Dale and Elaine Osteen, Carolyn Williams caught in Honduran crisis

Dale and Elaine Osteen Several folks from Buffalo found themselves caught in the midst of a political crisis in Honduras this week, when a mission trip overlapped a military coup in the South American country. Buffalo resident Carolyn Williams and former residents Dale and Elaine Osteen were part of a mission team from First Baptist Church in Jacksboro, where the Osteens are now pastoring. Williams is the local Head Start teacher, Dale Osteen the former pastor at First Baptist, and Elaine a former teacher at BISD.

The team was serving in a small town just outside of San Pedro Sula, the second largest city in Honduras. They were scheduled to leave on Monday morning, and the coup occurred on Sunday evening.

Honduras is in crisis amid a power struggle over the president's plans for consitutional change. President Manuel Zelaya, who had been in office since 2006, wanted to hold a referendum which could have led to an extension of his non-renewable four-year term in office. Tensions had been building in recent days, and the army had refused to help with preparations for referendum, scheduled for Sunday. Polls for the referendum were set to open on Sunday, but instead President Manuel Zelaya was ousted in an army coup, taken from the presidential palace, and flown out of the country. He turned up in Costa Rica. Roberto Micheletti, Speaker of Congress in Honduras and next in line to the presidency, was installed as interim president and one of his first actions was to impose an overnight curfew just hours after he had been sworn in.

Carolyn Williams As of Monday morning Joann Malloy, secretary of the First Baptist Church in Jacksboro and the mother of a student in the group, stated that they have not had direct contact with the mission team beyond a text message from one student who informed her parents, "We have no electricity, military people are in the streets and they aren't going to let us come home." The church has been in contact with Texas senators and with connections in Honduras, and were able to speak with the American owner of the lodge where the mission team was staying in Lake Yojoa. All indications are that the group would be able to fly out as scheduled on Monday morning. "They are 90% sure they'll be able to get to the airport and get home," Malloy added hopefully.

As of press time on Monday, the mission team was safely at the airport and the plane left on schedule.