The Oasis Home Visit

The Oasis Visit was this week an a welcomed one at that. As BJ and I arrive to a secluded area of San Lucas there lay the massive doors of the Oasis. As we waited for someone to let us in I looked around. The walls were at least 15-20ft tall and topping off the walls were two rows of barbed wire with electric cables running alongside them. These wall were obviously built to keep the unwanted out and the wanted in. the doors opened and we were greeted by Kimberly Glick. She is an intern working through C.A.M. at the Oasis. The Oasis is a girl’s home that have about 40 girls currently living there. The girls were all taken by the police from abusive families. Some were only beaten and other were beaten and sexually abused by a family member. As Kimberly began the tour I was shocked by the American style living. There were obviously some Guatemalan aspects but the well manicured green grass, large trampoline, basketball court, soccer field with netted goals all said American run facility. Now, these girls have gone through a lot in their short time of living (the oldest being 20 and youngest being 2) and do deserve to know there is a better life than what they were going through at home but I think there is a fine line to this. The girls are being taught at a school there on the property including English. There homes and play are all done on the property. There is no need for them to leave unless it is for a court hearing. I worry about the assimilation process these girls will have to deal with once they are no longer able to stay at the Oasis.

The homes are run similar to the World orphans model in that they have 10-12 girls per home and also have a live in house mom to help and aid them. They have found that the sibling living is very hard to deal with in that most of the younger girls will only listen to their older sisters and not the house mothers. Therefore, they believe separation is the best thing for both children. As I asked Kimberly what some of the girls stories were my heart broke as she told me the story of a perious 2 year old girls being stabbed in the arms and legs of their father. The same little girl who would reach out to touch me as we talked. Who smiled at me as if these things had never happened. Then another story of a girl being sent out to collect money for her parents and when she continued to return with not enough her parents would be upset and often angry. The girl then decided that to come up with the right amount of money to please her parents we go and sell her body to filthy men. This girl BJ sat next to and she openly accepted his tutoring in math with a grateful smile. Another of a pair of sisters who would watch as their father repeatedly would rape their mother in front of them and often times the eldest of the two girls. All of the girls currently still have families and therefore are not considered orphans. Because they are not orphans they are required to have court dates in which parents attend and are asked to right their wrongs so the girl can come home or permanently stay in the Oasis. In which case all the girls know are the terror of returning home to the Americanized style living which could be considered as detrimental to their assimilation.

There are no father figures at the home and my fear is that as these naive girls age out of the system and are no longer able to stay at the oasis the first “nice” man to come along they will attach themselves to and return to the circle of abusive, negligent, and unfaithful husbands who desire for their wives to birth their children and make their food. Pray that the Lord opens up doors for the male leadership and the girls discernment above all else.