Hendrick Hudson High School students traveled to Guatemala this summer as part of the Safe Passage program, providing aid to the country’s neediest children.

Here is an account of the trip from the school district…

Hundreds of vultures swirl over a huge Guatemala City garbage dump and then perch themselves on trees creating a silhouette of gloom, while below in their shadow more than 4,000 of the world’s most impoverished people scavenge the mountains of trash to survive each day.

This one of the surreal scenes of human suffering that greeted ten Hendrick Hudson High School students who traveled to Guatemala in August to help out the children of these struggling people as part of the Safe Passage program.

Safe Passage works with the poorest at-risk children of families working in the Guatemala City garbage dump. Within a safe and caring environment, the program provides a comprehensive and integrated program that fosters hope, good health, educational achievement, self-sufficiency, self esteem and confidence. Safe Passage’s primary focus is on creating opportunities and dignity through the power of education.

The students brought $15,000 in contributions raised through the many events they hosted such as Transforming Poverty through Music Concert, the SUCA (Students United for Cultural Awareness) Cultural Night, a $5000 Entergy grant, many bake sales and raffle ticket sales.

The students arrived in Guatemala with about 1,300 pounds of other donations including two new printer fax machines, more than 100 new books, countless new backpacks loaded with school and art supplies and much more. The Safe Passage team coordinator in Guatemala, Lisa Jensen, characterized the Hen Hud students as the “Rock Stars of Service Groups.”

One day the students visited the precipice above the dump, huge in its scope, beyond anything one can imagine. This is where the parents of these impoverished children spend their days in order to possibly eat a meal; this is where the children who are sheltered by Safe Passage would be if not for the program and the volunteers who come from all over the world.

At Safe Passage bodies and spirits are nurtured with knowledge, play, a nutritious meal, and often the only shower they will have for a week.
    The Hen Hud students who visited Guatemala are Jake Aschenbrenner, Lillian Stamey, Meghan Kenny, Robbie Grabowitz, Stephen Kane, David Chang, Erin Cruikshank, Alex Kane, Vincent Corcoran and Emma Klock. All have expressed interest in going back to help further, for many of the students it was their second trip.

Soli Pierce (Jake Aschenbrenner’s mother) and Charlotte Brown (Emma Klock’s mother), were chaperons on the trip.

“This was the second Hendrick Hudson High School service trip and it was successful beyond any of our anticipations,” said history teacher Andrew Lupien, who coordinated the effort. “The staggering amount of donations surpassed our goals and we are grateful that the community embraced our efforts to help the Safe Passage organization in Guatemala. Our students bridged a gap of culture and poverty with an amazing amount of grace, love and compassion for these children and their families. “The children of Safe Passage absolutely adored them and the team leaders/supervisor were impressed with how they all jumped right in with a ‘can do’ attitude even though many of them did not speak Spanish.”

In contrast to the scene at the garbage dump, a very inspiring and emotional day came when the students visited the newly formed Mother’s Literacy Project. These women are breaking their illiteracy so they can help their children with homework and find new jobs. They also have a jewelry program to make and sell what they produce.