03 Apr The Mentors Building Our Future — Transforming Lives in Haiti and Honduras

In communities with few opportunities, dedicated mentors are helping students not only build robots—but reshape their futures.

The Power of an Opportunity

At the heart of FIRST Global are mentors—quiet heroes who guide, inspire, and sacrifice to help young people realize their full potential. For Ana Maria, the mentor behind Team Honduras, her mission is clear: to create opportunity where there often is none.

“These kids are amazing. They just need opportunities where they can become the best version of themselves.”

In Honduras, where nearly 70% of people live below the poverty line, access to STEM education is limited. This year, Ana Maria partnered with El Hogar, a nonprofit serving youth in vulnerable situations, to expand FIRST Global’s reach. For these students, robotics practice became more than just an after-school activity. It became a refuge—and a turning point.

“The FIRST Global platform shed a different light to robotics,” shared Ana Maria. “It’s not just about the robot. This is about preparing kids for careers and opportunities that don’t yet exist. We’re teaching them to find solutions, to work together, and to believe there’s always another plan. And now I see more schools wanting to do this with their kids.”

Across the Caribbean is another mentor who understands that firsthand. Jameson, the leader of Team Haiti, was just 17 when the devastating 2010 earthquake altered the course of his life. It had decimated critical infrastructure—including schools, hospitals, and homes—and displaced more than a million people, leaving nearly 60% of Haitians living below the poverty line.

“It didn’t only shatter the country, it shattered all my dreams,” he said. “I could have just given up, but I saw an opportunity to help other people.”

He began translating for doctors who arrived to support recovery efforts, later assisting in procedures. Soon he received an opportunity to study abroad.

“When [people are] talking about Haiti, they talk about the poverty, they talk about the insecurity. But for us, Haiti is not poor. We just lack resources.”

He returned to Haiti immediately after graduating to help cultivate those resources and opportunities for his people.

A Space to Grow: Students Finding Strength and Purpose

Students like Henry, from Team Honduras, and Marly, from Team Haiti, have seen their paths shift through the influence of their mentors and the opportunities provided through the FIRST Global Challenge.

Henry is one of the students who joined Team Honduras through El Hogar. “When he first came, he would just lay his head down and not participate,” Ana Maria recalled.

Henry’s childhood had been marked by loss: his father died when he was seven, and three years later, his grandfather—who had stepped in to raise him—also passed. Like many in his community, Henry began working at a young age to help support his family. University was never part of the plan.

But in the lab, building and troubleshooting alongside teammates, something shifted. Henry’s natural aptitude for robotics quickly surfaced.

“He was one of the first kids to understand new lessons when they were delivered,” said Ana Maria.

Slowly, with encouragement, Henry’s attitude shifted, and his leadership blossomed.

“FIRST Global helped change my point of view, making me realize I would be better off graduating in auto mechanics,” he said. “It helps us as youth to realize that if we don’t change ourselves, nothing will change. We need to change ourselves first to start improving our country little by little.”

For Marly, the journey to represent Haiti at the FIRST Global Challenge has demanded more than just technical skill. It required courage. They faced logistical challenges traveling to meet one another, facing limited time to complete their robot, and even obstacles to obtaining visas, but the team continued to persevere forward.

“Haitians are people who don’t give up easily. At every obstacle, the mentors stepped up, reassuring us that challenges are only temporary. We stayed confident because we knew the sacrifices were worth it, because my future and the future of my country depend on them.”

A Legacy in the Making

Through the guidance of their mentors, the students on Team Honduras and Team Haiti learned to tackle life’s challenges head-on, showing the world—and themselves—what they are truly capable of achieving.

“FIRST Global is actually giving them the opportunity to show what they can do,” Jameson said. “I’ll ask them, ‘Okay, that’s the problem. So now tell me what the solution is.’ They learn what it means to fail and try again; to solve problems and not wait for someone else to do it. We brought the resources to them, and look at them thriving.”

“A mentor is there to uplift that kid to believe in themselves,” added Ana Maria. “To be their supporter, to be their motivator, to make them realize how wonderful their potential is. It gives them hope, and it shows them what other opportunities they can pursue no matter their background, no matter their reality.”

For both mentors and students, the transformation is undeniable. FIRST Global not only shifts mindsets, but seeds a future generation of problem-solvers, builders, and leaders.

“Not in a million years did I ever think that I would be mentoring a robotics team,” Ana Maria said with a smile. “[Now,] being a mentor is my emotional fuel. That’s what keeps me motivated and it gives me hope for the future of my country. I know that I am not taking back the same kids I brought. They’re very inspired to continue with that legacy.”

“To us it means the world,” said Jameson. “This is our home. Let’s build it together.”