It was 2014 when Michael Mastroianni ’16 found himself in Honduras on a missionary trip — and on the verge of losing a bet that would change his life and those of local residents.
In the country on a Medical Ministry International (MMI) trip, Mastroianni bet local MMI Director Jorge Encalada a Coke that he could best him at foosball. Encalada later collected his prize and, over that soda, told Mastroianni about his dream of building a public school in San Pedro Sula, which in 2013 earned the dubious distinction as the world’s most violent city. The second-largest city in Honduras, its murder rate was reportedly the highest in the world outside a war zone.