Phil Renicks, Former Vice President, International Ministries
In early November, Hurricane Mitch pounded Honduras, Nicaragua, Belize, and Guatemala, leaving destruction that is beyond the human imagination. In Honduras alone more than 7,000 people were confirmed dead and 11,000 were missing, while some 2 million of the countries’ 5.6 million people lost their homes and possessions. In the wake of such a catastrophic event, it is impossible to know how many really lost their lives or how to calculate the cost.
Tegucigalpa in the Aftermath of Mitch
Since Central America has hundreds of Christian schools, the leaders of ACSI were certain that many ACSI member schools were affected in some way. As we watched the nightly news, we heard about whole communities that had disappeared in mudslides. We learned that communities were lifted off their foundations by the raging rivers. We immediately wondered about the Christian schools we knew were in the same areas. It was difficult to confirm the extent of the damage because the infrastructure of the affected region was totally destroyed. Whole areas of the country were cut off because bridges and roads were completely washed away. It wasn’t until Stuart Salazar, Regional Director for ACSI, Latin America, was able to travel to the affected area that we learned the real story. Schools in Nicaragua were spared any major damage. The greatest destruction, as one might imagine, was in Honduras.
Schools in the San Pedro Sula region of Honduras suffered relatively minor losses. Water damage was the culprit. Schools lost their supplies—textbooks, library books, teaching aids, computers, photocopiers, musical instruments, and other equipment. In most cases the shell of the buildings was still structurally sound and could be reused. The schools were filled with mud and debris from the flooding, but parents and students formed cleanup crews and began to salvage what they could.
That was the case of Instituto Superacion. This school lost all classroom equipment and supplies and had no way to replace them. Then the gift of money came from ACSI. Arnoldo Arias, the school administrator, said, “This gift is something I never expected. I didn’t know there was an association like this whose members would care for us in such a special way.”
However, the story in Tegucigalpa was much different. Roberto Ruiz, director of World Relief, described the situation of Tegucigalpa as “chaos and ruins.” The Instituto Bilingue Gran Comision was totally destroyed by the Choluteca River, which literally ran through the school up to the rafters on the second floor. Through donations from others, the school was able to purchase a large warehouse.
The donations from ACSI will be used to remodel the warehouse into a schoolhouse. Specifically, the funds will provide flooring, partitions, walls, bathrooms, plumbing, and some of the electrical work. The school will need additional funds for furniture and furnishings. Francisco Morales, the school director, expressed grateful appreciation to Stuart Salazar and ACSI for coming to their rescue in the midst of a terrible disaster. He presented ACSI with a plaque.
The Instituto Vicente Mejia Colindres faced a similar loss. The river broke through the property and caused a major loss of office equipment, computers, the telephone system, and all the school's supplies, teaching aids, student desks, textbooks, and library. School Director Sandra Lorena Medina said, “We’ll do our best to optimize the use of these funds; we’ll replace some of the essential office equipment, and then we’ll replace all school supplies that were lost in the flood.”
Several other schools in the Tegucigalpa area were damaged; however, one of the schools’ greatest needs is for water purification equipment. Availability of potable water is always a major issue after a destructive storm. Nine schools will be outfitted with water purification systems to provide safe drinking water for the students and staff. The amount of assistance that ACSI was able to provide to the schools in Honduras was over $60,000.
The other area of great need was in Guatemala. The Verbo Terrazas School was located near a mountain. The heavy rains loosened the soil, and the mountain behind the school came down. While twelve temporary classrooms were not destroyed, the property is considered unsafe for occupancy. If the buildings are to be used, they will have to be moved. The ACSI grant of $35,000 will help the school purchase property and move the portable buildings onto it.
The response to the desperate needs of ACSI schools in Central America in the aftermath of Hurricane Mitch has been overwhelming. Stuart Salazar, ACSI Regional Director, Latin America, wrote,
I want to thank ACSI member schools that contributed to this cause, meeting the urgent needs of the schools in Central America. Your response was timely. Now our ACSI member schools here in Central America know that ACSI is more than an association that hosts a convention, offers teacher training, and publishes nice books. They know that ACSI is a family whose members care for one another as 1 Corinthians 12:25 says, “so that there should be no division in the body, but its parts should have equal concern for each other.”
In addition to the outpouring of money, which will aid in reconstructing and remodeling the school buildings, the Kamloops Christian School in Kamloops, British Columbia, encouraged support from local merchants and patrons of the school. Members of the community collected relief items and food supplies, and packed them in 5-gallon plastic buckets with lids. In all, 762 plastic buckets were sent to Guatemala in a 20-foot ocean container. The buckets contained practical helps such as oatmeal, rice, cornmeal, dry beans, soup mix, cooking oil, canned milk, salt, sugar, a towel, Tylenol, multivitamins, and toiletries. In addition to the buckets, 120 blankets were in the container. These relief supplies are being distributed to school families in Guatemala and Honduras who lost most of their personal possessions.
ACSI schools and school families that had a part in making this relief effort possible are to be commended for the way they demonstrated care for one another. In all, 420 schools and individuals gave a total of $117,000 for the ACSI Hurricane Mitch disaster relief effort. All the funds received have been distributed in the full amount to aid the affected schools in Guatemala and Honduras, a clear demonstration of members of the body of Christ showing love and mercy toward one another. In ACSI we are truly an international family.
Overwhelming Response to Victims of Hurricane Mitch 2.5