Our Story

Supporting Education Since 1991

Inspired by the need for solidarity, education, and peaceful reconstruction after the decade long civil war in Nicaragua, in 1988, Todd Evans and Patrick Rickon participated in a Habitat for Humanity project to help build houses near Ciudad Darío, Nicaragua. On subsequent trips to Nicaragua, Patrick and Todd were deeply touched by the hope still alive in the people of the poverty stricken region. Observing the basic need for school desks and education resources, they decided to work together to respond. Todd organized support and the collection of educational materials in the United States, while Patrick worked with local community members to build rustic school desks out of scrap lumber from a Habitat for Humanity sawmill with the people of Puertas Viejas, Nicaragua.

As the demand from surrounding communities for school desks increased, so did Patrick and Todd’s resolve to work longer-term in the area. Nicaraguan children, who previously sat on a dirt floor or a wooden stump at school, now had a desk. Local community members participated in the construction of the desks as well, empowering them to become active participants in the development of their own communities.

In 1991, SOL became an official nonprofit organization dedicated to enriching the future through education in the Americas. As the interest in supporting work in Nicaragua grew, so did SOL, enabling it to reach a wider range of education needs in Nicaragua. More school desks and adult literacy classes soon followed.

Soon, upon seeing the impact that having desks in their community made on the students’ education, leaders of the community of Playa de Moyua asked for help in building a classroom for their students. In 1992, twenty-one volunteers from Mendocino, California traveled to Nicaragua, to work together with them to construct a one-room school. The success of this endeavor helped to establish SOL’s volunteer programs.

Other needs continued to present themselves, especially in the area of education resources. Following a community survey, in 1995, a pilot Learning Resource Center was opened in Ciudad Darío, Nicaragua. Children, youth, and teachers, alike lined up around the block to wait for a chance to put together puzzles, read, or just marvel at the brightly colored storybooks.

Soon, SOL added a reference area for older students, which included reference books, atlases, and dictionaries. Next came guitar classes, followed by sewing, embroidery, art, dance, and other music classes. Today the center is a popular hub of educational and cultural activity in Darío.

In response to the need to further support students, beginning in 1996, SOL established a scholarship program to enable economically-impoverished students to stay in school. Today this program supports over 80 primary, secondary, and university students in Latin America. From its inception to the present time, SOL has given over 2,100 scholarships to students in Nicaragua and El Salvador.

In 1999, responding to the invitation of the small post-war resettlement community of Las Minas, El Salvador, SOL began a school construction project. Finding needs similar to those in Nicaragua for rural schools and community development, SOL began working with local volunteer community members to establish school construction and scholarship programs in El Salvador. Although today, SOL does not send volunteer to El Salvador, we continued to support students in their scholarships through their university studies for almost 15 years.

SOL has continued to grow and prosper. Over the years, we have offered volunteer experiences in Mexico, as well as Belize and Guatemala. We continue to partner with communities in Nicaragua and Guatemala to construct much needed educational infrastructure, while also supporting and operating programs in Nicaragua. We send volunteers to work alongside of and learn with, people in communities outside of Oaxaca, Mexico. We continue to facilitate meaningful hands-on cross-cultural experiences for volunteers, while also supporting community development and access to education. Together, we have built 274 educational rooms with 96 partner communities.