My time here at the Farm has been incredibly blessed. I am happy and love helping the poor who come to our clinic. The smiling faces of our children, the beautiful green mountains, and lovely Caribbean Sea--God knew exactly where I needed to be.
- Jeanine Morris (Nurse, 1998-2000)
Farm of the Child is a Catholic apostolate, which in some small way attempts to bring the Kingdom of God to the small Oceanside village of Trujillo located in Eastern Honduras adjacent to La Moskitia or the Mosquito Coast. There, our volunteers live in community praying, working and striving each day to witness Christ in their lives and the lives of the orphans. Our volunteers have found Farm of the Child to provide both the environment and the opportunity to serve God in a most rewarding and unique way.
Volunteers have played a crucial role in the implementation, administration, and support of the Farm of the Child since its inception. The volunteers are involved in every aspect of life at the Finca-including, but not limited to, teaching, community outreach, construction, accounting, administration, tutoring, social work, food distribution, after-school programs, agriculture, and health care. Every volunteer has his or her own responsibilities. However, one must be very flexible and respond to the varying needs and emergencies that arise in this community situation. All are asked to assist in the team effort. In determining each volunteers specific roles, the staff works to match skills and interests with the needs of the Farm. This takes place after the orientation period, when the incoming volunteers are given a chance to experience the many aspects of the jobs at the Farm firsthand.
Communicating with the children, houseparents, workers, members of the local villages, and spanish-speaking volunteers is vital. If you have no Spanish training or are not quite confident in your ability to speak, do not worry. A future volunteer with little or no Spanish can learn the language in just two months. After being accepted, volunteers will begin planning for their two months of study in either Honduras or Guatemala, which begins August 1st of each year. Upon completion of language school, our new volunteers arrive in Trujillo and to the Farm of the Child on October 1st, prepared to begin their twenty-seven month commitment with an orientation program conducted by the current volunteer team. There you will have much time to perfect your Spanish in your daily interactions.
While at the Farm, volunteers are provided with room and board and use of the services at the health clinic staffed by other volunteers. All volunteers live together in one house on the property. Two or three individuals share a room, each having a bed, a few shelves, and a little extra storage space. The volunteer community functions as a family, with everyone pitching in to the house responsibilities. They receive the same supply of food that the orphan homes do. The diet includes rice, beans, pasta, vegetables, flour, sugar and coffee. Limited supplies of chicken, fish, beef, eggs, milk and butter are also distributed weekly.
To cover the other volunteer expenses such as travel fares, language school, medical insurance, vaccinations/shots prior to departure, and spending money, volunteers need to raise money. Do not let the idea of fundraising scare you! All motivated volunteers have successfully raised sufficient (even extra) funds to take care of their volunteer expenses. Upon acceptance into the program, we will guide our volunteers in using fundraising methods used by previous volunteers.
Life as a volunteer carries its share of challenges and struggles, but the rewards are endless. Volunteers share a common vision and faith, stated in the Mission Statement and in the Volunteer Commitment Pledge. Volunteers implement this vision in their daily lives by committing to the four pillars of volunteer life: community, spirituality, service, and simple living. We hope that all prospective volunteers spend time discerning whether or not to serve as a volunteer at the Farm of the Child.
Life for me here has been a lesson in humility--learning my human limitations and moving from self-reliance to reliance on God. Accompanying the growing pains has been a deeper understanding of joy. At least once a day, I stop in my tracks to look around me, no matter where I may be, and I smile from the inside out--for me that's a true happiness.
- Meggan Hempelman (Community Outreach and Assistant Director, 1998-2000)