There’s a well known proverb that “it takes a village to raise a child.” A small village in Honduras serves as an amazing example of just that.
As part of the Retail Orphan Initiative, retail executives from across the country traveled to La Entrada, Honduras in April to the Plan Escalon campus, a haven for more than 550 Honduran youth ranging from grades 6-12. Many of these kids come to the school from difficult circumstances, feeling lost and hopeless. But the Plan Escalon program gives children a chance to reclaim their future through education, faith and training. Plan Escalon means “A Plan to Escalate”, and the program’s success is undeniable. With nearly 50 percent of their graduates going on to attend a college or university, compared to the national average of just one percent, the importance of the school’s partnerships with groups like RetailROI and Lifesong for Orphans results in their continued success. In a nation with 70 percent overall unemployment, over 70 percent of these graduates have full time employment – a testament to the positive impact Plan Escalon has on the future of Honduras.
During my trip last month, I saw first-hand how one graduate’s journey is just beginning at the Plan Escalon campus. After she completed her education, the graduate returned to her home to start the village’s first elementary school, a truly remarkable accomplishment.
As part of Escalon’s weekly “Life in Action” village trips, we traveled up the side of a mountain with pickup trucks piled high with desks, chairs and Escalon students. It was apparent that our visit was the beginning of fulfilling another child’s opportunity to overcome obstacles and reach for their dreams.
With the emergence of new technology, a personal call-to-action can stretch from the United States to a village thousands of miles away. For almost five years, RetailROI has not only been able to make an impact on children’s lives domestically and internationally, this group of retail industry professionals has also touched hearts and encouraged others to become believers, leaders and champions for the cause.
Since 2008, the Retail Orphan Initiative has partnered with organizations on global missions to lend resources that change nations in 13 countries with over sixty projects. In Honduras, it started with building a computer lab and using the technology to connect students to a world of expanded learning, skills and opportunities. Similar projects have taken place in Liberia, Haiti, Zambia, Ethiopia and the United States through the construction of schools and the improvement of existing facilities. The purpose of RetailROI is to raise awareness and provide real solutions for the more than 400 million vulnerable children worldwide, and so far the organization has successfully donated more than 92 percent of their funds directly to the projects and missions at hand. In addition to the work in their professional lives, this group has adopted the motto “Find the need, Meet the need, Change a Nation.”
Ultimately, what we saw in Honduras was a perfect representation of the funds raised through RetailROI’s supporters. Our group did not just bring much needed resources to a village, but in many ways, those trucks served as vehicles to deposit seeds of inspiration and encouragement.
Students from the Plan Escalon school in La Entrada, Honduras.
One truck piled high with desks and chairs for Plan Escalon students.
Members of the La Entrada, Honduras community.
In the American Society of Civil Engineers’ 2013 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure, the United States scored a D+ average. Not exactly “hang-on-the-refrigerator” type grades.
You know those big name brands that seem like industry giants? Well, most of them started on Main Street. From Sears to J.C. Penney to Best Buy and Walmart, each of these brands’ beginnings stem from entrepreneurs with small beginnings, big dreams and great business plans.