Nikki Shires arrived from Australia in March 2005 with her friend Tania King. They came determined to make their mark on the school in some form or other. They certainly did this by their excellent teaching skills and enthusiasm, but Nikki was still determined to do much more for the school. She looked around the school environment and decided to use her two great skills, firstly in art and then in sport, towards making the school a nicer and more fulfilling place for the students. Firstly she decided to make a mural somewhere in the school and then she wanted to make a basketball court. To do this, she needed to raise money for the materials required. She wrote to her friends and told them what she wanted to do. Nikki has lived her life in many parts of the world, and has friends from her involvement in the sport of Ultimate Frisbee from all parts of the globe. She had donations coming from everywhere and was so thrilled when she reached her goal and had enough money to start on her programs.

It was not an easy task for her, as she had to break through a lot of barriers just to buy the needed materials, get them to the school and then find the people who could help her with the building. The mural was easy enough to start on once she had decided on the theme. She had wanted to see a toucan from the time she arrived in Central America and her friend Tania had also wanted to see an armadillo, so the theme of the mural is about them both finding their beloved animals and then using them to move forward in life. Perhaps, it is also a symbol to encourage all the students to make the most of their opportunities and also move forward in their lives. She has made the mural look like a stained glass window, using strong, black lines to link the bright colours, the style of many of her paintings and drawings. The drawing up of the huge mural on the Grade 7/8 building was started and the project evoked great interest from the locals and the school children who were in the school at the time on a holiday English program. The children were included in the making of the mural and all those at school at the time either helped to put on the paint, or painted small, colourful flowers to enhance the design. The work took long hours in the sun, but it was totally finished in such a short time, much to the pleasure of all those who saw it being built. It now takes pride of place in the school.

Nikki's other project was to make a half basketball court. Nikki had seen how all the children loved playing soccer, but could see the need for some diversification for those who enjoy other types of sporting activities. Again, the court took lots of hard work but Nikki had the help of volunteers who had stayed on for the summer program, Tanya, (from Australia), Vicky, (from Scotland), Charlotte (from England) and some local Hondurans. It was certainly a global activity. The finished basketball court was ready for the new year and has certainly been a wonderful asset to the school. There is always a basketball match of some kind going on as well as other games that have been painted on the end of the court, such as the well-loved hopscotch and the ball game, four square. It has many other purposes, such as chalk drawing and skipping games and the area is always being used by the children. There was still money left over, so Nikki then bought lots of wonderful sporting equipment, including, soccer balls, basket balls, and other very useful items. Large rubbish bins were also purchased with the names of all the volunteers for 2004-2005 year.

Nikki's efforts and achievements will never be forgotten by the school community and they are particularly grateful to the support of the very generous sponsors who made the project possible. Thank you Nikki!