SRW Makes It
Happen!
|
Twenty Years of Healing, Hope, and Partnership in Honduras
April 2026
by Mary Dowling, RN, and Sylvia Boomsma
 Although SRW was founded 24 years ago in 2002, we are especially proud to celebrate 20 years of dedicated service in Honduras — and 18 wonderful years in Siguatepeque. On March 1, 2026, our orthopedic mission team, friends in Honduras, and partners at
Providence World paused to mark this meaningful milestone with a beautiful and delicious SRW cake. It was a joyful moment of gratitude, reflection, and celebration.
Over the years, more than 2,662 children have received treatment from our mission teams, and more than 2,386 have received eye exams and glasses. This year, we were thrilled to grow from five to seven mission teams visiting Siguatepeque annually, expanding our ability to serve even more children and families.
Before each team arrives, word of the upcoming mission spreads far and wide through parents of former patients, churches, social media, and local medical professionals. Families travel from across Honduras to receive care from our teams, with some making
journeys of up to 13 hours by bus.
Patients are not the only ones transformed by these missions. Again and again, team members describe being changed for life as they witness needs that might otherwise go unmet and experience the privilege of serving. Medical professionals return mission
after mission because of the deep joy that comes from sharing their expertise, solving problems, improving lives, and meeting children and families whose relief and happiness are unforgettable.
Our SRW Board, team members, and supporters extend heartfelt thanks to our partners at Providence World in Siguatepeque for their vital role in this work over the past 18 years. Together, through close cooperation and shared purpose, thousands of children
and families look toward a brighter, healthier future.
Honoring Dr. David Mann
April 2026
 David Mann served as a Pediatric Orthopedic surgeon at the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1988 to 2008. From the beginning of his
career in 1988, Dr. Mann volunteered his time and surgical skills to help children with orthopedic issues in resource-limited regions around the world.
In 2002, as a co-founder and first President of Sharing Resources Worldwide (SRW), Dr. Mann directed the organization toward addressing children's orthopedic needs in Central America by establishing a permanent base for pediatric orthopedic medical services. Visionary and inspiring by nature, Dr. Mann led the team in designing, building and equipping the clinics and operating rooms at La Providencia in Siguatepeque Honduras. This pioneering medical facility began serving children and families in 2007.
Over the years, Dr. Mann assembled and cared for the Wisconsin teams — nurses, residents, attending surgeons, and other volunteers. While clearly a leader, Dr. Mann remained a humble member of what grew into an ever-expanding group of medical professional united by a shared passion for children's health.
Thank you Dr. Mann!
"Pediatric orthopedic surgery has been compared to throwing a pebble into a pond, causing ripples that continue outward for years. The child hasdecades to benefit from timely intervention. I believe pediatric orthopedic surgery in Honduras and other countries is more like a tsunami — the resulting waves spread over lifetimes, families, schools, and communities." — David Mann, 2025
Honoring Dr. Rob Bechtel
April 2026
This mission was also Dr. Rob Bechtel's final trip with SRW following his retirement this past December. A founding member who served in Honduras for 18 years, Dr. Bechtel's contributions are invaluable. His leadership, dedication, and steady presence have shaped this mission in lasting ways. We wish him all the best as he begins this next chapter — one we hope includes plenty of travel, adventure, and well-earned relaxation.
Seeking Donations for Our Upcoming Missions
December 2025
For many families in Honduras, access to specialized pediatric medical care is a distant hope. So, SRW has partnered with the orphanage La Providencia and with Clínica Betania, both in Siguatepeque, Honduras, to provide medical care. Children suffer from conditions that are entirely treatable, such as clubfoot, hand deformities, and vision impairment; but without the resources to access care, their futures are deeply impacted.
Sharing Resources Worldwide has had a very successful 2025, with seven missions to Honduras this year (two more than in 2024)! With the help of our colleagues and friends at Providencia, and with the support of our Medical Director Dr. Iveth Villatoro and our Logistic Coordinator Hugo Romero, teams treated nearly 400 children. In addition, SRW sent a team of eye care providers to partner with Clínica Betania to provide eye exams and glasses to more than 350 patients from local communities.
Through our volunteer-led medical missions, we provide life-changing pediatric orthopedic surgeries, pediatric eye surgeries, and vision care to children in Honduras who would otherwise go without. These services do not just restore mobility and vision; they restore dignity, opportunity, and hope.
Our US-based medical teams pay for their own airfare, housing, meals, and in-country transportation. Every one of our volunteers donates their time, skill, and heart without compensation. However, there are essential expenses that we must meet to make these missions possible.
We are currently seeking $30,000 in individual donations to support critical needs for our upcoming missions. These funds will directly support:
- Shipping and customs fees for medical supplies and equipment
- Purchase and maintenance of surgical and ophthalmologic equipment
- Medications used in surgical procedures
- Purchasing local medical services, including x-rays, medications, physical therapy, leg braces, and eyeglasses
- Salaries for our Honduran Medical Director and Logistics Coordinator
- Warehouse rental in Wisconsin, where we prepare and store our supplies
With your support, we can continue to provide free, high-quality care to hundreds of children every year.
Every donation, large or small, makes a measurable impact. Whether it helps cover the cost of shipping a surgical kit or supports the salary of a Honduran team member, your gift brings healing where it is needed most.
We also gratefully acknowledge the support we receive from corporate donors — but it is individual donors like you who form the heart of our mission.
Will you join us in changing lives? Your tax-deductible donation can be made via the yellow link at the top of this site.
Thank you for believing in a future where every child has access to the medical care they need to thrive. Together, we are building that future —one child at a time.
With gratitude,
The Sharing Resources Worldwide Board of Directors
Jennifer Tenders Loving Care
May 2025
Some might say that physical therapy happens "behind the scenes," yet it's a vital part of the team effort provided by SRW's orthopedic missions. Every team includes a physical therapy professional who is experienced in working with children. For the last several years, Jennifer Penston has accompanied every lower extremity orthopedic team, bringing her experience and essential assistance for both
surgical and non-surgical patients.
Jennifer's first step is to spend time with each child and their parents, to evaluate the child's needs. Following surgical procedures, Jennifer is there to help children learn to navigate in their casts, and to instruct parents how to care for their child with additional apparatus. She may offer instruction on helpful exercises to be done at home, and also provide medical devices such as walkers, wheelchairs, braces, and other aids that maximize each child's abilities going forward. This kind of support, which is not normally available in Honduras, is a very important part of our treatment plan for each child, and we could not provide the same high level of care without Jennifer.
In January of 2025, Jennifer saw 38 patients whose surgery was provided by our team, and assisted families in their post-operative care. She also consulted on 42 nonoperative children we saw in our screening clinic. All of this in only six days! We are grateful for Jennifer's quality care that enhances the future outlook for the children and families we serve in Honduras. Thank you, Jennifer!
Changing Lives
May 2025
by Elizabeth A. Cross, Physical Therapist
I am writing to share the profound and inspiring experience I had as part of the physical therapy team during our mission trip to Honduras with Sharing Resources Worldwide. The team of professionals we worked with was nothing short of remarkable, and together we made a significant impact in the lives of children and families in need.
Our primary role as physical therapists, following the surgical team who preceded our trip, was to assist in the removal and replacement of casts for children requiring braces, working closely with the orthotist. This process was essential in ensuring that the children were properly fitted for their braces, which would enable them to walk. In addition, we provided education to parents on proper cast care, monitored the children's skin for any potential issues, and offered essential training to both parents and children on how to walk with their new casts.
The children we worked with had diverse needs — some had never walked before, while others had given up due to the physical difficulty of walking with their condition. Regardless of the challenges they faced, it was truly heartwarming to see the change in them as they experienced the joy of movement. The collaborative efforts of the entire team — physicians, physician assistants, nurse anesthetists, interpreters, nurses, orthotists, and the families — created an environment where dreams were made possible.
Witnessing the parents' hopes and the children's determination was a moving experience. It was an honor to be part of a team that brought not only medical expertise but also compassion and hope to these families. The joy we saw in the children's faces as they stood and walked for the first time is something we will carry with us forever.
This mission was an opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of children who needed us, and we are so grateful for the chance to have contributed to this life-changing work and to be a part of this incredible journey for the families and the children.
|
Join Us on Facebook