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The spirit of children in Honduras, one of the poorest countries |
By KATY HERSHBERGER
In January, University of Mary Washington senior Shin Fujiyama went on his fifth humanitarian trip to Honduras, along with the Campus Christian Community.
The students witnessed poverty and hardship. Street children who cannot afford to go to school dig through trash to find food and frequently sniff glue in order to forget their hunger. In the village of Siete de Abril, people live in shacks of cardboard and tin.
The students also learned that Copprome, an orphanage that houses, schools and provides nourishment for more than 70 children, is in danger of closing because of a lack of money.
Memories of the mission trip have spawned action here.
In February, Fujiyama and his sister, Cosmo, founded Students Helping Honduras, a nonprofit organization dedicated to just that--supporting children and assisting with education, health and relief efforts in the community.
The group is organizing a walkathon on the Mary Washington campus April 23. Philanthropist Doris Buffett's Sunshine Foundation awarded Students Helping Honduras a $100,000 challenge grant for the event. The foundation has agreed to donate $2 for every $1 that the walkathon raises.
Mary Washington students and groups such as the Campus Christian Community and the Human Rights Club have rallied around the SHH fundraising effort.
The CCC is collecting items to fill a 40-foot container to send to the city of El Progreso, home to Siete de Abril and Copprome. Fujiyama, who is leading the effort, said these donations will support the village and two orphanages--Copprome and Proniño.
The CCC is accepting all types of donations, from fans to refrigerators, but mostly needs warm-weather clothing, shoes and mattresses.
"The kids are sleeping on the floor because they don't have enough mattresses," Fujiyama said.
The CCC also needs school supplies and classroom furniture for Honduran children.
"The kids don't have desks and don't have chairs, so kids have to bring chairs from home," Fujiyama said. "Some don't have chairs, so they have to sit on dirt floors."
Fujiyama, who lives in Falls Church when he is not at UMW, emphasized that any donation makes a difference.
"Things that we might consider to be trash or something we might throw away, some of these people--it might be treasure to them," he said.
The CCC hopes to have the container, which is the size of a semi trailer, filled and shipped this summer.
Much of Honduras has still not recovered from the devastation of Hurricane Mitch in 1998.
It is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere, according to the CIA World Fact Book, and has a high prevalence of malnourishment and AIDS.
During previous trips, UMW students bought needed goods for Siete de Abril and Copprome, such as backpacks, hoses and fences for vegetable gardens. They wrapped 1,000 Christmas gifts for children in the orphanage who had never before received presents.
The CCC's the Rev. Bob Azzarito accompanied the 15 Mary Washington students on the trip to El Progreso in January.
"It's hard to meet these children, talk with them and not have your heart break," Azzarito said.
The CCC has plans to go back to Honduras once a year.
Fujiyama also accompanied a group of students from UMW's Human Rights Club to Honduras in December. Many of these students, including sophomore Nick Winborne, were nervous about how they would be received by the orphans.
"We stepped out [of the van] and [the kids] all came running out of the building and just started hugging and kissing us," he said. "They were incredibly sincere and loving the entire trip. They really just loved having people there to be with them and hug them and play. We felt truly loved by the time we left. It was beautiful and inspiring."
In addition to the call for donations at the CCC, Fujiyama has spearheaded a number of other fundraising campaigns.
His short documentary "Copprome: A Hope for Honduras" won the Film of the Festival award at Mary Washington's student film festival in February. There, students donated more than $2,500 to the orphanage.
UMW sophomore Anna Lowell, an SHH staff member, did not go on the trip in January but plans to go to Honduras in May.
"It's a lot of work having to plan and fund-raise, but I know that every moment of it is going to be absolutely worth it when we get to go there and see these kids," she said.
Fujiyama inspired Lowell, who is from Virginia Beach, to be a part of the cause, she said.
"He has a really contagious passion," she said.
The CCC is collecting all donations at its 1213 Dandridge St. location. For information, call 540/373-9255. Details about SHH are
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