The consignment of medical, educational, household and other items was sent to Jospice’s hospice in San Pedro Sula. Everything, including the cash to fund the container and its shipping costs, was provided thanks to the generosity of people in Merseyside. The Soroptimists sorted, listed, packed and labelled all the goods ready for transport. 

At the hospice local people, who turned out in huge numbers, unloaded the container. All goods were put straight under cover, ready for sorting and allocation at the hospice and in the community. Medical equipment and sewing machines, for example, have been put straight to work; and the children now have a range of outdoor toys to play on. A life-size statue of St Joseph, carefully padded and wrapped by the Soroptimists, arrived with minimal damage. It has been placed in the chapel. 

News of the container’s arrival spread far and wide. The Bishop of San Pedro Sula made a special visit to the hospice. Another caller was Father Antonio Quetglas, the priest who originally highlighted to Jospice the need for a hospice in the area. 

AIDS has become the leading cause of death among women of childbearing age in Honduras, and many of the patients in San Pedro Sula are in need of care as a result of HIV-related illness. Cath O’Leary, the nurse-manager, knows that the container-full of goods from England will have a far-reaching, hugely positive effect on the work that she and her staff carry out.

* Background details in archive news article “Soroptimists prepare container-load for Honduras”.