INVISIBLE HOUSEKEEPERS & MAIDS - Financial Recognition and a big "Thank You" for a job well done

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Purpose: Financial Recognition and a big "Thank You" for a job well done

Start Date: March 2019

Funding Level: $25,000

Lives Directly Impacted: 8

SUMMARY

The Inti Raymi Fund visited Honduras and supported eight housekeepers each with a $3,125 tip along with a big "Thank You". These women we supported were between 23-43 years. Most of these women were single and most of them were single moms raising 2-3 children after their husbands left them after several kids were born.

When was the last time you left a tip or thanked the cleaning staff at a hotel or resort after a business trip or family vacation? Behind the scenes, works the "invisible heroes" preeminently low income, marginalized, minority women who receive substandard wages for endless back-breaking days of work.

CENTRAL AMERICA'S PAINFUL HISTORY:

If you want to fully understand most of the reasons for the poverty and crime in Central America and in Honduras, this requires you to revisit history and familiarize yourself with the past colonizations of Central America by Spain from roughly 1521 up until independence in 1821. By the late 1800's a new economic colonizer, United Fruit, helped by the US government and its military, appeared and swindled most of the Indigenous Peoples and Mestizos ("mixed people") out of their native lands and their future economic sustainability by creating "Banana Republics" in Central America. These enormous land grabs turned the Indigenous Peoples and Mestizos from land owners/operators into peasant workers on lands which previously were owned by them. United Fruit attempted to mask its "identity and vile past" by creating multiple subsequent subsidiaries like Chiquita Banana. These prolific land grabs and genocides, caused the Indigenous and Mestizo Peoples of Central America to not have a chance at individual prosperity and hope. This perpetual 400 year marginalization and oppression by Spain then indirectly by the USA with its unscrupulous businessmen of United Fruit, caused the Central American People to lose all hope. Out of desperation, some resort to crime and violence, and many resort to mass illegal migration to the USA as their only coping mechanism.

INVISIBLE HOUSEKEEPERS & MAIDS AT HOTELS

When was the last time you left a tip or thanked the cleaning staff at a hotel or resort after a business trip or family vacation? Behind the scenes, works the "invisible heroes" preeminently low income, marginalized, minority women who receive substandard wages for endless back-breaking days of work.

The Inti Raymi Fund wanted to draw attention to these unseen heroes who we all simply "expect" to provide a clean room, regardless of what that particular room's condition was in just prior to our checkin. Whether you're on a business trip making "big deals happen" or you are traveling to an exotic foreign location for leisure, the financial model is always the same... the upper management marginalizes and oppresses the lowest paid staff to maximize profits. These unseen workers rarely get paid the money they deserve so why not show your appreciation and hand them cash, look them in the eyes and say "Thank You very much, I appreciate your work".

It is far better to hand them your gift/cash rather than leave it in the room for two reasons: 1) quite often, the front office sends someone to inspect the room prior to the housekeepers to check inventory of the mini-bar or for other reasons and they likely will abscond with your housekeeper's tip and 2) it's far better for your psyche to see the Joy which your gift brings to people, which in turn will inspire you to do it again rather than leaving cash on the desk "hoping for the best". It's ok to be emotionally rewarded for giving someone a gift and receiving a thank you back. To see a huge smile on someone's face is priceless with them being acknowledged and thanked for their back-breaking work. Start with small amounts of money which you're comfortable with and as you'll certainly find out if you try, it will become addictive helping these wonderful women to better their lives for themselves. Many of these women are immigrants which are being exploited by the immigration black market or at best, they are only paid minimum wage and often are single parents raising one or more children on this minimum wage. Could you raise children on minimum wage?

Consider the empathy card, how much do you enjoy cleaning your sink, toilet, floors, shower or tub and changing the sheets at your apartment or home? Well, how much fun would it be to clean someone else's filth considering what enormous and disgusting messes they often are faced with.

WHAT THE INTI RAYMI FUND DID:

The Inti Raymi Fund provided a Huge $3,125 tip to each of the eight housekeepers ($25,000/8 women=$3,125 each) while we were in Honduras staying at a well known internationally flagged hotel. For anonymity, we cannot reveal their faces, names or the international hotel brand name for their protection, but suffice it to say, they were blown away when we gave each of them $3,125 along with a big "Thank You". These women we supported were between 23-43 years. Most of these women were single and most of them were single moms raising 2-3 children after their husbands left them after several kids were born. Just as a point of reference, Honduras is ranked 101 of 159 countries in 2015 for its Gender Inequality Human Development Index according to the UNDP report "Human Development Report 2016: Human Development for Everyone" (PDF).

If our message resonates with you and you're up to giving our approach a try, we strongly recommend this wonderfully respectful and effective way to help others in whatever country you live in or while traveling abroad as part of your foreign philanthropic endeavors.

TEAM MEMBERS

Chimu

COMMUNITY & INTI RAYMI FUND'S INVOLVEMENT

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