Planting the Seeds of Change: Maria’s Story

Making sure kids get enough to eat is the first part of our mission at Feed the Children. But it’s also important to make sure that they can access the right kinds of food. Maria’s community in Honduras, was struggling with both.

El Pital is a small rural community in Honduras. It’s hot, with a long rainy season that lends itself to agricultural endeavors – however, this does not necessarily translate to an abundance of food for the growers. Most farmers in the country raise low-value crops, like maize and rice, that don’t provide complete nutrition themselves and don’t earn enough when sold to make up for it.

Maria, age 27, was born in El Pital. She was married there; gave birth to her only child, a son named Steven, there; most of her family and in-laws live there. In the community, Maria is well-known and always welcome. In short, El Pital is home. Maria wouldn’t trade it – but change it? Absolutely.

After her son was born, Maria began putting more thought towards the future of her community. Like all parents, she wanted the best for her child. As much as she loved El Pital, she was well aware of the drawbacks in food and in career opportunities.

When Feed the Children entered El Pital, Maria was one of the first to express interest. To individual families like Maria’s, Feed the Children provided gardening programs and support. To the community, the organization provided education support in the form of supplies and school meals, as well as coaching for parents on how to build savings.

“It is important to know about these issues,” Maria says, “and not only know, but know what to do to take advantage of them.”

Maria now has her own garden, where she grows vegetables to supplement her family’s meals.

“This is food that we did not have before,” she says happily. Not only are the vegetables adding crucial nutrients to Steven’s diet, but growing her own food has reduced the amount of money the family has to spend in order to eat. Now Maria is able to add money to savings, preparing for Steven’s future education needs.

The kind of lasting change Maria hopes for her community won’t happen overnight. Like a garden, change grows slowly. It needs to be fed and nurtured along the way. But in El Pital, the seeds for a brighter future have been planted.