Muskegon Rotarians Susan Crain and Roger Morgenstern were part of a group of 15 Rotarians, Interact students, and family members from Muskegon and Grand Haven who spent the last week of June creating a library at Corea Elementary School in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, the country's capital. They were joined by Grand Haven Rotarians Bari Johnson and Gail Ringelberg.
For several years, the Grand Haven and Muskegon clubs have partnered with Chispa, a non-profit founded in Honduras that has built 127 libraries in the last 10 years. Typically Honduran schools do not include libraries and the interest in Chispa (which means "spark" in Spanish) is great, with more than 700 schools on the waiting list. According to a recent international study, more than 83 percent of 6th graders in Honduras read far below grade level. Learning loss from the pandemic and natural disasters in Honduras has only exacerbated this issue, creating devastating repercussions for children’s futures. Among Chispa's board members is our ow
n Sarah Rinsema-Sybenga.
n Sarah Rinsema-Sybenga. The Muskegon/Grand Haven group traced and then painted large murals in two small libraries and in "reading corners" in nearly a dozen classrooms. They also assembled and painted bookshelves, stuffed more than 700 Chispa backpacks with supplies and cataloged and checked in, with the assistance of the school's parent committee, 1,500 books at three different reading levels.
After three full days of painting, construction and moving everything into place, the West Michigan group participated in two days of "inauguration" activities for both the morning and afternoon group of students. This included teachers and parents reading books to the classes and having hands-on activities related to the stories. On Friday, there was an official dedication of the library with area school leaders, parents, teachers and students. Roger, as the Muskegon Club president elect, was asked to say a few things and presented the school with a Muskegon Club banner. The remarks were translated into Spanish by one the high school seniors on the trip. "We have all been embraced by the school staff and students. Your smiles make our days," Roger told the group.
Susan said the trip, her second to the country, was a moving experience. "I had one very happy young boy say to me through a translator, 'I don't know your language but please know how happy we are that you are doing this for us.' That moved me to tears," she said.
Chispa works with book publishers around the world, including in Honduras, to purchase books at deep discounts, or an average of $7 per book. It raises $20,000 to help and equip each library. The Muskegon Rotary Foundation approved a $4,000 contribution to the project. While WEHOP contributed $7,000. Rotarians paid their own travel expenses.
Chispa does more than create a library, it continues working with schools to equip teachers and parents with customized, research-backed strategies to develop reading habits. Then, the organization provides two years of hands-on support so schools can fully embed and sustain literacy in daily learning. Among the Chispa employees who worked alongside the Muskegon/Grand Haven group was CEO Sara Brakhane. Sara founded Chispa 10 years ago while living in Honduras. She is now is based in St. Louis MO but comes back to Honduras often to work on projects.
The West Michigan group worked alongside members of the Tegucigalpa Rotaract Club. In Honduras, the Rotaractors are typically both young professionals and those still in college. At the end of the visit, Roger thanked the group for their work on the library and other service projects. He presented them with a Rotary Club banner and a suitcase of school uniforms donated by our own
Darlene Collet.
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