November 1, 2014
Laura and Paul Manship are pleased to begin their new position as Director of Communications and Development for Shoulder to Shoulder. They have been in Honduras since September of 2013 and have volunteered at two NGOs. They began at Montaña de Luz en Morecelí, El Paraiso. Montaña de Luz is a home for children who are infected or affected with HIV. Over the last few months they have lived in La Esperanza, Intibucá, volunteering their time and talent at Maestro en Casa, a long-distance learning program for secondary education. As of November 1, 2014, they will begin their service to Shoulder to Shoulder, living in La Concepción.
Shoulder to Shoulder is doing such incredible things in the Frontier region of Intibucá, and, for Laura and Paul, it will be a privilege and an honor to highlight and promote such important work. The ongoing, primary health and dental care, the public health work, the preventive care instruction, the brigade work, the education programs, the nutritional programs, and clean water programs are all part of an empowerment model of service that will richly enhance people´s lives. The transformative stories cry out to be told and celebrated.
Both Laura and Paul are licensed professional Social Workers in the state of Massachusetts where they lived before coming to Honduras. Their background and experience is unique and diverse. Laura is also a MBA and last worked in a Community Health Center in Holyoke, MA as Director of Operations and Behavioral Health Services. Paul was a Roman Catholic priest for seventeen years working with the Latino community of Western MA before voluntarily leaving active ministry in 2005 and marrying Laura in 2006. Since then and prior to moving to Honduras, he was a supervisor for Elder Protective Services.
Laura´s two children, Emma and Greg, have both begun their professional careers. The empty nest gave Paul and Laura the inspiration to follow their dreams, selling house and belongings and moving to Honduras. They are excited to begin working shoulder to shoulder in community to create and operate sustainable health, nutrition, and education services with equitable access for everyone.
Shoulder to Shoulder's Partnership with Salud Mesoamérica 2015
March 22, 2014
In 2012, Shoulder to Shoulder was selected by the Ministry of Health has a representative for the Mesoamérica Health Initiative. Mesoamérica Health 2015 is a 5-year, public-private partnership initiative to reduce health equity gaps in Mesoamérica faced by those living in extreme poverty. The initiative (SM2015) is funded by the Carlos Slim Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the government of Spain, and the World Development Bank.
The initiative’s goal is to support regional governments’ efforts in achieving the Millennium Development Goals in health, through investments in proven interventions for the poorest 20% of the population, mainly women and children under five. SM2015 supports meeting these goals through extending coverage, quality and use of basis reproductive health services; improving maternal, neonatal and infant health care services; improving child nutrition and increasing immunization coverage.
At the regional level, specific targets include:
• Reducing infant mortality by an average of 15% in the poorest countries of the region in the 20% poorest.
• Attend 260,000 poor children with health interventions to reduce chronic malnutrition.
• Ensure that 90% of children under two years of age of the poorest quintile have all vaccinations.
• Increase the number of births attended by skilled personnel by 50% to reduce maternal and neonatal mortality
The initiative’s guiding principles include:
1. Equity and targeting the extremely poor.
2. Country ownership and alignment with national and regional policies.
3. Impact and results-based approach.
4. Measurement and evaluation of performance.
5. Transparency and accountability.
6. Additionality (Funding granted may not replace national funding to ensure the sustainability of investments)
7. Coordination with regional bodies.
As a result of Mesoamérica, Shoulder to Shoulder has received supplies and equipment, trainings, implemented new processes to maximize the efficient use of resources, and augmented existing government programs targeted at children under 5. Shoulder to Shoulder will soon be undergoing an evaluation and if the organization, as well as the other 5 participating decentralized models achieve 80%, will proceed to the next round of funding and associated targets. Shoulder to Shoulder was chosen not only for the challenges of providing care for the population it serves but also for the competency of its staff. Stay tuned to hear how we performed for our first evaluation. For more information about the project’s work throughout Mesoamérica, please visit: www.sm2015.org.
Our Position on Safety and Security
October 27, 2013
The Shoulder to Shoulder community was saddened to learn of Mayor Fredy Lemus’ passing on Saturday, September 14, 2013. We have worked closely with Mayor Lemus for many years and extend our sympathy to his family.
We have dedicated resources and staff to learn as much as possible regarding the events and circumstances surrounding these events. Based upon the official investigation as well as Shoulder to Shoulder’s private inquiries, Mayor Lemus was fatally shot at close range near his house. Some reports indicate he was shot in front of his home after returning from the town square. There is no lack of speculation on possible motivations or suspects.
Shoulder to Shoulder Brigade Coordinator Ever Bonilla has been our designated point person investigating the situation. Mr. Bonilla spoke with Inspector Ever Espinoza with the National Department of Criminal Investigation based in La Esperanza, who informed us that a special criminal investigation unit had been dispatched from Tegucigalpa. Inspector Espinoza confirmed that no conclusions had been reached but that all possibilities were continuing to be explored. These possible explanations currently include someone seeking revenge regarding old problems or politics in light of the fact of Mr. Lemus’ status as Mayor of Santa Lucia. Though a political motivation in the run-up to the November elections is plausible, some have expressed doubt on this motivation in light of the fact that Mr. Lemus was running for re-election unopposed. Inspector Espinoza requested that Shoulder to Shoulder remain calm and patient. When asked whether he believed the case was in anyway linked to drug cartels, his reply was that “People should not jump to conclusions nor fall into the rumor mill. People must let us do our job before anything is said.”
Without being asked, Inspector Espinoza spontaneously commented that he did not believe that anyone who worked with Shoulder to Shoulder in our clinics or comes to visit our clinics is in any type of danger and believed that Mayor Lemus’s situation was an event that was targeted at him specifically and not in any way at North Americans.
These events point out to all of us the difficulties experienced by the poor in Honduras generally and now even in the department of Intibucá. Because Shoulder to Shoulder has chosen to work in this area, we have developed a very strenuous security policy. Our fundamental principal as it relates to security is that Shoulder to Shoulder has a zero tolerance for unnecessary risk. Applying that maxim to this situation, we are unaware of any additional steps that could reasonably be taken to increase the security and safety of our volunteers from the type of situation involving Mayor Lemus. Based upon the sequence of events we understand this situation to be a targeted event and not in any way, an act of random violence causing a significant probability of danger to others. For these reasons, Shoulder to Shoulder will not be implementing any policies designed to reduce this type of risk since, based upon everything we know to date, the type of events that led up to this situation, are not reasonably foreseeable to reoccur. In other words, our analysis is similar to that of Inspector Espinoza who stated that he was completely unaware of any risk to Americans. We will, of course update you immediately if this changes.
Despite the fact that we are unable to implement any steps that might decrease the probability of the type of violence involved in this situation, any time there is an event like this, it makes sense for us to redouble our efforts and to critically analyze all of our policies and procedures. As a result of that process, we have implemented the following new policies and procedures to further enhance Shoulder to Shoulder’s security program.
First, all volunteers in Santa Lucia and/or Concepcion, will have the option of moving to an alternative site. No one will be forced to move, however, if anyone feels uncomfortable there will be a no questions asked policy.
Second, we will increase our guard services at the gates to our clinics until further notice. In addition to guarding the perimeter, gates at all facilities will remain closed.
Third, all visitors and patients will be asked whether they have any machetes or other weapons. Any machetes or weapons will be checked in at the guard gate and will be returned to patients and/or visitors at the time they leave the clinic.
Fourth, we will reinstitute mandatory safety meetings every quarter at which time we will be reviewing the safety reports that are conducted monthly and will have focused discussion pertaining to ways in which our staff can conduct operations and simultaneously consider new interventions that will allow us to complete our mission and simultaneously minimize avoidable risk.
Finally, our Safety Officer, Ever Bonilla, will conduct a bi-weekly phone call to Sharon Mullen. Sharon Mullen will be the point person in the United States who will answer all questions and information pertaining to safety. Ever Bonilla will be the point person in Honduras who will continue to investigate and prepare our monthly safety report that is posted on the website. Ever and Sharon will communicate on a regular basis to make sure that each are communicating current events and risk factors to leadership both in the United States and in Honduras.
In addition to these interventions, we will also redouble our efforts and current requirements that volunteers walk with a partner when outside the clinic and discourage travel including walking after dark. Safety is Shoulder to Shoulder’s number one priority and is everyone’s concern. Please visit our Safety and Security page for more information.
Safety is not just about you or me but is about our mission. Please join me in continuing to serve the poor. Please help safeguard our mission by minimizing avoidable risk in each encounter and at each opportunity.
Thank you.
Wayne E. Waite
President