School of Hope– In 2019, after a trip to the slums in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, the dream of LIT School of Hope was born. 35 pre-school aged children were carefully selected and LIT is committed to providing free education to these children until they are ready to enter university. Not only do they receive a free education, materials, uniforms, transportation, and 2 hot meals a day, the parents of the children are given monthly parenting classes and the mothers are given lessons in creating artisan crafts that they can sell. (Most of the students come from single-parent homes; their mothers are nightclub dancers or street workers, and if the father is around, the chances are high that he is a member of the drug cartel.) The church that LIT Honduras National Director Pastor Pablo Cruz pastors provided the facilities and LIT provided the cost of remodeling for classrooms, bathrooms, and a kitchen. In February of 2020, LIT’s School of Hope opened to much excitement, but less than 2 months later was shut down due to COVID-19. Food drop-offs are currently conducted weekly for the families of our students, as well as providing internet cards so that the children can connect to their classes on their mothers’ cellphones via Zoom.
The original idea was to stay with these 35 children until they are ready for college, and that idea remains. However, we have another 35 children who are on a waiting list and desperate to be a part of the school. Please pray that we can secure funding to support many more children and give them an opportunity to rise up out of their current situation. We also envision duplicating this model in different locations. Currently, we have 5 people on staff, but they are all volunteers!
Current needs: a school bus to transport all the children at once, finish roof enclosure, individual sponsors for children