October 28, 2005
Hola!
Today there are 26
children, ages twelve months to fourteen years, residing at the House of Mercy. Just a few weeks ago we had a grand total
of 35 but, as is the routine here, some of the children were returned to their parents by the DIF (Family and Children’s
Services). Our house parents, Ricardo and Karla, do a fantastic job, in spite of all the coming and going! They take kids
from various and sundry difficult situations and unite them into one warm and loving family.
On the last Sunday
of September McKendree UMC, our home church in Lawrenceville, GA, celebrated
Missions Emphasis Sunday. Our dear friend and faithful supporter, Paul Steinke, provided plan tickets for us to go home and
speak at both morning and worship services. We had a great time being back home with our friends and family. Two weeks later
we had the opportunity to attend Coker UMC in San Antonio,
TXA and speak at their missions day service. They had a booth set up with photos of the orphanage campus as well as brochures
containing information about the ministry of the House of Mercy. Many people signed on for upcoming trips where they will
actually be working on the new fence that will surround the campus grounds. McKendree and Coker have both been exceptional
in their giving of time, talents, gifts and service to our ministry.
We would like
to share a printed copy of the testimony we gave on those Sundays:
DAVID: We have been asked on many occasions to tell what a typical day is like running an orphanage in Mexico. I get up at 6am, get ready, read my daily devotional,
write out a plan for the day and go to the orphanage to see the kids off to school. That is it for the typical day. That is
it unless you count that typically I wasted my time writing out a plan. A day
that starts out with a trip to the bank and post office across the border in Eagle Pass, TX, can end up with trips to the
Family and Children’s Services, a visit to the jail to see a child’s mom, an emergency visit to the doctor or
dentist, a visit to the Aduana or Customs Administrator or a knock on the door when they bring us more children.
KAREN: Those of you who know me know that I do not get up at six in the morning! I am not even sure there is
a six in the morning… I know there is a six at night… Musicians do not do mornings! But, after I have my coffee
I meet with the children who are currently not enrolled in school. Most have simply been out of school for three or four years
and need remedial work to catch up to their appropriate grade level. I have crafted a flexible English-based home school plan
for one child who was born in the states and is bi-lingual. She and another girl are also working on an open school Latino
curriculum. Those children who come and stay for just a few days are provided with creative learning opportunities during
the morning and afternoon study periods. A typical day for me could start by stepping out of the house to walk to the orphanage
and encountering a tarantula, or a scorpion, or a rattlesnake! I am also, promptly at 5pm, the cookie and band-aid mom for
the neighborhood kids. Come for a visit – there is never a dull or typical moment!
DAVID: This is the most difficult job we have ever had. The lows are very low, but the highs are incredibly
high. To see the children come in dirty, malnourished, bruised and crying and then to see them laughing, playing and singing.
Karen and I have to make life changing decisions such as: should we take in a child with spina bifida in a wheelchair, should
we take a child with mental and emotional problems who has no where to go except back home where his grandmother and uncle
beat him. Should we take a 13-year-old girl that is already into prostitution. Should we allow the house parents to use corporal
punishment when we know that some of the kids were beaten on a regular basis in their home. One of the boys tells of being
locked in a room without food or water for two days as a punishment. There are two brothers. The oldest, when they first arrived
was terrified to ride anywhere in the orphanage van. He was afraid he would be recognized and kidnapped by the drug lord that
his mother had stolen money from. One of the older girls, whose mother is in prison, asked me to take her to see her older
brother. When we arrived, he was standing with two thug-looking guys. She got out of the car and he just stood there with
his arms folded. With tears streaming down her face, she handed him some clothes she had brought for him. He never hugged
her or kissed her or said that he loved her. She was completely devastated. All of these kids have stories to tell. These
are just a few.
Now the rest of the story. Two weeks ago we received six siblings, three girls and three boys. Their ages are
from nine months to eleven years. They were very dirty and appeared mal-nourished. The youngest ones were crying profusely.
Tuesday morning when I went to the orphanage for breakfast I was met by the 2-year-old boy. He was still crying. I picked
him up and cradled him in my lap and he stopped crying. That hour was the most important thing I could have done that whole
day. These kids just need someone to love them. We are the most blessed people on the planet. To be able to watch as the love
of God changes these little lives right before our eyes. We were blessed to see seven of them baptized in a beautiful river.
We have seen a teenage girl go from being angry and belligerent to being sweet and giving to others. We are here to tell you
that not only does the support you send provide a safe and beautiful home for these children but also provides a place where
lives are changed forever. Thank you…
On Saturday, October
15th, a team from Lytle UMC in Lytle, Texas, and a team from Coker UMC in San Antonio, came down to work on building
a fence around the orphanage. The Lytle group brought down 300 linear feet of 8 foot tall chain link fence for the side next
to our house. They had a power auger with them and had the fence done by 2 in the afternoon. The Coker team laid block all
day on the back wall of the fence. They were able to get ¾ of the wall completed. On Sunday the Coker team went to church
with us at San Pablo Metodista and then took all of us to lunch at Las Cabinitas Restaurant.
On the home front,
Erin is in ther second year at Trinity University
and loves it. She has brought several of her TU friends down to Mexico
to visit and meet the children. Returning to San Antonio after
a weekend visit to the orphanage in September she and her suitemates were detained and interrogated at the border for an hour.
She was initially asked where she was born and asked to present her birth certificate. It was then that we discovered India, her home country, is now on the list of possible terrorist
countries. Fortunately on the return from her last visits she was asked only where she was from, and her reply, “Atlanta”, did not require documentation, and she was on her way.
Please pray that she has safe travels and easy border crossings as she makes her way to and from Piedras. Back in Georgia, Melissa and Rob are expecting our first grandchild
on December 17th. Melissa’s doctor has relegated her to bed rest so Karen is going home this weekend to stay
with her until Ava Lynn makes her debut!
A special note from
Karen to the AHS class of ’70:
This month’s
support letter will be mailed to members the 1970 graduating class of Avondale
High School, Avondale Estates, GA. A few weeks ago at our 35th
Reunion, which I was unable to attend, my high school buds collected $1225.00 in checks, $70 in Wal-Mart gift cards, and a HUGE box of assorted school supplies, personal care items and toys. Many thanks to
all of you who gave from your heart to the children as the Casa. May you be richly blessed for your compassion and generosity.
I love each and every one of you more than I can say. And …. GO BIG BLUE!
Grace and Peace,
David & Karen
