11:00AM
2:00PM Signed into Maya. Took notes, relaxed. ... Read More »