International Mission Connection
Impacting lives in Central America through education, business creation and community outreach.
Community Outreach
At IMC, service and compassion are at the heart of everything we do. Our mission, in part, is to love God, love others, and impact lives. That is why IMC strives to be present and active within the community, knowing and understanding the people as well as their needs.
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Whether providing hurricane relief, pandemic aid, clean water, or feeding a hungry family, IMC has a very real and valued presence in the community. Join us in our efforts to show compassion and serve the people of Central America. Get involved…donate, pray, serve, go!
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Preparing Leaders
At the core, IMC’s vision is to prepare and enable potential leaders who can transform their communities, motivate their own families and serve successfully to make a significant difference in their economic environment as well as in the spiritual direction of their own culture.
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IMC believes strongly that positive change can and will come only through independence and confidence while being inspired and encouraged. IMC selects potential ministry leaders and provides college scholarships to various higher learning institutions while engaging in mission projects, church training, and supervised clinics in preparation for returning to serve in their own country.
Whether it is one on one, small groups, home groups, or in classrooms, IMC believes true discipleship and mentoring can change a family, change a community, and even change a culture.
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Empowering Youth
Education brings opportunities and opportunities bring hope. IMC is committed to bringing opportunities to marginalized children coupled with the knowledge of Jesus’s love for them believing this combination brings about powerful transformation and a positive trajectory for each child’s future.
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IMC provides academic and spiritual assistance to children in under-resourced areas. IMC ministers to the family’s needs and makes sure that the children have daily hot meals as well as meals to take home to their families.
The IMC program has now expanded to include twenty children, six of whom receive specialized English language training from certified ESL professionals.
Our School of Hope project is set to expand to other areas of Honduras and Central America.
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Building Businesses
IMC actively partners with Business as Mission. BAM exists to champion the role of business in God’s plan for the world, affirming the missional roles of business people globally. BAM collaborates with individuals, business, churches, organizations, and networks around the world.
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IMC desires to bring economic change to Honduras and throughout Central America through projects that sustain and connect people within their communities. Empowering people with basic business skills, as well as leadership skills, breeds confidence and yields numerous opportunities for entire communities. Opportunities bring hope and hope brings transformation!
By educating and equipping potential business leaders, IMC’s partnership with BAM provides micro-business loans enabling small businesses to initially stock and supply their small business. With ongoing mentoring, a new business owner learns to support and sustain their family and bring economic growth to their community.
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More About
Mission & Vision
IMC Mission
Our Mission is to love God, love others, and impact lives by empowering, preparing, and impacting people and communities to become more, to strive for excellence, and to take charge of their own culture in a dynamic and transforming way.
IMC Vision
By connecting the local church with the global mission to effectively share the gospel message of Jesus and make disciples of all nations, IMC is committed to empower the Central American culture from within, and as a result, see people, communities, and nations transformed entirely.
Our History
Reynel Funez is a colony in the mountain region of Honduras, approximately a forty-five minute drive from the capital city of Tegucigalpa. Reynel Funez had little or no interfacing with American mission efforts and had a history of violence, drug activity, and extreme poverty. It was in that village of approximately 8,000 people, where the dream for International Mission Connection first took root. As Donna stood on the rocky hillside, looking out over the valley and the tiny houses that dotted the rugged terrain, she knew that the people of this community needed hope and encouragement, and she promised to return. Again, and again, over a period of the next fifteen years, Donna returned.
At first, she came alongside the local villagers, helping them organize a home church. They named the church Agua de Vida (Water of Life.) As church participation grew, Donna saw the need for building a church structure, so she bought a vacant lot in Reynel Funez. With the help of the local men, women, and youth, they literally dug out the side of the steep hill to create a space to lay the foundation of the building. They mixed concrete on the dirt street and lugged blocks and materials without having the benefit of sophisticated equipment, bulldozers, or cement mixers. The people lifted and dug out huge stones in order to make the space for the church.
Once the foundation was laid, the young people themselves worked diligently to build the walls and give the one room “church” its finishing touches. The church grew and this beginning phase served as a sanctuary on Sundays, a place for children to gather on Saturdays, and a spot where ministries and youth activities began to flourish. The early youth-driven ministry included not only members of Agua de Vida, but also reached out to other village children and to young people from other churches who believed in the vision of Agua de Vida and International Mission Connection.
Soon they saw the need for a second floor addition to the church building to make more space for children’s activities. Over the years, the second floor was modified to create a kitchen, a church office, and a “bunk” room for mission visitors. Today the largest space on the second floor is an all-purpose room where groups can meet, have a meal, or work on a project or craft together.
Meanwhile the third floor, the flat – open “roof” of the building, was used by the young people for bonfires and youth activities as they looked out over the mountains. Eventually, the roof area was enclosed and turned into a sanctuary. It can hold as many as 500 people and also serves as a large space for conferences, children’s activities, and youth events.
During the first few years, as Agua de Vida grew, its outreach into areas of evangelism also grew. The church planned visits to prisons and to the local school, staged concerts in government parks, joined with other youth to plan music events, and initiated yearly camps and retreats for men, women, and youth. Agua de Vida maintained a strong emphasis on street evangelism and discipleship training.
To address the crime issue in Reynel Funez, a group of young people who called themselves “The Squadron,” took the initiative to patrol the streets, raise awareness about drug gangs, and deal with the issue of ongoing violence and criminal activity in the area. The Squadron welcomed young people from various areas of the village, but the majority of its members came from Agua de Vida. To date, there has been a significant reduction in the murder rate within this colony.
Because the church building itself is the largest facility in the colony, the space is used for community ministerial activities and an association of approximately 14 local Honduran pastors was formed. Agua de Vida has continued to emphasize connection with other pastors and ministries. Through Iglesia Agua de Vida, IMC has established numerous home churches that meet every week and are led by the young people.
In keeping with IMC’s commitment to empower the culture from within, Agua de Vida continues to be Honduran-run and youth-led. Through the years, the outreach of IMC has moved beyond one village and one church. IMC now reaches out and connects with various churches and communities within Honduras, Central America, and the Caribbean as well as Latino communities within the United States. Its purpose and vision remain the same…to empower, prepare, and impact young people and communities to become more, to strive for excellence, and to take charge of their own culture in a dynamic and transforming way.
IMC Team
Suamy and Rut Corea
Suamy and Rut Corea serve as the Directors of International Mission Connection in Honduras. Suamy has a Bachelor of Theology with an emphasis on missions and leads our ministry development in Honduras. He was born in Tegucigalpa, Honduras and desires to bring hope and opportunities to the people of Honduras.
Rut has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Christian Education and leads our educational efforts in Honduras. She was born in Tampico Tamaulipas, Mexico and desires to increase the literacy rates in Honduras and bring the hope of Jesus to children.
Both Suamy and Ruth desire to empower the marginalized and under-resourced through leadership training, education, and most importantly the hope of Jesus.
Alejandra Diaz
Alejandra Diaz serves as the administrative assistant for IMC. Although Administrative Assistant is her title, she does so much more for the ministry. Alejandra has a degree in primary education and is currently pursuing her master’s degree in biblical studies. She disciples the women in our women’s program and teaches children in our after-school program. Alejandra has impressive credentials, but her servant’s heart is what is the most impressive thing about her.
Rhonda Blanchard
Rhonda serves as Executive Director (stateside) for International Mission Connection and brings over 25 years of ministry experience to IMC.
Rhonda believes through education, mentoring, and leadership development, IMC can bring about cultural change creating opportunities that bring hope to Honduras and with Jesus in the center of it all, bring hope to the world.
Faces of IMC
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Get Involved!
Donate
100% of all donations go directly to our in-country efforts. Not everyone can go on a mission trip but everyone can make an impact in an under-resourced, marginalized culture. By giving even a small amount, you can make a big difference. We welcome Monthly Donations or One-time Gifts. For the same amount of money spent monthly on cable TV, fast food, or gourmet coffee, you can feed families, educate children, and help create jobs in a struggling economy.
Serve
Because 100% of all donations go directly to our in-country efforts, a lot of our in-house needs are filled by volunteers. Opportunities in social media management, graphic design, administrative details, and bookkeeping are available. Want to make an impact by volunteering?
Pray
Everyone can pray, and your prayers are powerful! James 5:16 says, “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”
We would be so grateful if you’d consider becoming an IMC Prayer Partner! Commit to faithfully praying for the work we are doing and you will receive updated prayer requests from IMC, as well as our Newsletter to keep you informed about how your prayers are making a difference
Go
All of us desire to have purpose, make a real impact, and be used by God. IMC strives to take a group of people to Honduras twice each year and we would love to have you join us. Quite often on these trips, we learn more than we go to teach and receive more than we go to give. Be warned, you will be as impacted as those you go to serve!
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News and Events
A Week In Honduras – Part Three
This is our last peek into Honduras. I hope you have grown not only more familiar with the work of IMC, but also with the beautiful people of Honduras. I believe we are making changes and bringing opportunities to those who had none. For those of you we call donors, thank you. For those of you just learning more about what we do, join us. Join us in making change by creating opportunities that lead to change. Join us in bringing hope.