Asociacion Casa Hogar Brazos Abiertos

Asociacion Casa Hogar Brazos Abiertos means association house home arms open. It is a daycare center in Tegucigalpa Centro. The parents that leave their children there work as shoe shiners in the park and in the markets. They work long hard hours to eke out a meager living that does not even begin to buy enough food for their children. Without this daycare center, the children would be left at home all day while a parent, usually the mother is working. This daycare center operates completely from donations so they do not have to charge the parents anything in order to leave their children in a safe, clean place while they work. All the little children wear uniforms that are color coded by the child's age. Their are 4 different age groups. The uniforms are supplied by the center. The mother of one of the teachers makes the uniforms. As well as uniforms, each child is fed breakfast, lunch and a snack before they go home. The teachers teach age appropriate material to all the children. The center was extremely clean and well organized. Most public and private schools in Honduras and, I daresay, many in the states would be envious of this facility. This daycare center was opened by the last first lady. The current administration would like to close it for no other reason than it was opened by another administration. Our doctor friend, Maurio, and his wife Suzie are trying to make sure this center is not closed. Today Maurio, Suzie, Marc and I took some tuna and sardines down to the center. Maurio plans to return with several boxes of cereal. We talked to the director. She gives God all the glory for the center's existence and thanked us for the food, after she thanked God. While we were there, it was nap time. Everyone was asleep with just a few beginning to rouse. All children are precious when sleeping, but I could tell these were precious awake as well. I am sure you can tell all the children are asleep on mattresses on the floor. Since they do not own the building they are in, the director said she would like to find a bigger place, one where they can build bunk beds so the children do not have to sleep on the floor. It would still have to be in the same general location. The parents that use this facility have no transportation.

This did not take long today, but how fulfilling to know that such a great place exists and the people there take great pride in providing the very best care possible.

Terri