Roses in December 2022 Delegation to El Salvador and Honduras.
Commemorating the 42nd Anniversary of
the Martyrdom of the Four U.S. Churchwoman
Dearest Sisters and Brothers,
The SHARE Foundation and the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) are pleased to invite you to participate in the 42nd anniversary of the martyrdom of the four U.S. churchwomen in El Salvador (November 29 to December 5), and to walk with women religious and the communities they accompany in Honduras (December 5 to 12). After two years of COVID, we are thrilled to be able to host this pilgrimage honoring our martyred sisters - Jean, Maura, Ita, and Dorothy - and all of you who continue planting seeds of hope. Our journey will be a celebration and thanksgiving as well as a meditation and call to action!. In El Salvador, we will learn about our sisters' enduring legacy in Chalatenango and La Libertad, where they were missioned, and meet with the relatives of victims of war and repression from the 1980s to the present. In Honduras the delegation will learn about the vision of slain environmental indigenous leader Berta Caceres and the dreams for the new government of recently elected President Xiomara Castro. The delegation will join the Vamos a la Milpa as they plant food crops to nourish their bodies and spirit respecting Mother Earth. Let us strengthen solidarity by taking up the example of our sisters who sacrificed their lives for a better future in El Salvador and Honduras. Join us on the delegation! And if you can’t come in person, participate in a variety of other ways, including sponsoring a delegate! For more information READ MORE and please visit www.share-elsalvador.org and/or call or email Jose at +1 510-848-8487 - jose@share-elsalvador.org. With profound gratitude and hope, Jose Artiga Executive Director, SHARE Foundation
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WHAT ARE THE DATES OF THE DELEGATION?
Delegation to El Salvador: November 29th to December 5th, 2022. Delegates will have the option to travel by land on December 5th to join the Honduras delegation.
Delegation to Honduras: December 5th to 12th, 2022. Delegates can travel by land from El Salvador or fly directly to San Pedro Sula (NOT TEGUCIGALPA) Delegation to El Salvador and Honduras: November 29th to December 12th. WHAT IS THE COST OF THIS DELEGATION?
El Salvador, only, delegation: $950. This includes all housing, food, translation, partner honoraria, and in-country transportation. It does NOT include round-trip airfare, or tips.
Honduras, only, delegation: $850. This includes all housing, food, translation, partner honoraria, and in-country transportation. It does NOT include round-trip airfare, or tips.. El Salvador and Honduras: $1,450. This includes all housing, food, translation, partner honoraria, and in-country transportation for Honduras and El Salvador. It does NOT include round-trip airfare, cost of traveling by land from El Salvador to Honduras (approximately $100), or tips. 1st payment of $100 is due October 31st, this is a nonrefundable fee. The 2nd payment is due November 15th. To pay, make out your check to the SHARE Foundation, memo “December Delegation” and send it to SHARE, 2425 College Ave., Berkeley 94704. (Checks are preferred- no fees); or online with a 3% fee at the SHARE website: www.share-elsalvador.org There is limited financial aid available on a need basis. We have many suggestions of how you can fundraise for this trip. No one should be left behind for lack of funds. WHICH AIRPORT DO I BOOK MY TICKET TO?
El Salvador delegation: you travel to the San Romero “SAL” airport, arriving in November 29th and departing on December 5th
Honduras delegation: you travel to San Pedro Sula “SAP” airport, NOT TEGUCIGALPA., arriving on December 5th and departing on December 12th El Salvador and Honduras: you arrive on November 29th to San Romero “SAL” airport and depart from San Pedro Sula “SAP” airport on December 12th. WHAT IS THE COVID 19 PROTOCOL TO TRAVEL?
We will follow strict US and Honduras Covid 19 travel protocol; delegates must have a Negative Covid test and have been vaccinated. In the country we will follow strict safety guidelines such as using masks, washing hands, keeping distance among delegates and with our hosts, etc. We will stay up to date with regulations before the trip. Delegates with compromised health will be advised to not travel and be a support person for the delegation before and during the delegation. We traveled this past July and December 2021, and January 2022 to El Salvador and Honduras with delegates and practiced successfully and returned with no incidents.
ARE THERE CONCERNS ABOUT SAFETY?
El Salvador and Honduras are one of the most violent countries in the region. Our itinerary is developed in close collaboration with local partners, who are aware of risks and mindful to reduce them in every possible way. We will be lodged in secure locations; being part of a group provides some safety. We will not participate in demonstrations or knowingly enter situations that would put us at risk.
Nevertheless, it is important to know that there are high levels of crime, gang activity, and state-sanctioned repression. This is part of the daily reality lived by El Salvador and Honduras and contributes heavily to the continuous flow of people who can no longer live safely at home and who seek asylum elsewhere, including in the United States. This delegation is one of accompaniment, and we encourage participants to consider both the risks and the rewards of this form of activism. SHARE has 42 years’ experience organizing delegations to El Salvador and Honduras and has sent over 10,080 delegates. If people are still very concerned about safety, they should not go and join the virtual delegation Please check and follow the US Travel Advisories travel.state.gov WHAT ARE THE OBJECTIVES OF DELEGATION?
To remember and celebrate the lives of Ita, Maura, Dorothy, Jean, Berta Caceres and all the martyrs.
To be in solidarity with the organized people of El Salvador and Honduras. To participate in the Human Rights forums in El Salvador and Honduras. To return to the U.S. and continue planting the seeds of solidarity. Each delegate will become a promoter of solidarity, including organizing presentations to share their story, educate their elected officials in Congress, and raising funds to support SHARE’s partners in El Salvador and Honduras. WHERE WILL WE STAY?
In El Salvador, we will stay in humble guest houses or hotels. We will have simple, comfortable rooms with two to four beds per room. Meals are simple and healthy and we will have access to purified water at all times.
In Honduras our program begins and ends in the northern town of El Progreso about an hour from San Pedro Sula, where we will be hosted at the Sisters of Notre Dame Retreat House in simple, comfortable clean rooms. Meals are simple and healthy, and we will have access to purified water at all times. DO I NEED A PASSPORT OR A VISA TO TRAVEL TO HONDURAS?
A valid passport with an expiration date no less than 6 months from the date you are returning is necessary for travel. U.S. citizens do not need a visa.
DO I NEED TO SPEAK SPANISH?
Spanish is not necessary for participation. Interpretation will always be provided. is not necessary for participation. Interpretation will always be provided.
ARE THERE ANY CULTURAL ISSUES OR GROUP NORMS THAT I NEED TO BE AWARE OF? YES:
a. Wearing modest clothing is most appropriate. Women in Honduras don't really wear shorts. Skirts and capris and long pants work best. Men do often wear longer shorts. Bring a semi formal outfit for the commemorative events of December 2nd.
b. Alcoholic drinks are not allowed in the retreat houses we stay in, and it is not appropriate to be drinking in the context of so much suffering in the communities we visit. c. It is possible that particular people may approach you personally for financial help of some kind. Please know that we offer some support to every community we visit, organization to organization, which is the best way to be in solidarity. We ask you not to give any person-to-person financial assistance if approached. WHAT ARE THE EXPECTATIONS FOR PREPARATION AND FOLLOW-UP FOR THIS TRIP?
Some weeks before the program begins, you’ll be asked to engage with study materials that will help you understand the people and places we will visit, as well as the long history of US intervention. On your return home, we hope you will find many ways to share your experience and what you’ve learned with your community and engage with your local Congress members. We will support you with ideas and resources for action and advocacy. Those with skills will be asked to organize presentations, blog, write and contact the media. Delegates in certain areas of the U.S. will be invited to host a community leader visiting from El Salvador or Honduras in the future.
THERE WILL BE PREPARATORY CALLS FOR DELEGATES:
We will have monthly Zooms to prepare for the delegation, to get to know each other and to answer any questions.
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ITINERARY
EL SALVADOR Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2022: Arrive to El Salvador Wednesday, Nov. 30: Overview of national context and visits to the sacred places, sites of martyrdom. Thursday, Dec. 01: Visit Chalatenango, the cemetery where Ita, Maura, and Karla are buried; visit with the Bishop of Chalatenango, and meet with the communities and their leadership (CCR and CRIPDES) addressing root causes of migration. Friday, Dec. 02: Participate in commemorative Mass in Santiago Nonualco where the four churchwomen were murdered. Gather with ProVida and the campaign to educate and prevent cancer in women from underserved rural communities. Saturday, Dec. 03: Morning: Participate in the International Forum on Human Rights, hosted by Tutela Legal, Maria Julia Hernandez. Analyze past and current human rights crises in El Salvador and the prospects for truth, justice, and reparations for the victims. Sunday, Dec. 04: Attending mass at the crypt of Monsenor Romero, and free afternoon to enjoy the beaches of El Salvador. Monday, Dec. 05: Return to the United States or travel to Honduras HONDURAS Monday, Dec. 05: Arrive in Honduras and orientation by ERIC and Radio Progreso. Tuesday, Dec. 06: GROUP A: Travel to Bajo Aguan (5-hour drive and stay overnight.) Accompany communities struggling to protect their water and Mother Earth from extractive industries; meet with environmentalists persecuted for organizing to save the rivers and defend their “right to NOT migrate”. GROUP B: Stay in San Pedro Sula to learn about the programs of the Sisters of Mercy Wednesday, Dec. 07: GROUP A: Continue in Bajo Aguan; stay overnight. GROUP B: Continue with Sisters oCf Mercy Thursday, Dec. 08: GROUP A: Return to Progreso. (5-hour drive) GROUP B: Continue with Sisters of Mercy. Evening: Women in politics from Honduras to Colombia, elected women lead national policy. Friday, Dec. 09: Celebrate Vamos a la Milpa with Radio Progreso, ERIC, the Notre Dame Sisters and the Women’s Collective of “Arena Blanca” Saturday, Dec. 10: Human Rights Forum and Vamos a la Milpa Agricultural Fair, hosted by Father Ismael “Melo” Moreno and Radio Progreso. A Call to Action & Thanksgiving Sunday Dec. 11: Enjoy the Milpa and the beach in Tela Monday, Dec. 12: Return to the United States |
