Early Saturday morning our team arrived at Casa Shalom Orphanage. The orphanage is situated on 13 acres in San Lucas. The picture above is the home of directors Josh and Jessica Hanson. The orphanage was founded in the early 1980's by Rick Waldrop. Originally, the orphanage housed those displaced by the Guatemalan civil war. Currently, there are over 60 children at the orphanage.
Before we began our work for the day, Bob introduced us to several of the children. Billy shared hugs and laughs with Marta. The children were very engaging and actively sought friendship and love from us.
Bob is a familiar face at the orphanage. He has spent numerous hours working at the facility. The little girl in the picture, Sara ie, is one of the special children at the facility. Her father who battles substance abuse has removed her from the facility in the past. After some time, leaders of the orphanage went to check on her and found her in need of care. Her father relunctantly allowed her to return. Please be praying for Sara ie.
This particular photo is the boy's housing facility. Each house has its own house parents. Some of the boys helped with our work projects.
While visiting the facility that day, we ran into the same team from Rio Bravo. They were departing with several of the children on a swimming trip.
Each child is required to learn a trade while living at the orphanage. The picture above is of the bakery where children learn to bake bread, doughnuts and other pastries. The trades learned will help them obtain work after leaving the orphanage. On our lunch break, we met Chino who is working at a local restuarant. About a year ago, Chino left Casa Shalom and is now gainfully employed.
Evelyn, though nursing a broken arm, was excited to visit with our team, especially the giant Gringos.
The photo above is the children's and girl's dorm. As with the boys, this facility also has house parents. On our visit the ninos were gone to play at another home. Casa Shalom is in need of house parents and sponsorships.
At the back of the girl's dorm is the laundry facility.
On the grounds of Casa Shalom is a building set up for donated clothes. The clothes bodega (warehouse) is organized according to sizes. The children can obtain clothing and shoes based upon need.
Another example of Bob's water purification ministry. This system purifies 15 gallons per minute. Currently, the orphanage is in the process of developing a new system that will allow for the purification of multiple water sources.
Casa Shalom has a school for the children, but due to funding issues the children are now attending public school. The school building now houses work teams. The school is divided into male and female dorms. One of the work projects we participated in was pressure washing this building. We also bleached the entire building and sidewalks. Next week, a work team from the states will begin painting this building.
At the top of the mountain, chicken houses are set up with the purpose of supplying food for the orphanage as well as giving the children another option for vocational training. The chicks are purchased at a young age and raised by those choosing this vocation.
That afternoon, Giovanni, one of the boys helped us on the new cistern. The cistern is part of the new water purification system. Three years ago Giovanni arrived at the orphanage. Giovanni was abandoned by his parents and had to go live with his aunt and uncle. While there he suffered abuse and was court ordered into the orphanage. Giovanni is sponsored by Bob, which is $30 per month.
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