Casa Bernabe Visit's

It’s been a few days since I have blogged but several important things have been accomplished. Casa Bernabe would be first on the list. Tim Nelson, a new fellow employee of World Orphans, connected BJ to Casa Bernabe (I will refer to it as C.B.).

As we drove down the bumpy road into C.B. the first thing I noticed was that it was not in a remote location. Furthermore, there were no manicured lawns (other than the obvious soccer field), no massive doors with barbed wire fences, or guards guarding the entrance. Instead it was replaced with a sense of welcome and openness. We were met inside the entrance of the main house by Matthew Howe and his son Isaac. The meeting we had was very beneficial for me to hear the heart Matthew had and the overflowing desire to help World Orphans in any way they could think of. We were able to tour the grounds, see some of the homes on property, some children’s projects, and my favorite part, meeting the house parents and hearing their stories. Many of the employees at C.B. where once orphans themselves being brought up (some even taught by Matthew and his wife) in the same homes and grounds that they now serve. The children’s projects were also a neat thing to see. Workshops, gardens, cooking classes and bakeries were a few of the projects that the children are able to take part in and are very proud of. We left for the day with a promise of meeting up the next day to see a project that might have been of some interest to World Orphans…. God has certainly blessed Casa Bernabe with able people, generous hearts, and wonderful place do build into the lives of the orphaned and abandoned. The speed in which things were accomplished this week with C.B. was such a blessing.

The second meeting I was not able to attend. I had my first real harsh migraine the day after our first meeting with Matthew. Although I was not able to go I was able to get more info about the project and prayed for the meeting while they met. BJ, Matthew, Isaac, and Pedro (the previous director of C.B and now pastor of the church that meets at C.B.) met early that morning to tour a project in Guatemala City. A few years ago an orphanage, housing close to 1000 children, lost its funding and were forced to close down, send the children back into the streets. A 60 year old woman now runs a daily feeding program through her church for 100 of those children, more if she has enough food. This woman also has a house she is renting, currently vacant, that she firmly believes will be filled with orphaned children one day. Here we have a woman who has her own children, her own job, her own house to pay for, her family to feed and yet feels the calls to aid, defend and rescue orphaned children. She spends close to 12,000Q. a month to feed the hungry. She spends 4000 Q. to rent the home (currently empty) to house the homeless. That comes to about 2000$US a month to feed 80 kids who are not her own. Would you be willing to do that and have faith daily, as she does, that God is going to give her more children and provide in every way?

Today BJ and I were able to return to Casa Bernabe to speak to the board about World Orphans. It was a beneficial meeting and hope that with the connections we made we will be able to do more with them. I am always astounded how God works…