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HEAR FROM OUR SCHOLARS
Scholarship Students Worldwide
4 schools of medical care provided on medical missions
Service trips conducted
%
Wealth increase for scholarship graduates
Patients served on Medical Missions
3 service groups can complete a home
FROM OUR VOLUNTEERS
I’m so happy that I went on this trip. The joy that people have in Guatemala is incredible. It’s bittersweet: When I went to Guatemala and I was serving people, it was the happiest I’ve ever been in my life, and I don’t know if I’ll ever be that happy again.
Medical Missions like this allow you to come home and look at your own patients a different way. I think it’s very rewarding, both personally and professionally.
We did this exercise where we had to buy a week’s worth of groceries on $7, and it was absolutely eye-opening. It was really hard, and what I came up with wasn’t food that I wanted to eat. But that’s the reality for them. I get a Starbucks every morning that costs as much as their food for their whole family for the whole week.
Note: We are committed to respecting and uplifting our scholars. Due to some stories containing sensitive information, we redact or change the names of the scholars, their parents, their schools, and other details that could compromise their anonymity.
A 180-Degree Turn
Working as our Program Director in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, I regularly see one of the worst forms of child labor: children working in garbage dumps.
And yet I also get the chance to tell students, in person, that there’s another way. By studying and working hard at school, they can have a path out of the dump. One of the stories that makes me tear up with happiness is José Gilson’s. He’s an example of how dreams can be fulfilled.
José Gilson, in school, after he became one of our Samaritan Scholars.
As a young child, José accompanied his father and siblings to the municipal landfill. They collected plastic bottles to sell so they could earn some money. As time went by, they began to work with a neighbor, bringing her waste from the garbage dump for raising pigs that she had in her house. She paid them a value of Lps 50.00 ($2.00) for each bag of food. They always brought her two bags a day.
For years, the family continued to work at the dump site.
Then when he was in 7th grade, José became one of our Samaritan Scholars. He was able to cut back on work, concentrate on his studies, and complete a technical degree in refrigeration! Now, at age 20, he’s working as a refrigerator technician while also studying electricity at a technical school.
José (middle) with International Samaritan team members who visited him at work.
“It has not been easy for me to get to where I am in terms of my professional training and that is something that motivates me even more,” José said. “Because if I have gotten this far, then I know I can achieve much more.”
I am confident that I will see José’s continued success, and I watch as the other scholars and children in the community look to him as a role model. One way he’s helping others succeed is by spending part of his salary to help cover school expenses for his younger siblings.
“I remember what my life was like when I went to the garbage dump,” José wrote to me recently. “I wonder if I would be alive if I was still there. I thank God for having put people like you in my path. I can say that my life has taken a 180-degree turn.”
This is why I do what I do every day: so that lives can make 180-degree turns.
Erika Cuevas, Program Director
Erika has a degree in Management and Social Development. She has been working with International Samaritan since 2016 and before that she worked with at-risk children and youth for thirteen years. Her work consistently focuses on eradicating child labor in the municipal garbage dumps.
A 180-Degree Turn
Working as our Program Director in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, I regularly see one of the worst forms of child labor: children working in garbage dumps. And yet I also get the chance to tell students, in person, that there's another way. By studying and working hard at...
8 Over 80
In just about every big city, a 40 under 40 list is published each year to recognize 40 people under the age of 40 who accomplished something special that year. It’s supposed to be a big deal, but is it really? Heck, you can do so many things under 40. Do something...
Filling the Gap
A note from Mike ...In our mission to help people break out of poverty, we find it helpful not just to study the causes of poverty but also the causes of prosperity too. Factors ranging from national policy issues to cultural values and local community challenges can...
A Race to Remember
Every year, we host a global 5K run, aiming to raise funds to support education for young scholars. However, in 2023, something extraordinary happened. Amidst the crowd of determined athletes, a young man named Mihretu emerged, not just as a winner but as a star. He...
Now That’s a Trip
This is kind of a big year for International Samaritan. Thirty years ago this summer, we were born out of desperate compassion after a priest driving a car filled with high school students on an immersion trip came across Guatemala City’s garbage dump and stopped to...
Mapping Your Life
In a world brimming with uncertainties, equipping scholars with the tools to navigate their personal and professional journeys is paramount. At the beginning of this year, our team in Jamaica decided to have life mapping and vision board workshops. These workshops...
Line of Sight
“We can care deeply—selflessly—about those we know, but that empathy rarely extends beyond our line of sight.” These words from the 2014 movie Interstellar weren’t just a few seconds of entertainment on a flight back from Honduras earlier this year, but accurately...
Stars of the Show
“What would you like to do for a family day?” I recently asked my 50 Samaritan Scholars in Uganda. Their response was touching: They wanted to see their parents perform for them. Driven by this unique request, our team of dedicated volunteers worked tirelessly for two...
Health Matters
There's a health clinic in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, that serves 100,000 people each year, including many of the 10,000 or so people who are the poorest of the poor. These people live in the community called Kore, which surrounds the dumpsite. While serving in this...
Breakdown of a Victory in Detroit
Amidst the wars in the world and the divisiveness within our nation, I’m writing to share some good news this week about a city that has made significant progress in the last 15 years on a problem that plagued it for at least a century before. I’m interested to hear...
president’s blog
A New Life in the New Year
By Mike Tenbusch | December 28, 2022
Daniel Castelanos has not had an easy life. He was abandoned at the dumpsite in Tegucigalpa when he was nine years old. For two years, he slept on a piece of cardboard in the dump and foraged through trash for food to eat each day. He made flower pots out of old tires that he sold to get by until tragedy struck when he was 11.
Danny recalls, “While I was with my childhood friends waiting for someone to give us something to eat, a dump truck arrived with an amazing haul of food. I ran ahead of my friends to be able to get the best of it, but it didn’t go well for me. I fell from the back while the truck was reversing. The tires ran over me from my feet to my waist.”
Suffering from shock, Danny woke up in a hospital with only minor injuries, but still no home to go to. He asked one of his aunts for help. She took him in and gave him a job helping her sell tortillas. A church ministry eventually helped him to finish high school and even start college. When their funds ran out, we were able to step in and help Danny get through the last three years of university.
For some time now, Danny has been dating his high school sweetheart. He’s known for a long time that he wants to marry her, but he wanted to prove himself worthy first. So, the very first thing he did after getting a bachelor’s in business management a few weeks ago was to invite his closest friends to share this moment with him…
Experience this special moment from Danny’s graduation party
Danny and his fiancée, Julissa
The miracle of Danny’s turnaround was supported by complete strangers: People like you who give to our holistic scholarship program for him and 800 scholars last year. We need some miracles to finish the year well. Please prayerfully consider giving generously before the year’s end to be a miracle for someone like Danny next year.
Danny with his friends
Danny on graduation day
A New Life in the New Year
By Mike Tenbusch | December 28, 2022 Daniel Castelanos has not had an easy life. He was abandoned at the dumpsite in Tegucigalpa when he was nine years old. For two years, he slept on a piece of cardboard in the dump and foraged through trash for food to eat each...
Christ the King!
By Mike Tenbusch | December 21, 2022 When our Board of Trustees voted last January to make “Water” one of our goals for the year, it was a “gulp” moment for us. We knew that we were going to be stretched and running hard all year long simply to raise the $2.4 million...
What Makes Christmas Special?
By Mike Tenbusch | December 16, 2022 We asked our scholars that question, and thought you might enjoy seeing some of their responses and favorite memories from Christmas... Thank you for being a part of their celebration. If you would like to make a final gift to our...
Confounding Women
By Mike Tenbusch | December 09, 2022 The safety and security of our team leaders have long been a concern of mine. They walk hand-in-hand with people living in some of the most difficult places on earth—and then make life-altering decisions to award holistic...
I Second that Emotion
By Mike Tenbusch | December 02, 2022 In a letter I mailed to your home last week, I talked about how often I find myself in tears in the course of our mission at International Samaritan. If you were wondering, “Has Mike just gotten soft?” I wish you had been at our...
A Mother’s Touch
By Mike Tenbusch | November 18, 2022 What would your life be like if you were never able to see your mother in person? If phone calls were the only way you could speak with her, and you had no recollection of her hugs or touch? On my most recent trip to Honduras, I...
About Us
International Samaritan is a nonprofit organization with the designation 501(c)(3). Our headquarters is located in Ann Arbor Michigan.
