My first week complete...

My first week at the foundation is complete, and I am now able to take some time to rest, get some laundry done, reflect upon the events of the past week, and update my blog. This week was difficult. The boys are wonderful, but difficult at times. With so many of them, all craving attention, wanting to learn English, and fighting, it is hard to catch my breath, but I do really enjoy my work.

I teach English to three groups of boys, three times a week, if they finish their homework. I also help serve the noon meal, supervise as they do chores and homework, I help with cleaning and laundry, and other odd jobs that need doing. I really enjoy working with all the helpers, though we are few. The director, Anita, is there with the boys most of the time, she only leaves to run errands, go to meetings, etc. Then there is the cook, Sonya, and Freddy, who comes to oversee the homework, I think is like a tutor. There is also, Magali (spelling) who comes to help when Anita can’t be there, she helps with a lot of the cleaning too, and Carlos Alberto, who comes to teach the older ones English, once or twice a week.

Friday brought my week to a close with a little trouble. Some of the boys got into trouble at school on Thursday, and were suspended until Monday. Others didn’t have class, so we had 8 or 9 boys at the foundation all day, plus the two older boys, Jacinto and Celso, who don’t leave until 12:30 to go to school. Those who were suspended were having to clean, and the others were bothering them and distracting them, so it was my job to keep the others busy. I was teaching them some English, and Hermana (sister) Sonya, went outside to check on the others who were working. I had all but two of the smaller boys with me, and the two older ones were doing their own thing. We keep all of the doors padlocked, and the adults always have the keys, since it is easier to keep an eye on the boys when they are in the main room, if we leave the doors open, they steal or break things, and they take naps, when they should be working etc. Hna. Sonya opened one of the bedroom doors for one of the older boys, so he could change early, which is against the rules, but he had been working hard so she thought she would be nice and let him shower and change a little early.

Well when Hna. Sonya went outside, she didn’t lock the kitchen and she left her cell phone inside. When she came back it was gone, we asked all the boys, and they all said they hadn’t seen it, we searched everywhere, and never found it. We didn’t let the two older boys leave for school, and we made everyone sit inside and pray and look for it, but it never turned up. Hna. Sonya is always kind to the boys and goes out of her way to help them, and she was very hurt that they would do this to her. We think we know which boy took it, but we looked all through his room and all of his belongings and couldn’t find it. We can’t prove he took it, so there is nothing we can do. For Hna. Sonya it was more than just a cell phone, it was expensive, and her only way to take pictures, all of which she lost with the phone. The foundation does so much for them and this is how they respond. It is hard to see all of your hard work come back to you void.

Please keep these boys in your prayers. They all struggle with a lot of issues. There have been many cell phones, and other items lost, never to be recovered. The boy that we think took the phone, has told Hna. Sonya in the past that he isn’t afraid of hell, and that he was a thief before coming to the foundation. He has already been their 6 years, but is seems, Satan still has a strong hold on him. This boy also has the younger boys under his control. One of the younger boys said he saw the older boy with the phone, and that he would punish him severely if he told anyone. We don’t know for sure if that is true or not, but it is likely. Please pray for God to send his spirit to dwell among these boys and rescue them from Satan’s grasp. You can also pray for the physical needs to be met. They have a plan to build another building so they can house more boys, but it is really expensive. Right now there are 6 rooms with about 6 boys in each, and they have to turn some away because of lack of space. They don’t have enough dishes to serve the boys all at once. Everyday soup is the main course for lunch, but they can’t all eat at once because there aren’t enough spoons or forks. There isn’t enough rice for everyone to eat rice as well, so they have to take turns, with who gets to eat it. They also need short sleeve button down white dress shirts for the boys to wear to school, and undershirts (t-shirt, or tanks) the boys also have to wear navy blue dress pants, with a black belt, and black lace up dress shoes. On Mondays, they have to wear solid, navy blue ties. From what I can tell, the ones they currently use now, are made from old pants or some other material, and attached to a thin elastic band, so they can just slip it on over their head. They also need pencils and erasers, and blue and red ink pens. Most pencils get lost or broken, so Hna. Anita has to lock them in the office and they only get one to use at the table during the homework time, if they lose it they don’t get another one.

I will try to keep updating, at least once a week, so everyone knows what is going on. Please keep praying for these boys. They are hurting, they don’t understand why life is so hard, they have very little to play with, most things get broken quickly, they fight easily and are always defensive. Even the littlest one acts out trying to fit in with the other boys, who are rough with him, but really he is sweet and innocent. I will try to post pictures so everyone can see my beautiful boys. God Bless and Keep an eye on this page so you don’t miss the updates.