Sister Joan Polak, ND is working with other Sisters and volunteers in Honduras to fulfill the mission of the Notre Dame Sisters, meeting the unmet needs of others. Sister Joan has been involved in Honduras since January of 1994. She is working in the village of Sulaco, which is an agricultural community in rural Honduras. Poverty is a serious problem, as well as malnutrition, lack of basic services such as clean water, plumbing and electricity, and lack of supplies such as soap, shampoo, and medicines.

Sister Joan works with young girls from Sulaco and nearby villages. In her school, Madre Teresa Academia, girls are taught skills such as sewing so that they can produce craft items to sell and later obtain work in the larger cities. The girls also learn to create clothing for themselves and their families, and while they are studying and working they are also absorbing basic survival and social skills.


Self-sufficiency
While helping the people of Sulaco, the Sisters and volunteers are also working to teach the people how to help themselves. It is difficult for people with few resources to provide decent living conditions for their families, but they are learning new skills.

Nutrition Center
In 1995 the most desperate need was to be able to help children suffering from malnutrition. With funds and materials from donors in the United States supplementing the work of the local people, a Nutrition Center was built and today helps bring the most seriously malnourished children back to health. The Nutrition Center is nearly always full of children from the local area and the nearby mountainous area.

When Sister Joan keeps in close touch with her people in Honduras through letters, and recently through modern technology such as fax and telephone, which still does not always work. She visits in person as often as she can. She is always on the lookout for new sewing machines, supplies, and donations to continue her work: helping the people of Sulaco help themselves.