Alison in Honduras: Empowering Youths and Communities
The main focus of the volunteer program, organised by Alabama Honduras Medical Educational Network (AHMEN), was to assist a group of courageous youths in their pursuit to better their community in a coastal town in the north of the country through community service projects and workshops.
As part of the projects, Peak Scientific provided sponsorship with which Alison and her group of volunteers were able to purchase three refurbished laptops to help set up a small internet café in the municipal buildings. The aim of the internet café is to provide internet access in the area, with the hope of increasing opportunities to learn English for the local community.
Youths taking part in the AHMEN program receiving the refurbished laptops sponsored by Peak
During the trip, various groups from the volunteer program sought to cover a range of skills and educational topics for the youths, including IT skills, first aid and sexual health. Alison formed part of the sexual health group, where she presented workshops on adolescent pregnancy prevention and sexual reproductive rights to raise awareness about critical information on sexual consent.
Looking back on her trip, Alison said,"The most amazing thing about the trip was watching these young people in Honduras become empowered to help the others in their communities, who often lack access to regular education and basic information on sexual health."
Alison Mcewan with youths taking part in the AHMEN program
"It was an incredible experience and I learned a great deal about the culture of different communities. There were episodes of civil unrest during our trip, and the importance of supporting and equipping local community gained even more significance in our eyes."
For Alison, the main premise throughout the community service projects was to ‘teach a man to fish’ – a mission in the self-empowerment of youths who are determined to share their knowledge for the better of their local communities.
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