We ended our month in Peru by going an hour and a half away from our ministry site to spend a weekend in a jungle city called La Merced in the province of Chanchamayo. While there we helped at an orphanage that houses 18 boys. They range in age from 4 to 16.
A quick back story and overview:
This orphanage is one of 8 homes in the same program in Peru. The one we stayed at is the smallest and the last one that opened. Some of the boys do have families but they just can’t take care of them. Others have no family at all. These boys are provided a faith based house to live in, food, education, and medical services all completely free. The orphanage is run by a married couple, Henry and Ava.
It is the complete opposite of the ministry in Tarma. Where there is total chaos in Tarma, there is structure and discipline in Chanchamayo. And it shows. The kids in Tarma have no respect for anyone or anything. There is constant yelling and screaming and running. In Chanchamayo the boys are so well behaved and stick to a schedule every day without any complaining. It is impressive.
To get to the orphanage, you have to ride in a cage suspended from wires moving across a wide river. The cage is operated on the other side. 8 people can ride at one time. After crossing, you have to hike up the mountain. There is a dormitory where all the boys sleep, a house for the couple that runs it, a small kitchen, a bathroom, and a building that has a classroom on the first floor and three rooms on the second floor where we stayed. The roofs are made of straw so it felt like we were staying in a tree house. It was incredibly beautiful there. We were surrounded by mountains that are covered in jungle. One day we hiked to two different waterfalls. At one point we had to use a rope to climb up the side of the mountain. It was definitely in the top five best days to date on the Race.
The boys:
If it were possible, I would go back to the States with three boys in tow.
Antony. This little boy is 5 years old. He is always smiling and laughing and running after the older boys. They all treat him like their brother, helping him out when he needs it and including him in their games. He has the sweetest smile and is quick to give hugs. One night we put together a Bible trivia game. He sat on my lap the whole time and played with my hair and clapped my hands. When I would come down to eat meals or come back from going into town, he would run and give me a hug when he saw me. He is incredibly well behaved and so loving.
Jorge. This little boy is 4 years old. The youngest of all of them. He was dropped of on Saturday, the day after we arrived. That morning after lunch, Henry announced that we had visitors. Two men walked into the lunchroom, one carrying Jorge. They stayed for about 5 minutes, set Jorge on a bench, and walked out. Later on we found out a little of Jorge’s story. His father abandoned the family awhile back. His mother is 23 years old and decided she didn’t want him. To make it worse, he has a 1 month old baby sister. We have no idea where she is. It was so sad to see this little boy dropped off with no family. I bonded with Jorge right away. I got down on the floor with him and played with his army man he brought. He is a rough little guy. Jumped all over me, pulled me hair, bit me, and kicked me a few times. This didn’t last long. He quickly turned from biting me to giving me kisses on my cheek. On Sunday morning, we all went to church in town. He kept turning to someone new and reaching out his arms. We spent the service passing him around. Normally this would get old really quickly. But I kept remembering that he doesn’t have a family. He doesn’t have a mother that will hold him and give him hugs. For that reason, I didn’t put him down even when my arms felt like they were going to fall off and I didn’t get annoyed playing the passing game. He was another one that would run into my arms when he saw me. He would run and jump and exclaim “cargeme!” Carry me. For everything he has been through in his short little life, he is awesome. He might have slight behavior problems but who wouldn’t if they were abandoned by their family? I think he is going to be just fine. I just wish someone would come and give him a forever home.
Eddie. This is one of the other boys that I met first. He is 11 years old and has the most stunning eyes. All of the other boys have dark brown eyes. Eddie has light brown, like caramel. They are so bright and we all commented on how beautiful they are. He has the most amazing heart. He instantly took Jorge in and helped him. The first night Jorge was there, Eddie brought him his food and sat by him trying to get him to eat. Jorge didn’t want any part of it. At this point, I think he was realizing that he wasn’t going home and was starting to get sad. Eddie stuck right by his side. That night we had a bonfire. We bought marshmallows for all the boys to roast. Who knew marshmallows could be ministry? The boys worked hard gathering all the wood for the fire. Once it was lit, Eddie spent all of his time roasting marshmallows for Jorge. That kid probably ate 15 marshmallows that night thanks to Eddie. He is already very protective of him, too. At one point Jorge was getting a little too close to the fire trying to roast a marshmallow. Eddie ran over to him and pushed him back telling him to not get so close because he would get hurt. I loved watching them together. Between Jorge, Eddie, and Antony, there was enough marshmallows stuck to their hands to make s’mores for a whole village. Not to mention the marshmallow that somehow ended up in my and Antony’s hair. At bedtime, Eddie picked up Jorge and carried him up the hill to their bedroom. Eddie also lights up when he sees me. He runs with Jorge up to me to get a hug. I’m not sure who wants a hug more. Good thing I have two arms to hug them both at the same time.
I could probably write 4 blogs or more on our weekend there- everything we did, what it looked like, all the boys, the program itself, how we helped, and much, much more. The orphanage was the first time I found myself saying “I love this” since being on the Race. All the other ministries were great but I was always ready to move on and I also didn’t really connect with any of the places. The orphanage was the first time I was sad about leaving a place. It was also the first ministry that made an impact on me. I think I realized it when I watched Jorge being dropped off at the home.
It took three months but I finally found a ministry where I will leave a piece of my heart. I finally found a place that hit home with me. I finally found a place that I loved. One weekend was not long enough there. There are 15 other incredible boys that I could go on and on about. But Antony, Eddie, and Jorge will always have a special place in my heart.
Even though they may not live with a traditional family, those boys are not lacking in family. They each have 17 brothers and two parents (Henry and Ava) that take care of and love them.
My prayer for these boys is John 14:18.
“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”
