Greensburg church reaches $1M goal to build community in Honduras

Parishioners like Tom Ricke were inspired to make a difference

(GREENSBURG, Ind.) – St. Mary’s Catholic Church is leaving a lasting mark on a community that is thousands of miles away from Greensburg. 

The parish has met their $1 million fundraising goal to build a new community in Cucuyagua, Honduras. 

The new community will include 53 phase-one homes, a community center and a feeding center, made possible by the parishioners at St. Mary's.

Construction is now underway and a dedication ceremony is scheduled for October.

The St. Mary’s initiative began when the organization Food for the Poor spoke to the parish about the need of housing, education, and community infrastructure in Cucuyagua.

Parishioners like Tom Ricke were inspired to make a difference. 

“By the grace of God, our priest, Fr. John Meyer, embraced the challenge, and our parish was moved to respond,” parishioner Tom Ricke said. “St. Mary’s parishioners have been taking the opportunity to fulfill Jesus’ words from Matthew 25:40: ‘Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of Mine, you did for Me.’”

Ricke was among a group of community members, including Mayor Joshua Marsh, who traveled last year to the site of the new community in Honduras. 

“It has been a blessing to meet and help these families establish a new community where they will have a home with electricity and clean water,” Ricke said. “Along with Food For The Poor and CEPUDO, it is possible to change the lives of these families for future generations.”

Here are some photos from the trip to Honduras in 2024:

As part of the fundraising effort, Decatur County Memorial Hospital also donated physical therapy equipment and St. Vincent de Paul Society of Indianapolis assisted by donating bicycles and clothing. 

St. Mary’s Church has also organized a tractor-trailer of goods to be sent to Honduras in support of the families who will soon call the new community home. 

The truck was provided by Batesville Tool and Die who donated the transportation to Food for the Poor’s facility in Florida.

Food For The Poor is one of the largest international relief and development organizations in the United States.