Lupita

Life in El Salvador can be so difficult, and then, life in El Salvador can be so lovely.  Our work with the young women here in Central America gives us many opportunities to experience first-hand the desperate situation of family life in El Salavador.  It also gives us the chance to come along-side precious, beautiful, desperate young women, many times, young mothers, to offer them simple things that they just don’t have, and that we take for granted.  Hope, opportunity, love.  When you speak truth into someone’s life, and they hear it, it has the potential to open up their life like nothing else.  All of a sudden, their world has expanded, it has become so much bigger than they ever imagined.  Possibilities take shape that were never there before.  That is what we see happening in Lupita's life.  

Lupita and her daughter, Keyri, have been living with us since February  She made this big, crazy move from life in a small pueblo, to a totally different life in the big city.  Not to mention, the change of leaving behind extended family…mom, sisters, nieces and nephews…the only home she has ever known, and moving into the home of North Americans.  THAT is a culture shock for sure!  She is eating different food, learning a new language, and experiencing something new and strange every day. Our family! :)  Since Keyri (pronounced: Katie) was born Lupita has worked nearly every day 7 to 7.  Lupita has never experienced the day to day life of being a mom.  She has now!  At first, it was just fun and games.  She was just loving being with her sweet daughter all the time, and just soaking it up.  But, the honeymoon period came to an end, and she is learning that being a mom is hard work, work that never stops. She struggles with knowing how to discipline her.  She is a great mom, full of love and patience.  But, here in El Salvador, we see that very, very few people have any idea how to raise children in a healthy, balanced way. There is no one that we know of that is attempting to equip parents. What we see generally, is that children are indulged, and then, when parents are exasperated with their indulged children, they snap and yell at them and hit them.  Then, they tell everyone who will listen how naughty their children are, yet they have not a clue what to do about it.  Lupita is very patient, but, I can see her patience waning.  One day, we were chatting about her day, and she was telling me all that Keyri had done that day…and how tired out she was from it.  At that point, Keyri yelled for her momma, and Lupita said, with a wry, exhausted smile, “Here comes mommy, the slave of Keyri.”  She rarely says ‘no’ to her little angel.  And her little angel knows just how to play her momma!  So, this is an area I have been praying about just how to speak into Lupita’s life without being offensive.  I have given her a book to read, and she has discussed some thoughts from the book with me. This week I plan to sit down with her and talk more in depth about this.  Please pray for wisdom and direction. 

This isn’t the only thing we need to talk about.  Lupita is really the seed of this ministry to women.  We are at the beginning, taking baby steps and learning as we go.  We want to take it slow, and make wise decisions. But, we feel that it’s time, after 3 months for her transition, to take stock, see where we are at, and start planning.  So, this week, I will be talking to Lupita about the next steps, and forming our plan for her stay with us.  As of March 1^st, she has been taking English classes and working very hard at it.   She wants to attend university or a technical school and gain education towards a better future for herself and her family.  We don’t yet have the funds to pay for this, and are waiting on God. The cost of higher education in El Salvador is extremely low compared to the states.  We are talking around $100.00 per month.  As we begin to look into what direction Lupita wants to go with her studies, we will keep you posted if you are interested in helping provide this opportunity for her. 

 If you are asking how you can help right now,  we could really use some assistance with her English classes, which cost $80.00 per month.   This is not a college class, but, a private teacher.  Learning English will be key in opening up her future options for employment. 

 As ministry costs begin to increase, we know that where God guides, God will provide.  With the costs of Lupita, Keyri, Daniela, Nelsi and the extended family we are trying to reach out to, we are definitely in need of more financial support. We are blessed by your willingness to pray, care and give so that young women can have an opportunity they would otherwise not have for a better future. 

 

 We are still in the process of legally establishing our own foundation.  This week, we are

taking the final steps to finish the paperwork, and hope that by the end of next week, everything will be ready to be handed over to the proper authorities.  Please pray that God will guide this process, and give us favor with those who make the decisions.  Our foundation name will be, “Hope for Families Foundation”. In El Salvador, it will be, “Fundacion Esperanza para Las Familias”.  The home for young women will be named, “Lupita’s Hope”.  We are praying and seeking the Lord’s direction and provision for renting a home, separate from our family home, for this ministry.  God has laid this on our hearts, and we trust again, that if it's His will, the windows of heaven will open up and we will have the funds for this project.  Until then, our private home will be Lupita's Hope.  We are expecting that God will show us the next young woman we are supposed to take in.  

 

School for Daniela

December marked a monumental moment for the beginning of Lupita's Hope Ministry.  

Daniela with her daughter, Fernanda,
her Mom, Nelsy,
and her youngest sister, Ester

Two weeks ago, we made the first steps to begin Daniela’s high school education.  We registered her at a private high school in Sonsonate, which is the closest city to San Julian that is big enough to have decent private schools.  Daniela, her mother, Nelsy, Jorge Campos, and all of our family, went to Sonsonate together on the big day.  The school is called Colegio Salarrue.   This school has two options for education.  One is the general two year high school that most students choose.  The other is a three-year technical high school track, with a choice of focus on either a professional training, as in accounting or secretarial fields, or medical track for those interested in the health field.  Daniela has chosen the three-year medical track.  As part of this course of studies she will intern at the local hospital.  Our day started with a tour of the school, which is very different from schools in the states. 

We met with Daniela to give her the options
she has for school

Most of the classes are outside under porches.  After a meeting with the school director, we registered Daniela for her classes and paid all her fees.  Then, we were led to the area where the students are given the material for their uniforms.  We bought the material and gave it to Nelsy, who will take it to a seamstress in San Julian to have 2 uniforms made.  She will also have an outfit for a physical fitness day each week.  Next, we headed to downtown Sonsonate to find school shoes.  Shopping in the downtown areas of the bigger cities in El Salvador is crazy!  There are way too many people, cars, buses, and stores!!! It is a bit overwhelming.  But we were victorious and found some nice brown school shoes and tennis shoes for her for a reasonable price. 

A picture of us with Daniela at the school

She is set to begin school on the 20^th of January.  Daniela is very excited and ready for this opportunity.  We mentioned before that we had made the decision to have Daniela stay in her home during high school.  A lot went into that decision.  Until we have our own non-profit established, and are not under the umbrella of La Casa de mi Padre for our residencies, we will only have girls over the age of 18 in our home.

We are so thrilled that Daniela will have this opportunity to get the education she needs to escape the extreme poverty that her family has been in for generations.  Be praying for her, as this is a huge change in her life.  Also, be praying for continued provisions for her education and wisdom for us as we counsel and disciple her and her family along the way.

A Christmas Party for Daniela's Family

 Merry Christmas! As the clock ticks towards the beginning of another brand new year, we all begin to look at our lives and evaluate where we are, and where we would like to be in the coming year.  Fresh starts are what New Year's is all about.  I like that.  There is something energizing about a fresh start, don’t you think?  Well, as the Porter family stands on the precipice of this new year, we are very excited.  We can see that God is opening doors and propelling us forward towards the formation of our own non-profit organization, Lupita’s Hope.  By faith, we plan to take the necessary steps to found this ministry, trusting that where God guides, God will provide.

Last week, we had a fun day with Daniela's family.  Ana, the mom/grandma of the family, and all her brood including her daughters, Nelsy, Denora, and Lupita, along with their nine children, took the two hour bus ride from San Julian to come to our house for a full day of Christmas fun!  We prepared Panes con Pavo, the traditional Salvadoran Christmas meal, with our friends Marina, who is a national missionary and dear sister, and Jorge Campos, our ministry partner and ‘old’ friend!   Marina showed us the ropes for preparing a Salvadoran style turkey. Very different than the traditional turkey we make in the states, but, DELICIOUS!!!  The sandwiches are

Kathy and Marina preparing the food

prepared on large French bread rolls, and include the yummy turkey, cucumbers, radishes, tomatoes, lettuce, watercress, and they are topped with the tasty red sauce that is cooked and basted over the turkey, and a hard-boiled egg.  The red sauce is prepared with grilled tomatoes, onion, ground pumpkin seeds, and lots of other spices which are blended up to make the sauce to put over the bird.  You drown your sandwich in this sauce, and BOY is it messy!  But, sooo good!  The kids all played with Jonah and 

Maddie’s old toys…Legos,  American Girl dolls, and all their clothes and accessories…and Hotwheels that have been collected for years between Sam and Jonah.  They had a ball!

  After we ate our delicious dinner, we all gathered in the living room where we handed out gifts to each child.  Oh, they were excited!  What fun we had watching their happy faces!  The children were very grateful and we were covered in hugs and kisses.  The moms were each given a jar of David’s famous home-made pico de gallo, which they LOVE!  (They had all enjoyed eating it many times while we lived in San Julian).  Later in the afternoon, we all enjoyed some sweet bread and coffee over lively conversations. At the end of the day, we all piled into our van (yes, 15 people in an 8 passenger van...here in ES, this is completely normal)  and carried them home!  A lovely day was had by all! 

Kathy and Marina with their creation

Enjoying the Meal

Maddie having fun with the girls

The girls working on a puzzle

Jonah, Jorge and Daniela chillin'

Rebecca, one of Daniela's sisters

Lupita with her daughter Keyri

Pan con Pavo, a Traditional
Salvadoran Turkey Sandwich

December 2013 Update

It’s been a month and a half since we have been back from our visit to the states.  We were encouraged and blessed by so many dear friends and family while we were home.  We had the opportunity to share our vision for the young women of El Salvador with several churches.  A highlight for us was our trip to El Paso, Texas.  It has been six years since we left Juarez, Mexico.  

Calvary Chapel Sun City, in El Paso, which is just across the border from Juarez, opened their arms to us while we lived in Juarez, and we fell in love with the church and Pastor Terry Gray, his wife, Kim and their lovely children.  CCSC has been faithfully supporting our family since we left Juarez.  We had not been able to make it back to El Paso to visit CCSC since leaving six years ago.  This year, we knew that we wanted to make that 4,000 mile round trip!  We prayed about it, and God provided what we needed to do it!  My mom, (Kay) even offered us the use of her car for the 10 days we would be gone.  What a blessing!  In El Paso, we spent four awesome days reconnecting with dear friends, and we had the opportunity to share at CCSC what God is doing with us in El Salvador.  I cannot tell you how encouraged and blessed we were for those four short days. 

Jonah and Maddie LOVED the time they had to renew their friendships with the Gray kids!  They didn’t want to leave El Paso!  

Brooklyn & Luke looking over
their new baby sister

Of course, being in Washington with our families was food for our souls.  What a family we have!  From our precious mothers, to our darling grandbabies…WE ARE SO BLESSED!  We arrived just in time to be present at the birth of our newest little angel, Katherine Ellen Willard.  For those of you who don’t know, Katherine is my mother’s name (you know her by Kay!) and Ellen is my middle name.  Mom and I were so touched that Tyrone and Courtney chose to name their fourth child after us. Okay, I might have cried! J

We have been getting back into the swing of things, as well as beginning new adventures.  Jonah and Maddie began going to school for the first time in their lives the first week we got back.  They are doing well so far and we are thankful for all your prayers for them.  Please continue to pray as we have been having issues (sigh) with the school.  Pretty big issues with  the teachers and administrators being very disorganized. It has been very frustrating.  The kids are enjoying the new friends they are making, though, and that has been encouraging to them. Not a week after we got back David came down with pneumonia, and was more sick than I have ever seen him in 32 years.  After six weeks, he is still struggling with his health.  We were blessed to be directed to a good doctor in Usulutan, which is about an hour and a half away from San Salvador.  Yesterday, our dear friend, Marina, took us to Doctor Edgardo, and he told David that he currently has acute bronchitis. He was given 2 different inhaler meds, along with another anti-biotic.   It has been a slow recovery process.  This has put the brakes on our life, and has been very difficult for him.  Please pray for his health.

We began the process of working with Daniela the week we came home. She came for a weekend visit so she could take some testing to help us make some decisions about what school would be best for her.  We are still working out all of the logistics and need your prayers for each step we need to take.  Since returning, we have had to make some changes in our original plan to have Daniela live with us during high school, as it was made clear to us that, legally, we could have some issues with separating her from her mom, (while under the age of 18) and from her daughter, who is four.   Even though her mother wants this, and her daughter would be well taken care of and visited often, we want to operate within the laws.  The laws are becoming very strict in relation to separating families.  The idea of the law is good, but the implementation has been complicated and has resulted in grave problems for children that live in places like La Casa de Mi Padre.  The courts push to return them to their parents/families which sounds good.  But, if you are returning a child to the same circumstances that led to him being removed from the home, what are you accomplishing? We have known of children who have died as a result of this, and some at La Casa that have experienced very serious, life-threatening circumstances.

 Ideally, we feel that it would be for the best for her to live with us, as she would be able to focus much better on her studies. Also, counseling, discipleship, teaching life skills, and a healthy family dynamic would be easier facilitated by her living full-time with us.  As a result of this law, called Lepina, and since we are still under the legal umbrella of La Casa’s organization, at the present time,we have decided not to have young women in our home under the age of 18, until we have established our own non-profit. (Which we are working on.)  After prayer and counsel, we have decided that we will continue our plan to fund her education through high school, while we invest in these other areas of her life, as she continues to live at her home.  Then, after her high-school graduation, Lord willing, she would move to our home and begin university studies and work.  This was a hard adjustment for us to make emotionally, as we felt strongly about having Daniela live with us for maximum impact. But, we have peace about this decision.  We want to follow the laws of the land as much as is possible, as we are guests in this country and want to have a good testimony.  By the 20^th of December, we will have made our final decision on which school Daniela will attend.  Please pray for guidance!

Pray!  Pray!  Pray!  

We shared our vision and passion for women in El Salvador, while we were in the states.  If you live outside of our area and were not able to be a part of that, we want to share that with you, so you, too, would be up to date.  If you are interested, go to the previous blog post titled "Lupita's Hope Video" and the one following called "Violence Against Girls in El Salvador."

We shared with you about Daniela’s aunt, Lupita, who is a young woman that has been a friend of ours since before moving to El Salvador full-time.  She is a hard-working, sweet young, single mom of a 19 month old daughter.   Since knowing her, we have wanted to do something to make a difference in her life.  God is moving on our hearts and on her heart, and there is a strong possibility that she will be making the move from her family’s home in San Julian, to our home in the capitol.  She is passionate about not going down the same road as her family has for generations.  She desires to study and work and make a future for herself, her daughter, and for her future family.  Not only this, but, she desires to bless others, and make a difference in her country.   She just needs an opportunity.  We have been praying and waiting on God about Lupita for years.  We feel that with the re-focusing of our priorities with Daniela, God is directing us to move forward with Lupita. She is an adult and there would be no legal problems with her coming to live with us.  We have been talking to her about this for some time, and Monday we will be meeting with her to make some decisions.  Please pray!  Since she is the main breadwinner for her family of 13 (mom, daughter, sisters, nieces and nephews) making the decision to move away puts the financial burden squarely on her sister’s and mother’s shoulders.  She knows that her family needs to take responsibility for themselves, but, it’s a hard thing.  They have been dependant on her for a long time.  God has been answering our prayers for provision for Lupita.  We are so thankful to see Him moving on the hearts of those who are coming alongside us to bless young women in El Salvador! 

  

This Monday, we have invited the whole family, (all thirteen) to our home for a Christmas party.  We will eat panes con pavo. Translation: Breads with turkey. This is a typical Salvadoran Christmas meal.  It is a large sandwich on a French bread that is stuffed with turkey, cucumbers, tomatoes, watercress, radishes, and then the main ingredient is the red sauce that you smother it in. YUM!  We plan to bless them with a little something for each of them for Christmas, and to just spend time with them.  We are looking forward to this day.  We plan to communicate our vision for Daniela and Lupita with more detail Monday, so please pray for wisdom and words!  They will take a two hour bus ride to San Salvador to come to our home, and we plan to take them back home to San Julian in the evening.

Pray for us too that God will protect us from Satan’s attacks.  We know as we begin to help young women in need, Satan will be looking for ways to tear it down.  The spiritual battle has been intense, and we feel it most in our marriage.  We need protection both physically and spiritually that may do His good and perfect will for our lives here in El Salvador.

Sharing at Calvary Chapel Longview

Kathy with Kim Gray, wife of Pastor Terry
at Calvary Chapel Sun City

Eating with some of our friends in El Paso

The Porter clan get together in The Dalles, Oregon.
Our nephew Jeremiah is the pastor of the church.

We also had the opportunity to spend time with our son, Sam

Lupita's Hope Video

Here is a short video we put together to introduce Lupita's Hope to you.  This was part of our presentation we gave to the churches we visited while we were in the states.

Violence Against Girls in El Salvador

As we were preparing to share in the U.S. about the ministry God has called us to here in El Salvador we found this article online that that clearly spoke about the things we have seen while living here, especially in the rural areas like San Julian.

San Salvador, El Salvador - Endemic levels of sexual abuse and gender based violence have made El Salvador one of the most dangerous countries in the world for girls and women, amid entrenched "machismo" attitudes and a criminal justice system that too often fails victims. More than seven sexual attacks were reported every day in the first three months of 2013 - a 17 percent rise in 12 months, according to official police figures. Two thirds of the reported 636 rapes and sexual offences were committed against children under the age of 18. El Salvador has a population of 6.2 million. While much of the country's escalating violence over the past decade can be blamed on street gangs and drug traffickers, the most risky place for girls and women is still at home.  In January alone this year, police received 243 complaints of domestic violence - a 23 percent year-on-year rise. Information gathered by the feminist organisation Ormusa (the Organisation of Salvadoran Women for Peace) reveals that most sexual assaults involve girls aged between 12 and 17 and take place at home. Sexual crimes are usually committed by a close relative or family acquaintance while the mother is out working. One in three pregnancies in El Salvador involves a teenaged girl, often the result of abuse, according to NGO Plan International.  Too many girls end up in relationships with much older men in order to escape poverty or violence at home, Roxana Ramos, a primary care nurse working with pregnant teens in Chalatenango, told Al Jazeera. 'Tip of the iceberg' Women and girls also bear the brunt of kidnappings - another violent crime which blights the country and causes huge anxiety among the population. In the first four months of 2013, almost 500 kidnappings were reported - 60 percent involved girls and women, according to the National Civilian Police (PNC). It is widely believed that PNC figures represent only the "tip of the iceberg" of actual crimes committed, as fear, mistrust of authorities, social stigma and a lack of awareness among many women about their rights keeps many from speaking out. Conviction rate figures are not publicly available.  A prevailing machismo attitude among the police, prosecutors and judiciary in particular continues to be a huge obstacle to justice for women. In 2012, six women were murdered by partners who were serving police officers, according to the Observatory of Gender Violence against Women.  Rodrigo Bustos, director of Plan El Salvador, said: "Violence against girls and women is one of the biggest challenges facing the country, and we know for a fact that it is not getting better. Adolescent girls are at huge risk of sexual abuse from older men within the family… in some cases the mothers know but are too powerless or scared to do anything." Bustos added: "The roles assigned to women are very fixed: take care of the home and family, and be submissive to all men in all relationships. Violence occurs when women won't submit to this. Our only hope is working with young people, boys and girls, to change these beliefs." Girls and gangs Gang violence peaked in El Salvador in 2011 when it was ranked as the world's second most dangerous country by the United National Office on Drugs and Crime - with a murder rate of 69 per 100,000 people. That year 628 women were killed - a 225 per cent increase since 2000.  Few girls are fully initiated gang members in El Salvador but tit-for-tat killings of girlfriends, sisters and other girls working within the gang structure had escalated until the two main gangs, Mara Salvatrucha 13 and Calle 18, called an unexpected truce in March 2012. The murder rate has fallen by 50 per cent since then, but one woman and four men are still murdered on average every day. Most rapes, assaults and even disappearances within the gangs remain hidden from official figures as they are rarely reported. Sara Romero, a 20-year-old from San Salvador, became involved with Calle 18 when she was 13. She was raped by five gang members when her boyfriend, a neighbourhood gang leader, was in prison.  "I never even considered going to the police. I didn't want to cause trouble for my gang by getting the police involved," Romero told Al Jazeera.  The perpetrators were beaten-up badly as a punishment, one died as a result, but not for the rape per se, rather for the disrespect they had shown Romero's boyfriend.  "As Sara's case demonstrates, the level of violence inflicted on women by the gangs is extreme. But, it is also easier for society to point to the gangs as the violent ones," said Jeanne Rikkers, a youth violence expert at the human rights organisation Fespad.  "It's much harder to accept that girls in their own homes are being raped by their fathers and brothers, and that's something this culture needs to come to terms with if we're going to address the issue of violence against women." New legislation A radical new law designed to improve access to justice by identifying specific crimes and sentences for violence against women was introduced by President Mauricio Funes' left-wing FLMN government on January 1, 2012. It came after years of campaigning by feminist and human rights organisations.  "The law recognises for the first time that gender based violence exists and that it violates the human rights of women," Silvia Barrios, a lawyer at Ormusa, told Al Jazeera. "It also obliges every state institution to tackle violence against women."  The legislation was followed by a zero tolerance campaign launched by President Funes and the country's first lady, which has been lauded as an important step towards reducing the stigma that victims face.  A handful of recent cases suggest some signs of progress. In a widely reported incident in May, a 29-year-old man was refused bail after being arrested for throwing boiling oil over his girlfriend in a drunken rage.  "For him to be denied bail and the newspaper to publish his picture in the newspaper rather than hers, the victim, is a huge step forward," Barrios told Al Jazeera. In another high profile case, Luis Villatoro, a former parliamentary adviser, was jailed last month for six years for a series of physical and verbal assaults on his ex-girlfriend.  Omar Flores, a lawyer from Fespad, said the sentence set a precedent for El Salvadoran women who he hoped would now feel more confident in reporting similar abuses.   But, despite these noteworthy examples, implementation of the legislation has so far been slow.   Here, boys are bought up to think they own girls and women - that they have the right to use their bodies however they want. Bessy Martinez, rape victim Several senior judges have denounced the Special Integrated Law for a Life Free of Violence against Women as "unconstitutional", insisting they would not implement it in their courts, Barrios said. Amnesty International said the law would only protect women if attitudes within law enforcement changed.  "We are still hearing about women left in dangerous situations due to the failure of police and justice officials to ensure protection orders are delivered and complied with. There are cases of the judiciary failing to apply the new law, resulting in lesser penalties for perpetrators," Esther Major, Amnesty's El Salvador expert, told Al Jazeera.  "Officials must be properly trained and, crucially, held to account, when they fail to ensure women are protected from acts of violence." Bessy Martinez, a 20-year-old from rural Chalatenango, was raped in her own home at the age of seven by her step-father's nephew. Martinez is a child born out of sexual violence - the result of her mother being raped at the age of 16. Neither mother nor daughter has seen justice.  "The boy who raped me was only 16 or 17, but he was always trying to touch us young girls as we bathed in the lake," Martinez told Al Jazeera. "He told me that he would kill my family if I told anyone, so I kept quiet for many years. I blamed my mum for leaving us alone with him, but when I eventually told her what had happened, she was angry at me." Martinez is now part of a youth group sponsored by Plan International, supporting other young victims, but also trying to shift the attitudes of her peers. "Here, boys are bought up to think they own girls and women - that they have the right to use their bodies however they want," she said. "That machismo culture is our biggest problem and that's what we are trying to change." *Names of victims have been changed to protect identities.

Source:  Al Jazeera  June 7, 2013  http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2013/06/20136493135956422.html

The Bridge Transition Home

We told you about our new gals, Silvia and Estrella, who moved into the Bridge in May. There have been a few bumps in the road, but, overall, they are adjusting well, and growing. Both of them are on target to graduate from high school in November, and hope to go on to study at local universities. Silvia, 19, wants to be a pre-school teacher. She is a lovely young woman that loves to read and is a hopeless romantic. If I mention that David and I are going on a date, she throws her hands to her face and lets out a little scream of joy…then, sighs with dreamy eyes. She is so funny! In the photo, she is second from the right, flanked by her brother, Francisco, and her sister, Karla, who also live at the Bridge. Estrella, 20, wants to be an interior designer. She has an electric personality, and she loves to laugh. School is very difficult for her, and she needs lots of prayer to be able to graduate in November. Estrella’s mother is in prison, and her brother is a gangster. She longs to go to University and be able to have a good job so that when her mother gets out of prison, she can help her make a new life. I would ask you to pray for Estrella as she really struggles with victory over her past. We have had to have some serious talks with her, and she has to decide if she really wants to be at the Bridge. I’m praying for a break-through for her. Pray that she would put her trust in her Heavenly Father, and let Him heal her. Then, pray for wisdom for me as I lead these precious young people in the jump from dependent childhood to independent adult life. It is a BIG jump when you leave a children’s home, with no family to fall back on and a big, scary world to face. I need ALL the wisdom, creativity and resources that I can get to do this job well. Side note: Our next big project at the ranch, Lord willing, will be to build a young men’s transition home. As of now, both sexes live in the Bridge Transition Home…but, it's not ideal, as you can imagine. So, pray that God opens the doors for funding and permits to begin work on this home early 2014. We have a slough of young men getting ready to leave La Casa and transition, so this men’s home is very important!

Silvia

Kathy with Estrella