Hosacks Bringing Hope, Opportunity to Children in Honduras

Lauren and Steven Hosack

Upcoming benefit at First UMC Allen will help local family build home where they serve

We, Lauren and Steven Hosack, are the current volunteer directors at the House of Hope in Puerto Lempira, Honduras. We oversee day-to-day operations at the house, which includes discipline, tutoring and structure. Most of all, we show the children the love of Christ.

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 reads: “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.”

The House of Hope is home to 35-45 children at any one time. This includes partially disabled, abused, neglected and/or malnourished children. They come needing a safe place to sleep, a hot meal to eat and a mentor to guide them.

Our job is not only to help the kids with homework, provide clothing and school supplies, or bandage cuts and scratches. Our job is to push and encourage the kids to achieve their goals and dreams. Our job is to help them break the cycle of poverty and abuse to become leaders in their communities. Our job is love the children with the same never-ending love that Jesus has shown us. Our job is not only to help them survive day to day, our dream is to help them thrive.

After arriving in Puerto Lempira in 2015, we have spent the last three years living in a 9-foot-by-16-foot room. With the addition of our daughter, we have outgrown our current space and are dreaming of building a home on property adjacent to the House of Hope. This home will not only give us some much-needed space and privacy but a place to relax and recharge, all while staying a stone’s throw away from the children.

On Dec. 2, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., First UMC Allen will host the Hearts for Hope dinner supporting our family, the Hosacks in Honduras. In 2017, at the inaugural Hearts for Hope dinner, we were able to raise about half of the funds needed for our home. These funds allowed us to purchase the land, build a security fence and drill a 75-foot well with clean drinking water.

Our goal this year is to raise $80,000. From this amount, $50,000 will provide us with our necessary annual living expenses. The additional $30,000 will allow us to insert a septic system and construct a home for our family. 

We invite you to attend Hearts for Hope event Dec. 2. Come learn about our work in Honduras, share in our successes and see how together we can help the children of Honduras thrive!

More information about our mission, including how to purchase tickets to the dinner, can be found on our website.

Published: Tuesday, November 13, 2018