What $20 Did!!!

 People often make donations and apologize for not being able to give more. This always takes me aback because no donation is too small. If everyone gave a small amount, just think what a large amount the final total would be! Also, our money here goes wwwaaayyy further than your money in the US. And every amount given makes a difference in the life of child here. 

A good example of how great of an impact small donations have is in what we will be facing next month...Back-to-School (Our academic calendar runs from February to November). This means the purchase of scads and scads of uniforms, book bags, shoes, belts, socks, school supplies, and text books. The list is as endless as the number of children for whom we must buy. 

We are happy that all of our Sunshine Children are covered by sponsors who pay their monthly tuition and their uniforms. 

Yet we also buy uniforms, book bags, and school supplies for the children in our Beacons of Light community projects who are starting grade 1. We also provide uniforms and book bags for the neediest of children in our local public schools. When we started doing this back in 2017, it was a rather inexpensive undertaking. Then we could buy a uniform, book bag, AND school supplies for only $20. Now to do the same is about $30-$40 per child. When you multiply this by dozens of children, it really adds up. 

BUT...this is why we do it! (Forgive me for being long-winded. I think I have become "Mozambican" as I now tell every detail to a story!!!)

I recently stopped at a local store in the community where we work to buy a bottle of water on a scorching hot day. As I came out, a woman was sitting in the shade on the side of the building. She was selling fish and asked if I would like to buy some. I don't like fish too much to begin with, but I really don't want to buy fish that is being stored and sold outside on a hot summer day. So I kindly said no thank you, and started to climb in my car.

As I was getting in, she got up and came running after me. So much so that it caused Delcio, who is ever protective of me, to get out and come over to my side of the car! She began telling us about her son and how we made life-changing impact on him. When he was younger, she could not afford the school fees to enroll him in school or buy him the uniform, book bag, and supplies he needed. We provided the fees and needed uniform, book bag, and supplies for him. She said that this got him off to the good start he needed. She kept repeating what a good boy he now is and that he does well in school. We were so encouraged by her. Her appreciation was incredibly enthusiastic and heartfelt!!!

I got home and set to finding this photo. I recognized her and remembered her story. Years ago, she sold bread to our community projects. I could see in my mind the exact photo we took of her and her son. So I began painstakingly going through all of my photos. I have so many photos on my phone that I have even had to increase my space in the "cloud"...BUT...I found it! All the way back on March 7, 2018!!!

This dear little guy would now be 11 years old and in going into grade 7 in high school next year! All because of a donation of $20 that paid for his uniform and book bag. So THANK YOU to all of our donors out there. I always tell you that you are making a difference for a lifetime in the lives of the children we serve...here before you is the proof!

Graduation Celebrations!

 November is the end of the academic year for our students in Mozambique. In December comes the long anticipated Bailes. While those of you in the Western Hemisphere are preoccupied with Christmas presents, cards, and cookies, we here are consumed with dress clothes, gowns, and practices. These ceremonies are a combination of a prom/ talent show/ graduation. The students spend many hours practicing and preparing for these bailes so as to showcase their talents for their parents. 

This year, we had 5 students graduate from grade 6- Vicente, Helio, Vasco, Katia, and Maura. . They have completed their primary education at Escola Tamwana and will now move on to high school at Escola Sao Gabriel. 

Each child received their certificate and then performed in skits, dances, and singing. 

Our Virginia graduated grade 12 from Escola Marie Ana Mogas. This is a huge cause for celebration as only 1% of the students who start grade 1 in Mozambique will achieve this milestone. A high school Baile consists of a grand reception and dinner for the students and their parents. The students choose a color and all of the girls have dresses made in this fabric. Here is a photo of the graduating class...

The students prepare ballroom dances which they perform at the Baile. Our Virginia was selected to read a poem she wrote entitled "Crescer" (To Grow), which was an incredible honor for her. Each student receives a certificate and a sash to recognize them as a Finalista. 

Isn't she absolutely stunning?!?

As I sat with my husband during these Bailes, I was overwhelmed and humbled yet again to have a part in the lives of these children. Each of them looked so beautiful and fit right in with their peers who come from a much more privileged life. Only the children and I know the depth of pain, abandonment, extreme poverty, and suffering they came from. I can still picture them as they looked on the day I met them...broken, sad, hungry, sick, filthy, and hard. 

Who would have known that of these beautiful children three had a father who died and whose mother subsequently had a mental breakdown and was taken away to no-one-knows-where leaving them alone with no one, one of whom was named the village thief and had completely stopped going to school. They lived this way for two years.  The oldest of these three children has told me that they were considered to be garbage by their neighbors. She also received advances from a male neighbor who said he would provide food if she would sleep with him. One of these children lived in squalid conditions with a grandfather who did not care for or feed her but instead would drink and beat her. Two of these children lost their father at a young age and their mother then abandoned them and fled to South Africa leaving them alone and defenseless. I am in awe of each one of them... their strength, their perseverance, and their desire to survive. They inspire me!

I couldn't help but think about what would have happened to them if they had been left as they were. It is a road I cannot let my mind wander down. Each of our children are a living testimony of what love and a family provides. They are flourishing, and I only wish I had hundreds more houses to provide for thousands more children who are still our there suffering as our children did. But until I have the means to provide for more children, I will be thankful and praise God for those He has placed in my care as I trust in Him to grow them into the young men and women He has purposed them to be. I am also thankful for the money donors who provide for the children's education, homes, and living expenses. Without their financial and prayer support, none of this would be possible. Together, let's celebrate their success and prepare them for the new season they now enter.

The Fruit of New Life

 As parents, we have all experienced those moments when our children have an achievement that makes us bawl like babies. When they are teenagers and this happens, it can be a moment of great embarrassment for them! So when our Vicente was baptized last Sunday at his church, I did my very best to keep the joyful sobs and wailing inside my chest, but I could not hold back the tears from slipping down my face. 

I am so very proud of this young man. Orphaned and abandoned, he tweaked out an existence for 2 years with his older sister and younger brother. He stopped going to school. He became the village thief, but he stole only to satisfy his hunger. He was asthmatic and HIV+ and was receiving no medical assistance. 

When we first met him to bring him home, he was the most rejected, angry, and hurt child I have ever encountered. 

After we loaded him, his siblings, and their meager belongings into our van and pulled out,  he literally collapsed on the seat next to me, sobbing uncontrollably. He didn't know where we were going or what was ahead of him; all he knew was what he was leaving behind, and it was like a release of the floodgates of his emotions that had been held inside for too long. 

Since that day, he has been loved unconditionally and cared for in a family setting. He has been educated and supported in all ways. He is earning the best grades in his classes at school. He is always there to greet me with a huge smile and hug when I arrive. He is readily available to assist with any job, be it hanging curtains, watering plants, or carrying heavy loads. He has grown into an amazing young man whom I really enjoy.

It has been my privilege to walk alongside Vicente. Our Sunshine Family of 32 children and 8 mothers gathered together as a family to celebrate his baptism. In Mozambican culture, the guest of honor cuts the cake and presents a bite to honor the people in his life.  Vicente presented to me the first bite of his cake. With tears streaming down his face,  he shared a speech to thank me for bringing him home and giving him the opportunities needed to make him a better person. We all cried along with him. Our children and mothers know this type of suffering all too well. They all have experienced great loss and pain. They all could relate to Vicente's gratitude for receiving a new start in life. 

I can brag about Vicente all I want because I deserve no glory in this. I have had the simple part in his growth.  I simply brought him home. It has been first the Lord who has made a life changing impact. Secondly it has been his mother who has nurtured him and held him accountable every step of the way. If you talk with any of our mothers, they will tell you that they believe they have been called by God to raise these children as their own. They are very proud of their children, and I am very proud of them all. Together, we have all made a family that has resulted in the fruit of an amazing man who will in turn impact the lives of others as well.