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Garifuna dance presentation
We are coming together to give a voice to the Garifuna community. We understand the difficulties our community experiences in this country and that's why we are unifying our talents, resources, and skills; we know we are stronger when we are united. Our ultimate goal it's to provide assistance to those members of our cummunity that are in need; it's also to make people aware of who we are.

Our people suffer from economical, social, and legal difficulties. To put things in perspective, earlier this year (2015) a member of our community passed away. The incident took everyone in our circle of friends by surprise and astonishment; nobody could even begin to believe what had just happened. It was a horrible situation for all of us. With the grief came the compexity of having to repatriate his dead body back to his native Honduras. The cost and paperwork associated with the repatriation was very significant and it took a lot of effort to find the resources to cover for the expenses.

The message was clear; we needed to have an organized way to respond to any contingency that might affect our people. By the time of that incident we had already started working in the creation of Garinagu HounGua, but that situation brought more encouragement to us. It reminded us of how an unexpected event can make a strong impact in our lives, but also showed us how an already terrible situation can get even worse when we lack the necessary resources and the financial support to deal with it.

There are many things that need to be done. We need to provide legal advise in different areas to our people. We also need to create awareness of the challenges facing our community. We need to work on building a more promising future for our generations. Garinagu HounGua wants to make sure all of these needs are fulfilled. We will continue to make our best effort to bring social stability to all members in our community.


-Franklin Nunez, Former Secretary of Garinagu HounGua.

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Mission/Vision


Mission:

Contribute to the social, economic, and cultural development of the Garifunas living in the Seattle area. We strive to secure the social welfare of the Garifuna community, and to strengthen the cultural bonds within the group.

Vision:

We are a transnational non-governmental, non-profit organization conformed by Garifuna men and women dedicated to the integral development of our community. We are committed to defend our socioeconomic, political, and cultural rights, while improving the accessibility to the basic financing needs.

Board of Directors

Wilbor Guerrero, President.
President of Garinagu HounGua. Originally from San Juan Durubuguti Bey Bey Honduras and currently residing in Seattle, WA.

Ginsy Connor, Secretary.
Secretary of Garinagu Houngua. Born and raised in Seattle, WA with parents from Honduras

Martha David, Treasurer.
Treasurer of Garinagu Houngua. Originally from Triunfo De la Cruz, Tela Honduras and currently residing in Seattle, WA.

Yoelin Connor, Vice President.
Vice President of Garinagu HounGua from Agua, Santa Rosa de Aguan, Honduras. Currently resides in Seattle, WA.

Paulina Valerio-Guerrero, Fiscal.
Fiscal of Garinagu Houngua. Originally from Tela, Atlantida Honduras. Currently residing in Seattle, WA.

Projects

Prospective Cultural Projects:

Cultural Awareness

With workshops and activities aimed towards the general public, we are out to bring to the society and understanding of who the Garifuna people are and what type of cultural values, beliefs and our background. With this awareness, we could also help the newly migrated Garifunas to the northwest area, of the opportunities and challenges that they might face as part of their cultural shock and the awareness of other cultures. As a cultural tradition, Garifuna communities around the world celebrate the arrival of our ancestor to the Atlantic coast of Central America back in 1797 after being exiled from St. Vincent. Garinagu Houngua will host this event each April to give the public a chance to learn about the Garifuna people and experiences their traditional music, dances, and cuisine.


Teach the Language (Garifuna)

As a culture with it is own structure and language, Garifunas around the world tend to speak at least two to three languages. Garifunas primary language is call the same; "The Garifuna Language". Because of migration to different lands, mainly to the United States, the Garifuna people are now becoming Americanized and are assimilating other customs and languages and forgetting about their forefather's tongue, the Garifuna Language. Garinagus are no longer teaching their offspring's their native language and some just don’t have the time to do so because of their busy life. This program will remind Garifunas about the importance of teaching their children the Garifuna Language. This program will also provide teaching sessions to children of the Garifuna decent. This sessions will be thought by a fluent Garifuna, who will be able to translate words from Garifuna to English and Spanish and vice versa.


Gastronomy

This program will in tell in teaching the youth how to cook Garifunas most popular meals and snacks. The Garifunas have a very extensive menu. As part of understanding and learning about their culture, these youth grasp and enjoy cooking traditional meals like Machuca; which is a Garifunas delicacy made with fish and mashed plantain.


HIV/AIDs Awareness and prevention

Teaching about HIV/AIDS and the prevention measures is a very important task. This program will bring speaks/teachers and instruct the community about getting tested and about how to prevent being infected with HIV. this will also present programs available in the community to those infected with this virus.


References



Wikipedia contributors. "Garifuna people." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 21 Jul. 2015. Web. 31 Jul. 2015.

Girma, Lebawit Lily. "The Hidden Beauty of Garifuna Belize." CNN. Cable News Network, 20 Aug. 2013. Web. 31 July 2015.

Post Rust, Susie. "Fishing Villages along Central America’s Coast Pulse with the Joyous Rhythms of This Afro-Caribbean People." National Geographic: Images of Animals, Nature, and Cultures. 2001. Web. 31 July 2015.

Griffin, Wendy. "Garifunas in Seattle and How to Find Out About Their Culture." Internet Para Hondureños. 24 Mar. 5014. Web. 31 July 2015.