OYE el Cambio: February Newsletter

Check out the latest edition of OYE's Quarterly Newsletter OYE EL CAMBIO with articles on capacity building, Arte La Calle's latest work in mural paintings and jewelry creations, OYE scholar Oscar Osorio, George Washington University's volunteer trip, OYE's three new youth scholars, and a special thanks to our supporters.

DeAngela’s Dish: Meet Oscar Ruben Suazo

By DeAngela Alexander

On February 4 2012, OYE held it’s first official meeting for its’ 55 scholarship recipients. Amongst the crowd of eager faces were three students who received a thunderous applause when their names were called from the roster. Nathaly Adilene Alberto Santos, Oscar Ruben Suazo Dominquez, and Samuel Adonay Reyes are the newest members to be join OYE.

This past week one of the OYE staff members had the opportunity to sit down and do a two part interview with Oscar Ruben Suazo Dominguez. This young man has a smile that lights up any room, and a calm demeanor that is very endearing. After explaining to Oscar how the interview process would work, he smiled from ear to ear with such delight. Oscar seemed excited to know that he would be featured on OYE’s blog.

Oscar is 12 years old and he attends Notre Dame. After being asked how he found out about OYE, he responded by saying that Fabiola Oro, one of the coordinators at OYE, referred him. Oscar and his mother Gloria are family friends with Fabiola and the rest of her family. Oscar’s favorite subject is natural science, and when he gets older he would like to be an architect. Oscar, like many of the kids his age, likes to play soccer, watch movies, paint, and make new friends in school. After speaking about all of the things he enjoyed the last thing he added was that he enjoyed studying as well.

Oscar was asked what he was looking forward to most when he came into the OYE office on Saturday. He said, after taking some time to think, that he is looking forward to the important “talks” he will have. He then went on to say that he is also looking forward to learning about new topics. Through OYE’s capacity building workshops Oscar will hear and learn about various social issues. After the interview Oscar politely got up from the Oro’s kitchen table, thanked me for interviewing him, and headed back home.

In the second part of the interview Oscar spoke about personal challenges, fears, wishes, and he ended the interview with a couple of words to describe himself. Being in his home this time giving the interview one could see that his mother Gloria was very proud of him. There were pictures from his graduation, medals that he had won, and various art projects hanging on the wall. Gloria smiled the whole time. Oscar, as he had done before, answered each question thoughtfully.

After being asked what he would wish for if someone granted him the opportunity to have just one, he said that he wished to go to college to study architecture. He also expressed a desire to work in another country. One of Oscar’s biggest fears is “not passing school.” It is safe to say that his education is very important to him. The next question was hard for Oscar to answer. When asked what the most difficult thing in his life was, he answered that it was not having a father around.

Despite not having a father present, Oscar seems to have a good outlook on life; he also has a clear direction of where he wants to go. The last question that was asked was “If you could use one word to describe yourself, what would that word be?” With little hesitation Oscar responded with “intelligent” and “friendly.” Although only one word was asked, one could not object to them both. Oscar is indeed a friendly individual with a bright future ahead of him.

DeAngela Alexander is an OYE intern and student at Mary Baldwin College.  

Scholar of the Month: Oscar Osorio

My name is Oscar Eduardo Osorio. I am 17 years old and I was born on May 23, 1994 in the city of El Progreso. My sign is Gemini. I have 3 sisters. I am the only boy, thankfully, but I wouldn’t have minded having a brother.

I study in Perla del Ulua High School. This is my last year. One of my goals is to continue with my studies. I will like to study computation and teach in the future.

I like spending time with my friends, listening to music, dancing, and spending some time social networks like "Facebook." Add me! (oscar_elbrother_chiki@yahoo.es).

I like making friends and sharing experiences. I love art; I am part of a marching band at my school. My friends say I'm a good friend. My experience in OYE has been and will be unforgettable because here I have learned many things like public speaking and expressing what I really feel and think. I am part of the art project "La Calle," and in this I can do things like paint my artwork on large walls. OYE has become much more in my life than just an organization.

My favorite color: green

Music: All kinds

Favorite quotes:

• "If I'm hurting I learned from you."

• "All that is proposed is achieved."

Movies: Titanic and Brokeback Mountain

Mi nombre es Oscar Eduardo Osorio. Tengo 17 anos, nací el 23 de mayo de 1994 en la ciudad de El Progreso. Soy signo géminis, tengo 3 hermanos y soy el único varón afortunadamente; me hubiera gustado tener un hermano.

Estudio en el instituto Perla del Ulúa.  Este es mi último año de la carrera. Una de mis metas es seguir con mis estudios universitarios.

Me gusta compartir tiempo con mis amigos, escuchar música, bailar y pasar un poco de mi tiempo en las redes sociales. “Facebook” agrégueme! (oscar_elbrother_chiki@yahoo.es)

Me gusta hacer amistad y compartir experiencias. Me encanta el arte, formo parte  de una banda de guerra en mi colegio. Mis amigos dicen que soy buen amigo. Mi experiencia en OYE  ha sido y va ser inolvidable ya que aquí he aprendido muchas cosas como ser: hablar el público, expresar lo que en verdad siento y pienso. Formo parte del proyecto de arte “La Calle”, en este puedo hacer lo que en otros lados no hago como dibujar en pared. OYE ha pasado a ser en mi vida mas que una organización.

Mi color favorito: verde

Música: Todo tipo

Citas favoritas:

·       “si estoy haciendo daño lo aprendí de ti”

·       “todo lo que se propone se logra”

Películas:

·       Titanic

·       El Secreto de la Montaña

A Bracelet for a New School Year

The school year officially kicked off on Monday January 30, 2012 in El Progreso, Honduras. OYE held their first meeting of the year on Saturday February 4, 2012 to welcome the family of scholars both new and old. There were a total of 55 scholarship recipients and three new to the family. The room was filled with excitement as the students filed in and sat down expectantly. It was in this moment that the OYE staff and interns could see the future of Honduras. 55 students listened while the current leaders of OYE spoke with the hope of learning from them and how to one day change the world they live in.

Once a month during the school year, the students and OYE staff sit down together to talk about upcoming projects, touch base on what is happening within their lives, and hand out the scholars’ monthly stipends. This meeting was no exception. It began with an introduction of the OYE staff, the interns and each of the four coordinators explaining their area of expertise: sports, arts, magazine and radio. Marisol Fuentes spoke as the Director of OYE, Luis Parades spoke as Program Coordinator, and Michael spoke as the Marketing Director/Volunteer and Communications Coordinator. Following the introduction of the OYE staff the two social work interns introduced themselves: DeAngela Alexander and Amy Williamson, both of whom are seniors at Mary Baldwin College. The scholarship students welcomed these two new faces to the OYE family with open arms.

Before this meeting was held Faby and Yarli, two of OYE’s youth coordinators, and OYE’s interns were busy making charm bracelets to give to the scholarship students for a current fundraiser. They stayed up until well into the night putting together these jewelry pieces for the students. At the end of the meeting as each of the scholarship recipients received their stipends and two charm bracelets. It was an excellent way to end the meeting – an initiation to a new school year and several more unforgettable months at OYE.