Antonio Update

On our first trip to Honduras we met Antonio at AFE, the school in the garbage dump. Jeony introduced him to us and we developed a friendship. He was the oldest student in the school and had an amazing story. He had arrived at the school with a mask on, a baseball bat and a knife demanding to be taught how to read and write. Eventually he became a leader among the students, sometimes even using his intimidating nature to make them study. I met him during school hours. A few hours later, I went into the garbage dump for the first time and was shocked to see Antonio there working. He would go to school in the morning until noon when he would go back to the garbage dump to work to late evening. Unfortunately this is still the case with about half of the 160 students at AFE.

At the time of his graduation, AFE was not approved for a Junior High so Antonio went to a vocational school called El Sembrador. He was excelling there until his spring break. On his way back to school, he was robbed at the bus stop. The thieves beat him up and stole all his books, clothes, and tuition money. He came back home broken because he didn’t know how to get back. When we saw him, he was in tears over the situation.

This is where Project Transformation steps in! When Jeony told us the circumstances, we immediately called Washington Cathedral about covering the cost of his tuition. The church agreed and we were able to send Antonio back to school on scholarship. He continues to excel in the school and will finish up a welding program. Next year he plans on coming back to AFE while studying in a nearby school to finish his degree. He will teach some of the younger kids at AFE, now that we are going to have our own vocational school.

Antonio is an incredible example of the power of God to transform anyone. No one and no circumstance is outside of God’s grace. Pray that we would continue to see God transform more and more people. We want to see hundreds and thousands of Antonios break out of the garbage dump and pursue God’s will for their life.