Sparrow Village

Sparrow Village sits on a beautiful five-acre property in a mountainous Honduran farming community called Santiago. Santiago is a small community that is approximately twelve miles from the Caribbean city of Tela. Sparrow Village is essentially a foster care community where foster families live on site and in community together, helping each other through the ups and downs of foster care. The old adage is, “It takes a village,” and we completely agree! But at our core, Sparrow Village is so much more. Read below to see what all God is doing in Santiago!

Outside of our day to day ministries in Santiago, all of our staff serve as foster families. This includes four foster parents and even a foster aunt! We help children in their time of need, no matter how long or short that may be, and give them all the love and support that we can. We also serve as advocates for fostering in our area. Fostering is still a relatively new idea in rural Honduras, but guided by The Spirit, we are working to shed light.

Ministerio de Mujeres Ejemplares comes from Proverbs 31 meaning Ministry of Exemplary Women. This women’s ministry consists of a weekly bible study in which the women in our community dive deeper in the Word together. We also have a weekly sewing clinic for women to learn a trade and potentially provide for their families. Women from years past teach the current ladies to sew, and also teach 5th and 6th grade students in the local public school how to sew. The more advanced women also join the leaders in weekly home visits of women in the community, joining in a time of love, discipleship, and prayer.

Like most rural areas, illiteracy is common among adults in Santiago. Therefore, parents struggle to help their children with schoolwork. Recently, we have opened up a community library for local kid that offers tutoring, homework help, reading time, and typing classes. This precious ministry also includes read-alouds in the local public schools to help cultivate the passion for reading at a young age.

The best way to engage young boys in Honduras is with soccer. That is why we have a soccer field right on our property! We offer our field to boys of all ages in our community and then hold bible studies and community events to introduce them to Jesus.

Since we landed in Santiago, we have been engaged in ministering to the local public schools. From teams holding Vacation Bible Schools, field days, and medical brigades to teaching english, sewing, tutoring, and reading, we have a very close bond with the children in our community.

Starting in 2020, our staff in Santiago will be able to offer a 6 month entrepreneurship course to many in our community. After being trained by the Street Business School, our staff is excited about helping our community learn how to successfully provide for their family and break the cycle of poverty that plagues our rural community.

Chris and Alishia Weeks are the directors of the Sparrow Village in Santiago, Honduras. Chris and Alishia have served in Honduras with Sparrow since December of 2014. They have 4 children in their house: Their biological son, Micah and their 3 foster children (K, B, and A) who have lived with them since January of 2016.

Outside of their roles as foster parents and directors of the Sparrow Village, Chris is also the Director of Sparrow House. Sparrow House is a Christ centered men’s rehabilitation center that offers wholistic treatment to men suffering from drug and alcohol addiction. They serve men from all over the country, getting them the care they need while always pointing them back to Christ. Alishia is also the Director of Ministerio de Mujeres Ejemplares. This ministry serves women in our community and shows them what it means to be a Proverbs 31 woman. Through Ministerio de Mujeres Ejemplares, women are discipled in the word and shown who Christ is. Through our 3 phase sewing classes, women learn how to sew, then later teach it to other women, and then teach in the public school. By visiting these women frequently in their own homes, and empowering them in the Word and in entrepreneurship, Ministerio de Mujeres Ejemplares is raising up a new generation of women in love with the Lord in Santiago and beyond.

Silvia Reyes is one of the leaders of Ministerio de Mujeres Ejemplares. She is also the sister in law of Ivan & Oneyda! Silvia, together with Ivan and Oneyda, was baptized by our staff. She is a proud mother, loving wife, and daughter of Christ. Silvia is the leader of our sewing program with the 5th & 6th graders in the local public school. It has been amazing to see God use Silvia’s natural talents to teach and bless others in her community.