The city of Catacamas is nestled in the center of Olancho, one of 18 departments in Honduras, surrounded by lush green mountain ranges. Dubbed the Florida City by the writer and poet Froylán Turcios, Catacamas is rich in dairy and meat, as well as agricultural products, like beans and corn.
In recent years, Catacamas also has seen a moderate increase in new home construction in small subdivisions, with much of the funding coming from native Hondurans living abroad, and access to the capital city of Tegucigalpa has been vastly improved with new paving on the main throughway.
Craig and Leslie Thompson of GlobalVideoHQ traveled to Catacamas in early November 2014 to film a short documentary about two American missionaries, Lisa and Chip Bloecher, and their non-profit organization, Mamas en Catacamas. During their stay, the Thompsons interviewed nearly a dozen beneficiaries of the program and toured several outlying districts in which the organization had built small houses for families in need. They also had dinner both with the city mayor, Lincoln Figueroa, and with Senator Alfredo Moradel, and discussed opportunities to bring more tourism and commerce into the city.
Dovetailing with the mission work of Mamas en Catacamas, an influx of capital from abroad would help to provide jobs, education, and skills training for local residents, reducing the poverty rate and providing a bright future for the next generation.
The stunning aerial video shown here provides a bird’s eye view of Catacamas, and a virtual tour of the surrounding countryside and mountain ranges, all set to the music of the Honduras national anthem.