He stands at a crossroads in life, having just graduated from elementary school. He has a clear plan and path to follow, but will he make it? Meet a young man from Hottest Sparrow!
On the northern shore of Roatan, in the quaint community of Hottest Sparrow with a population of 110, a primary school graduate stands at a critical crossroads. He has carefully devised his life plan, fueled by ambitious dreams and dogged determination. Will this exceptional youth succeed where so many others have failed? After you meet this teen, you can join those who support his daunting dream.
Fifteen-year-old Michael recently graduated from ninth grade at Garvey Nelson, a public school in the village of his birth. Beneath the shade of mighty tamarind trees, turkeys and chickens cluck as they roam the muddy paths and dart erratically between small wooden houses. On the soccer field south of the settlement, cows contentedly graze between lively soccer matches, serving as bovine mowers that keep the pitch perfect for soccer games. After lively matches, overheated players cool off with cold sodas and popular jugitos—Kool-Aid frozen in sandwich bags— from the local pulpería.
Up a staircase inside a wooden house with chipped turquoise paint, Michael Anthony Grant Mann perches on the arm of a worn couch. His 10-year-old sister, Christina, breezes through the room and shyly peeks from behind a curtain while their mother, Debra, listens attentively from the kitchen as her son talks confidently about his future.
Michael explains how a single day working alongside his uncle, electrician Manuel Alberto Quezada, sparked a dream that now burns brightly; Michael now aspires to become an electrician himself. To accomplish this daunting goal, he knows he must attend high school on the Honduran mainland in the coastal town of Puerto Castilla. Beyond that, he dares to dream of attending university in the United States.
“When are you coming back from the USA, Michael?” his slightly worried mother, Debra, asks.
Michael smiles and replies, “When I am rich.”
Many young men have traditionally worked on ships to save money to buy land and build their mothers homes or repair those in disrepair, and Michael would like to contribute in some way to improve his parents’ living conditions and to assist them in their old age.
Miss Debra smiles back and says, “I am confident that no matter how far you travel, you will return to Hottest Sparrow to raise a family”
“Yes,” Michael confidently replies. “My family and friends are here.”
As an avid soccer player, when Michael isn’t playing on the local field in his spare time, he focuses on video games like FIFA on his PlayStation 4 with friends he has known since kindergarten. His favorite team is Real Madrid, and he nods in recognition when I mention a player named Erling Haaland, a Norwegian who happens to come from the same country as the author of this article.
Despite his youth, Michael’s resolve is indisputable. Still, the path ahead will be costly for a small island family. Whether he pursues his career on the mainland or in the Roatan Vo-Tec Training Center, he will need money for tuition, lunch, and transportation. Currently, Michael works for a construction company in Lawson Rock on the western side of the island helping to build a concrete wall. He takes pride in the labor and enjoys learning new skills and a sound work ethic that will serve him well when he reaches the end of his career path and works as an electrician.
Stay tuned at Bay Islands Magazine as we will follow Michael on his journey as he joins a myriad of talented and tenacious Roatan youth who have attained equally challenging dreams.
Edited by: Edwina Doyle Willis