Today was our 1st day of ministry here in Guatemala. We heard we were going to an orphanage- which I was so happy about, not to mention taking them happy meals which bring me joy in themselves- . Ive been waiting all race to work regularly with an orphanage- not just go in and take sad feed the children pictures.i couldnt wait
When we got there i soon realized our happy meals were going to be a band-aid on a bullet wound. Apparently the orphanage was shut down at some point due to corruption- but some of the kids chose to stay because the didnt have anywhere else to go.
There is no money. Because it was shut down no ones paying for anthing for these kids. There are 15 5-16year olds that have fallen through the cracks. The 2 women that work there go to the market every morning to beg for food to feed the kids. Thats how they eat, if they eat. The women dont get paid for being there- and sometimes take donated money to feed their families. Rumor has it they are part of why the orphanage was shut down- no one wants to deal with the corruption- so they are all these kids have.
There were kids with special needs left there because no one wanted to deal with them. A little girl with autism, a girl who cant speak or hear, and a little boy in a wheel chair. I was horrified when i discovered him- his wheelchair was tied to the wall, his hands tied to his wheelchair with strips of bedsheets, his pants soaked with urine… I tried to touch his swollen hand and he sunk his finger nails into my skin…They said if he wasnt tied down he would attack the other children.
Then there was a 14 year old girl named Kat- that i noticed limping. I then realized she had had some sort of accident- the fronts of her shins and feet were solid scabs and her foot was infected, huge and swollen. Of course she hadnt been to the dr. Who would take her to the dr? It amazed me how easy it was to take responsibility of a minor, taker her to the dr (which was a whole other awful story) and to get medicine to giver her. 1 hour, $13, and a Chevy Yukon was all it took. I know it’s not much but i had to do something- I didnt know what else to do. Im so mad about it all- all the injustice, the corruption, the suffering, the neglect- the forgotten lives. There are SO MANY people out there who have no one, who need a mommy and a daddy- or anyone to care just a little about them, to give them food and clothes- to tell them I love you and that everythings going to be ok… But these kids dont have that luxury and im mad about it!!!
P.S. the mayor of Puerto Barrios asked us to come and pray for his office today, which was HUGE. Our contact talked a little with them about this issue and we’re trying to advocate for these kids. I get to do social work and ministry! Ya
