Faith and Service: A Latter-day Saint Woman’s Guideposts to a Purposeful Life.
Janene Nielsen
Few in this world are so aptly named as Arlington resident Norma I Love who has devoted her life to serving the indigenous people of remote La Mosquitia in her native Honduras. In 1993, she established the Norma I Love Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the humanitarian and educational needs of the inhabitants of Mosquitia, as well as promoting conservation and research of the region’s rich natural resources.
Love, a convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, credits service and faith as the principle guideposts of her life, never doubting the hand of the Lord in directing her mission.
“It is not easy to serve humanity. You have to have a lot of faith and hope and believe that you are doing something that Heavenly Father wants you to do […] Having faith in God has helped me to make good choices if I listen very carefully to the spirit, and I am obedient and humble. I believe very strongly that Heavenly Father knows each and every one of our paths,” said Love.
Born in the small town of El Progresso, Honduras— “sometime after the Japanese invaded Hawaii”— to a strong middle-class Catholic family, Love’s parents instilled in her the importance of service.
“My parents taught us at a young age the importance of sharing whatever we had and serving others who were less fortunate than ourselves,” said Love.
At the urging of her grandmother, Norma left Honduras in 1964 at the age of eighteen.
“My grandmother decided it was time for me to become something more than a young lady living in a small village with nowhere to go, so she sent me on a boat headed to New York.
“This is where the desire began to kindle in my heart […] to get a better education, better than the one I was receiving in Honduras at that time. I wanted to be a bilingual teacher,” said Love.
The seeds of the Norma I Love Foundation found root in her heart while she was attending her alma mater, the University of Texas at Arlington.
“I was taking my last course in bilingual ESL education. For my thesis, my professor assigned each one of the students to go back to their native country and write about their native language and other political matters in that area.
“I wrote about the Mosquito native language, as well as the war that was going on with the Sandinistas against the Contras in Nicaragua [at that time],” said Love.
Despite the dangers of entering a war-torn country, Norma was determined to fulfill her assignment. Not satisfied with secondhand accounts, she decided to see Mosquitia for herself.
“After doing this work for 25 years, in spite of all the danger that anybody could encounter on journeys to a remote jungle, never in my life have I been or felt in danger,” said Love.
Love says her greatest challenge in helping the people of Mosquitia was overcoming governmental and monetary obstacles.
“I ran out of money back in 1992. My mission [was possible] only by the help of a few friends, but it wasn’t enough to pay all of my expenses. I believe that Heavenly Father didn’t want me to give up and through much prayer, he showed me a way to continue. He led a member of the Church to help me start the Norma I Love Foundation.”
In 1996, Norma retired from teaching and purchased a former Red Cross compound in the community of Mocoron, located in the middle of the rainforest of La Mosquitia.
“My hope for the indigenous of La Mosquitia lies within the new generation. With the help of many organizations and volunteers, they can receive a better education, learn about technology, better ways to preserve agriculture and acquire sustainable jobs.
“The youth of today will be able to keep their native language and their rich cultural traditions alive, as well as incorporating the common language of Spanish into their future.
“They are learning to stay close to God, to listen to His teachings, and have faith that they will survive for many generations to come,” said Love.
Love understands but has little patience for the person whose hands hang down, thinking they cannot make a change in the world.
“I would tell [that person] they need to read and practice more of what Jesus and His apostles taught in the Bible about love, faith, and hope. If they do this continuously, they will see the changes in the world around them,” said Love.
Part of Love’s current mission is to tell the story of the people of La Mosquitia and her efforts to help them. She hopes to inspire others to throw themselves into service.
“The world is full of individuals who would like to help others, but often don’t know how,” said Love. “It only takes one person to invite and show them many ways to serve our fellow man.”
Norma I Love is a member of the Arlington 3rd Ward in Arlington, Texas. Find more information about the Norma I Love Foundation here.
