(Le Mars) — Forty people boarded a bus in Le Mars Tuesday afternoon with the final destination of Honduras. It’s all part of the Gehlen Catholic Mission Honduras. Carolyn Bickford is the coordinator for the Mission Honduras program. She says the group that left on Tuesday makes for the 43rd mission trip to the Central American nation. A send-off ceremony was held at the Gehlen Catholic school. Bickford explains what the mission’s focus is for this year.
As Bickford mentioned the missionaries will construct three homes while in Honduras. She says there is an application process involved as to which families are fortunate enough to get a home.
Bickford says the homes are simple structures, but without plumbing or electricity.
The Mission Honduras coordinator says the families may sleep seven people inside the two small bedrooms. She says the Honduran families conduct their cooking and washing outside.
Bickford says the new homes will be painted. Bickford says the lumber and other materials are purchased in Honduras, however the hardware is often brought along with the mission group from the United States. Bickford says the Honduran people are eternally grateful for their new home, and a ceremony is held when the home is ready to be turned over to the family.
The Mission Honduras group will return to Le Mars on Friday, March 22nd. In a future news update, we will visit with Bruce Kellen who is an eight-time participant of the Gehlen Catholic Mission Honduras program. We will learn why he has chosen to return to Honduras, and what he has learned on each of his journeys to Honduras.
