Honoring Christina Palmer: A Legacy of Hope, Resilience, and Empowerment
I knew I had a kindred nonprofit spirit when my conversation Christina Palmer began with our mutual admiration for Honduras and how we both believed that people can really pull themselves up given the right tools and knowledge, and support to do it. We would spend hours discussing our experiences in Honduras and how all people just need the time to learn about the right tools and get the knowledge to use them to get ahead in life.
Chirstinas's career journey had an amazing story of starting on foodstamps, then pushing herself up through her studies in accounting to one of the top employments in Fortune 500 companies and when she felt on top of the world watching it crumble to the devastation of cancer trying to take her only son away from her. Then regaining hope and happiness and faith when he survived it with a new purpose in life. Do whatever it takes to show her son a world of joy and possibilities.
You see her son and I are both half Honduran and she fell in love with the country the people and the hardworking attitude of the people of Honduras. She started a nonprofit and wanted to help people learn professional tech skills that can be transferred to anywhere in the world and provide them the tools for it. Similar to my goals in Maryland with the Youth Urban Farm and Bike Repair Program where we want to teach youth how to fix and repair a donated bike and keeping it along with the tool kit needed to work on other peoples bikes. As well as the Youth Urban Farm program to teach kis how to grow their own crops so they can make their own food. She loved my program so much that she decided to make a community garden! And I loved her program so much that I had bought an abandoned storage unit of computer supplies to go ship to Honduras to help her program!
But as anyone in the nonprofit world knows, we sacrifice so much of ourselves because we see the potential, we sacrifice our time, our finances, our mental and physical selves just to see with a little more effort our vision becomes our future. Sadly she made the greatest sacrifice, her life. On December 23rd she was shot and killed while buying items needed. After they had just gone through the devastating Hurricane Sara and they had just gotten the bridge working again. They shot her and left her near the water.
With heavy hearts she leaves her teenage cancer surviving son Leo and I am here to ask that you donate to help her family. She was just renting a small apartment there. Her son, is with her grandparents.
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All donated proceeds will go to the Palmer Family. Thank you.
This is a few words from the last time I spoke with her, less than 2 weeks before her sudden, tragic end. Always full of hope and inspiration.
Director of Finance
2 个月Although I worked with Christina years ago, we stayed in contact through Facebook and LinkedIn. I've watched her strength and resilience grow exponentially these last few years. With all she and Leo have been through and yet give so much of themselves to others is an example for all of us to aspire. She will be missed and leave such a void.
Helping people with their service needs for 30+ years.
2 个月Christina is my niece and will be greatly missed. It’s a very sad situation. Thankfully Leo is in a good place.