We brought in the New Year in Roatán and have more updates for you on the school. This was the first time we got to see the construction in person. Prior to that, it was through photos being emailed to us by Kevin. What a thrill to see it and touch it! Here is a view of the school as you see it walking up the hill from the dock.
We visited St. Helene twice during our stay. The first time, everyone was still on holiday so no work was being done, but the second time, everything was in full swing. They are moving fast and we really do believe, barring any long-term bad weather, the school should be ready for the start date in Honduras of February 15th – VERY exciting!!
With us on this trip was Ian from Piranha Systems (the one in the goatee) who will be doing the waste water system for the toilets in the school. His system is a 'green' aerator system that purifies sewage so it doesn’t contaminate the environment which, being so close to the ocean, will protect the beautiful reefs that surround St. Helene. He was excited to see the school and we greatly appreciate his generosity in doing this project for the cost of materials only. The man to Ian's left is Luis, the construction manager overseeing the project. He is doing a fantastic job!
The materials continue to be delivered one dory full at a time. We knew it was a lot of work, but to see it first-hand was impressive. Once they get the dory loaded in Camp Bay in Roatan, they make the 40 minute trip to the north side of St. Helene where they off-load everything by hand from the boat into a wheelbarrow. At the end of the dock, they have to manually carry everything to the top of the beach head that's a good 15-20 foot rise, throw everything back into the wheelbarrow to haul it up the hill to the school, and then off-load it again… to be repeated hundreds and hundreds of times!! Talk about putting 'sweat equity' into a project!
The old hut they used as a school last year has taken a beating, but thankfully it won't be needed much longer. It is only being used right now to store the school books and desks that will be moved to the new school once it is completed.
David will go back down in a few weeks to monitor progress, then we will all return together in early March for a grand opening celebration and dedication of the new school!
Things are definitely moving quickly. Here's a photo of the school that just came in as I was about to post this blog entry!
