blog

In the night from 27 to 28 May, Honduras was struck by a powerful earthquake, one that had a force of 7.1 magnitude.

All the children and adults who we work with are safe and the buildings in which we live and work have suffered only very minor damage.

Our town, El Progreso, was hit quite severely. Many houses show fissures in walls or roofing, some walls and roofs have collapsed and according to the latest news there are 3 or maybe 4 deaths in the region.

The bridge that links our town to the airport and the capital has collapsed and a second, stronger bridge, built with support of the Japanese government, has suffered damage to a degree that authorities decided to close it for all traffic.

Despite immense fear, we are happy that all the children and employees are fine. We hope that we will soon be able to send a news letter with better tidings, among other things about the visit of two Proniño boys to the Netherlands!

When the phone rang none of us could have guessed the news that we were about to hear.

“Ramon has died, he drowned in the river”. We put the receiver down, in disbelief, without asking any further questions. We were left in tears and loneliness.

In 2003 Ramon was one of the first boys ever welcomed in Proniño’s program. He was also the very first to embrace our board members during their reconnaissance visit. He was nine back then, and now, at fifteen, he is dead.

After six difficult but rewarding years with Proniño, Ramon decided in early 2009 that he had had enough of being pampered and that the time had come to be independent. It was hard for us to understand, fifteen is still so young and fragile, but often boys in poor nations decide that once they are fifteen, they are real men and need to fend for themselves.

Ramon left Proniño; he had no house, no job, little education, but at least he was free, or so he thought. Unfortunately, he had epilepsy, and on the day he left Proniño, he stopped taking his little tablets. A few months later, he decided to wash his clothes in the local river. He had been wearing them for ten days; no money for a second set of garments, and no place to keep them.

Ramon probably had a seizure while washing his clothes, and was taken by the roaring waters to his death. A little girl found him the next day, he had drifted ashore.

Ramon’s life didn’t last long. While he received very little, he gave us infinitely more than he ever knew. The sight of his shy smile, his juvenile enthusiasm and his belief in a better future has often given us the strength to continue when we secretly felt like giving up.

Thank you Ramon, for everything you have offered us, we wish you a good journey.

Proniño children and employees, Homeless Child volunteers.