Suyapa Basilica

 Some of our expected activities for this week were to host a breakfast for Chef Max and the kitchen staff Tuesday morning and give a presentation on sponsorship for the visiting brigade Tuesday evening. We did not have anything special scheduled for Wednesday, but Thursday we were to clean the volunteer house (San Vicente) for new volunteers arriving on Friday and Saturday. As is normal here, there were a lot of last-minute changes. On Monday we found out that Chef Max (who picked the date and time for the Tuesday morning breakfast) would still be on vacation Tuesday. He was due to be back Wednesday and confirmed that the breakfast should be Wednesday morning. On Tuesday afternoon, the contact for hosting the brigades asked if the presentation could be moved to Friday. Allen and I are flexible anyway and have learned that flexibility is a must here in Honduras.

 

Hosting Chef Max and the Kitchen Crew for Breakfast

The biggest change in plans came on Wednesday morning. After hosting the breakfast for Max and his team, we went to work and shortly thereafter were invited to join the children in visiting and attending mass at the Suyapa Basilica in Tegucigalpa. The buses were leaving at 1PM on Wednesday and the invitation came at 10AM that day so we quickly checked with our bosses at work and were both able to get the afternoon off. This is not surprising as I think Allen would agree with me that our bosses are generous and understanding, particularly when it comes to time off with the children but also with other opportunities that crop up. We were ready at the appointed place and time as we were told not to be late, then we waited for a half an hour for everyone to show up. It ended up being 2 buses full of children and support staff for the hour and a half ride to the Suyapa Basilica in Tegucigalpa.

 

Suyapa Basilica

The Suyapa Basilica houses an important religious statue in Honduras called Our Lady of Suyapa. This 18th century cedar wood statue is small (2.3” tall) and is an image of the Virgin Mary that was discovered by a Honduran labourer and is believed to be the source of many miracles including healing the sick and inspiring Honduran soldiers in a military upset against an invasion by El Salvador. Our Lady of Suyapa has been declared the Patroness of Honduras and the statue is the focus of an extensive pilgrimage every year. Thousands of people from all over Central America make pilgrimages to visit the statue on her name day, February 3, in commemoration of the day the statue was found in 1747.

 

Our Lady of Suyapa Statue Within Crystal Holder

 We arrived an hour early for mass which gave everyone time to walk around, admire the artwork in the Basilica, and take photos. Mass was given by Father Jorge, the priest that comes to the NPH ranch to give mass on Saturdays. Accolades and attendants were also from NPH so it was very much like having a  normal NPH mass, but in a huge cathedral-like church with incredible acoustics with many additional visitors in attendance for the mass. After mass, Marlon (the NPH Honduras director) gave a talk to the kids about why Casa Suyapa on the ranch (the group of homes housing the children under 12) was named for the Patroness of Honduras.

 

Altar of Suyapa Basilica

With sufficient light (sundown is about 6PM in Honduras now) and a pleasant temperature, the long walk back to the buses, which were parked a considerable distance away, was enjoyable. The buses were loaded and we drove about a half hour to the lodging in Tegucigalpa where some of the high school students stay. Pizza was soon delivered and about a hundred children and adults had pizza and sodas in the relatively small front courtyard of the house. Somehow there was enough space for almost everyone to sit and eat. Al counted about 50 pizza boxes, so the miracle was not that the food was enough for all but that the space was sufficient for all :-)

 

View of Tegucigalpa from the Basilica

The trip home was long with multiple stops for gas and snacks but the kids were good for the most part. Some of the little ones were restless. We got back to the ranch about 8:30PM and arrived at San Vicente to enjoy some relaxing conversation with the other volunteers along with some chocolates and a few drinks to end what turned out as a very full day.

 

 

 

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