Washington Overseas Mission is a non-profit group that was organized following a medical and dental mission trip to Honduras in December of 1992/January of 1993. The first trip was undertaken when Sister Laurinda Mayer, formerly a teacher at St. Francis Borgia High School, invited medical professionals to come and provide desperately needed care to the impoverished nation of Honduras. A group consisting of one physician, four dentists, two nurses, several volunteers and a high school Spanish class journeyed the day after Christmas of 1992 to Honduras to serve the indigent in Urraco and surrounding areas. Since 1992 volunteers from our group have served over 100,000 people in various areas of the country. Our group has had from its inception a commitment to taking student volunteers on the trip. Students from over ten high schools and several colleges have joined medical/dental and construction teams. We feel that the presence of students has been a vital factor in the reception and success of our teams. Our generous volunteers pay their own expenses for the trip in addition to the gift of their time and talent.
In 1996 the construction component of the Mission was born when three members built a masonry home for a widow and her four children. Since that year, construction teams have built a medical and dental clinic, a carpentry school, a library, a storage and utility building for the Copprome orphanages, and 9 homes housing 63 people. We also have had projects to install solar powered water filtration systems and other water improvement projects to reduce disease caused by contaminated water supplies.
We are constantly striving to improve and make a lasting impact on the health and welfare of the people we serve. We have added medical services of pap tests and follow-up treatment when necessary, diabetes testing and treatment, pregnancy tests and prenatal vitamins for the term of the pregnancy, and increased education. Our dental teams strive to have restorative dental care available on each team. Surgical teams sponsored by our group have had a tremendous impact through performing operations that would not have been otherwise available to many people.
In addition to the large annual trip that now occurs in March, some of our volunteers have taken additional trips to Honduras, Belize, Haiti, Peru, and Cambodia and receive support from our group in the form of donations for special projects, medicine, and supplies. The large group annual trips have increased in size to approximately 80 people who might staff three medical dental teams, a surgery team, and a construction/water team and a restorative dental team working in a clinic in Pimienta sponsored and equipped through our group.
The group also wishes to recognize the great generosity of friends and family who have heard of our group and have embraced the vision of sharing of our wealth with those born in a country where there are far fewer material blessings. The gifts of money for special projects, scholarships, and our general fund, and the endless supplies, furnishings, and clothing to ship (and the space to store them) to Honduras have truly made a difference in the lives of so many. The time donated to load trailers, “pop pills,” or to give up “creature comforts” and venture to a “foreign country” to help in some way have been the backbone of our mission.