After learning about the mission of The Leadership Center (TLC), we knew we wanted to show our support, so we traveled with a team in February 2020, pre-pandemic.  It was nothing short of magical. TLC is such a positive, nurturing, collaborative environment that was having a huge impact on the lives of the young women who were lucky enough to have the opportunity to attend. We were so impressed with the mission, vision, and results of TLC that we decided to get even more deeply involved than just a mission trip every now and then and donations. So, we signed up to sponsor a student for the 2021-2022 cohort.

Once we signed up, we were “introduced” virtually to Angelica, our sponsored student, when the academic year started and traded some emails and videos to get acquainted. We knew we wanted to return to TLC post-pandemic to serve, but also to meet Angelica in person and build a deeper connection with her to be even more effective in her life and the other young women at TLC.  Even though our team arrived late and it was almost dark, it seemed the entire compound was waiting to greet our team. At the front of the gathering waiting in the dark for our arrival was the beaming face of Angelica.

Angelica is one of the most positive people we have met.  She is creative (plans to start a business after graduation selling her art), hardworking (her English skills in the first six months at TLC are amazing), caring, and supportive. We spent hours with her, sharing in her chores, helping her with her English and learning about her life up to her arrival at TLC.

Obstacles in life to women in Honduras are many; everyone has a story of how difficult their path to TLC has been.  Given the number of obstacles they have faced, it would have been easy for any of these young women to give up or become bitter and negative about the plight of women. Yet each of them has persevered with the dream of making Honduras a better place for everyone. Angelica is no exception; there were many obstacles to overcome, and more to come, and yet she continues to throw herself into her studies at TLC and dreams of changing the trajectory of her life and of those she will positively impact.

We feel so lucky to have Angelica in our lives now. We are looking forward to future trips back to TLC and watching the impact Angelica will have on her community when she graduates next year.