Bridgitte's Run

Hi everyone! Thanks for visiting this page. I recently ran my very first mini-marathon in May and only did this because it was on my bucket list of things to accomplish in my life. Neat less to say, I became obsessed! There is something to be said about the thousands of people who give up their day to cheer you on the entire 13.1 miles! Since I loved it so much, I decided to sign up for my next mini-marathon that will be November 3rd! This time though I am running for a cause. In July I had an amazing opportunity to go with Humanity and Hope United on a trip to Honduras. The Humanity and Hope United Foundation is an international non-profit organization whose mission "seeks to inspire more hope, generate more opportunities, and create better living conditions, in order to empower the Honduran communities we serve. We start by listening to those who desperately need our help. Then, we help them learn. We help them grow. We watch them prosper."

I know there has been many times in my past where I have seen someone raising support for a cause and have right skimmed past it due to the fact that I couldn't completely relate to it because I had never been there. I pray that this is not how you feel when you read this and that you come along side me and support these sweet, amazing, hard working, thankful people.

One day on my trip in Honduras we were told that we were going to visit a place called the "Grand Farm". That morning upon our departure we were told that we wouldn't be taking the bus to get there due to a "friendly riot" that was taking place and blocking the main roads. However we were told we would be getting to the farm in the back of trucks on back roads (essentially dirt roads) through Honduras. My truck was lucky enough to have my friend Lucia who is from Honduras, riding in the back and had a speaker to blare music the entire 45-minute drive that we had. I'm sure you can only imagine the looks that we were given by the Honduran people there as they saw about 10 girls in the back of this truck with matching shirts on singing American songs in English at the top of our lungs – something you wouldn't see everyday…but we had fun! Did I mention that it was incredibly hot as well? Humidity is a thing in Honduras! After we had ridden in the back of this truck for about 45 minutes we pulled up to a creek that our truck wasn't going to make it through. We all leaned forward hoping that would help as the driver tried for the third time to obtain traction through the water to climb up the steep, muddy incline. However, the truck tires just began to sink more and more into the creek. By this time the driver told us all that we were going to have climb out of the truck and walk the rest of the way to the "Grand Farm". This meant that we took our tennis shoes and socks off, rolled up our leggings and trucked through the muddy path hoping to avoid fire ants in the process. In those moments the music that we once were singing at the top of our lungs was quieted and we were only thinking about how much longer we had until we arrived to the "Grand Farm". Once we arrived to the "Grand Farm" we were all helping each other get our feet cleaned, sharing our water bottles from being beyond thirsty, pointing out the ant hills so we wouldn't step on them and swatting away the hundreds of flies swarming the air as we began to gather around to learn more about what the "Grand Farm" exactly was.

I learned that the "Grand Farm" is a huge farm that employs many people in the village of La Cucilla. These men walk the walk that we did every single day without complaining and I'm sure without worrying about searching for fire ants or swatting away the mosquitos. I'm not lying when I tell you that these men love their job. I was able to do home visits with many of the families in the villages where I heard all of them say they are honored to have the job that they do. Wow…can you imagine that? These men are grateful for their jobs because they are apart of something bigger than themselves. They are providing food for their families, they are sending their children to school, and at the same time teaching all of the volunteers from America – what it means to live with little and have much.

So I'm running this mini to raise money that will allow Humanity & Hope to purchase the land that the Grand Farm is on that they are currently renting. If the money is not raised then Humanity & Hope will have to find other land which in turn creates many more complex problems such as transportation that is much more difficult, preparing the land for the crops with little money to do so, children not going to school, families not being fed, and men without jobs.

So I pray that you consider giving to help make this possible. I pray that as you read my story that you know that you are making a difference. My heart longs for the day that I get to go back but for now I am loving that I have the resources to support them thousands of miles away. Thank YOU for coming along side of me and even though you might not have ever been where I was able to be, you can trust me and my experience and know that you are making a difference much greater than I could ever begin to put words to.

Thank you in advance. I greatly appreciate each of you!

Much love,

Bridgitte