Every once in a while, we hear a story that moves us. I mean truly shakes us to our core and changes our perceptions about what actually matters in life and what doesn’t. This is one of those stories.
Kendra Guerra is three years old. She lives with her mom, Brenda, in a small mud house in La Cuchilla — a rural community in northern Honduras. Like most 3-year-olds, she is a bundle of energy and joy. Her cheeky smile is contagious, and when she giggles, you can’t help but laugh along with her. It comes as no surprise then that her favorite place to be in the entire world is on her mom’s lap.
But in her three short years of existence, life has never been easy. When Kendra was born, Brenda was living in a makeshift house made out of palm sticks. “It was very difficult for us to live in peace because we had no privacy at all,” she remembers. “We were always very scared that an animal would get into our house, like a snake, and bite us or Kendra.”
Brenda and Kendra
Eventually, they saved up enough money to build a new house — this time, made out of mud. At first, the mud house seemed to be an improvement, especially because it offered more privacy and protection from wild animals. However, there were dangers that Brenda was unaware of at the time.
“Having a new home will create a feeling of security that has been lost for a while. Having and owning a new house will make me feel secure and proud of what I have.”
— Brenda Guerra, Kendra’s mom
One night, soon after building the new house, the family was sleeping. The night was quiet other than the soft chirping of some insects in the distance. All of a sudden, there was a deafening crash. Brenda leapt out of bed in a panic, lighting a candle to pierce through the darkness. “Once we lit the candle, we could see that one of the mud walls had fallen down on Kendra,” she recalls, shuddering slightly, even now, as she thinks about the moment. “It was a terrible experience.”
Luckily, Kendra survived the event unharmed, but Brenda remembers that day like it was yesterday. “My little girl was crying, and seeing all that mud on her was one of the scariest situations I've been in. Thanks to God, nothing serious happened to her.”
Kendra and Brenda are just one of the many families in La Cuchilla who will be getting a new home with support from Humanity and Hope. Everyone deserves a place to live and thrive without worrying about their safety. “I look forward to the moment that we can move into a new home. I have no words to say how excited I am. I can't wait to raise my kids in better living conditions.”
We invite you to play a life-changing role in making this dream a reality for families in La Cuchilla. Stories like Kendra’s remind us every day why we do this work. “Having a new home will create a feeling of security that has been lost for a while. Having and owning a new house will make me feel secure and proud of what I have.”