Shattering Our Excuses

I posted this video on our Facebook page, and it’s been the most popular video I’ve ever posted. So… I thought I would share it here, as well. This all happened on December 23rd…

Most of our girls have come out of extreme poverty. At Torre Fuerte they have found the comfort and security of decent food, clothing and shelter.
This Christmas, the girls had an idea: to collect whatever they could of their old toys, games, dolls, and clothing. Then to wrap everything and give it away to the poor children in the nearby community of Horacio Zevallos. This is an area of grinding poverty, as you can see in the background of the video.
As the bus rolled into the neighborhood that day, the girls were announcing from the windows that they had gifts. By the time we rolled to a stop, there were maybe 300 people gathered, with the children anxiously awaiting a gift. Most of these kids would not have received a single thing if not for the plan our girls had devised.
The girls did all of the actual organization and distribution of the gifts. As thing wound down, it was apparent that there were more children than gifts. Our girls responded in a way that surprised us. Watch…

December 23, 2012

Keith Green Open Your Eyes Open your hearts to the ones who are desperate, open your hearts, open your hearts. They may never repay you, but their souls are worth it, The life you impart when you open your heart.

I didn’t get video of all of it. As I stood a short distance from the crowd, chatting with Pastor Dario, a mother walked by with her two daughters. The younger one had a gift, but not the older girl. One of our girls, who was standing at my side, took off her new red coat and handed it to the young girl. A moment later, another of our girls removed her earrings to hand to a young mother standing nearby.
As we wrapped things up and piled back onto the bus, we saw that most of the girls had given away the shoes they were wearing, as well as their jackets. Two of our girls had even given away their new jeans, and wore plastic bags on the way back to Torre Fuerte.
I couldn’t help but think of the excuses I had made in the past for not being generous. These girls had demolished all of my excuses. Maybe they just understand poverty better than we do. Or maybe God is doing something in their hearts that we all could use.

Happenings

It’s been a looong time since my last post, so there’s a lot of catching up to do. Let’s jump right in.

We’ve had three new arrivals at the Torre Fuerte home since August. I’ll be adding these young ladies to the “bios” page, with a little background for each one. For now, let me just show you a picture and give you the name of each girl.

In order of their arrival, the first is Edi, the second Julia Rosa, and the third, Ana Belen. We welcome each of these girls to the big TF family!

I had a little adventure in the end of November, heading to Cochabamba, Bolivia, where I was honored to be the best man in the wedding of my good friend Jake Beaty. He and his new wife, Jennifer, are ministering to a big crew of little ones, as well as a completely different group of street kids. It was great to see Jake again, to meet Jennifer, and to get a glimpse of the ministry they share.

While I was gone, a couple of church groups, from Lima and Trujillo, came to TF to minister to our girls. They brought gifts, shared their hearts with the girls, involved them in evangelism and helping the poor, and in the process bonded very strongly with our girls. I was able to catch the tearful goodbyes here.

December 8th was a big day for us. The youth of the Torre Fuerte Church put together a big fund-raising event to help the girls’ home with the always difficult month of December.

There were games, tons of great food, and live music. It was great to see the youth take on such a big project, and to do all that work for others. A big, big thanks to the TF youth!

And finally, a couple of videos to give you a taste of the Christmas preparations going on at the Torre Fuerte home. Enjoy!!

A new tradition is starting: decorating Christmas cookies with Leslie!

A decorating party!

Overwhelming

We have some friends coming to visit from the States. They’ll be here in September, and asked me to help make their flight arrangements from Lima to Arequipa. So I went to the Plaza de Armas today, to buy some tickets at the Peruvian Airlines office.

There were towers of speakers everywhere in the plaza, as workers prepared for a concert of classical music and opera. While they worked, they took advantage of the huge sound system and played someone’s favorite music. It was pretty strange to walk across that Peruvian plaza to the familiar sounds of “old blue eyes” in English at 120 decibels.

So I mostly made the arrangements with the airline, with the exception of paying for the tickets, because the only person who handles plastic money was out to lunch, but would be back from 3 to 8pm. So off I went, knowing I’d be back in a few hours.

As I walked along Mercaderes, the pedestrian walkway leading away from the plaza, I spotted a new friend I see there often. He’s one of many beggars along that particular stretch, but one that stands out, at least to me. He’s a man of forty years or so, stout and fit. He’s well spoken and seems to be intelligent and well-educated.

But he has no legs.

He’d told me previously that he had his legs amputated, one after the other, due to thrombosis. Since those devastating surgeries, he’s also developed arthritis in his hands; the kind you can see and almost feel as you look at his terribly twisted and deformed hands.

As I stopped, sat and chatted with him today, the conversation wandered into handicapped access, which I noted is virtually non-existent in Arequipa. He explained to me that he lived in a second floor room, because all the first floor space in the surrounding area is used for businesses. He could not possibly afford a first floor apartment, if one could be found, and he needs to stay near the center, where the crowds of tourists are.

I hesitated, and then plunged forward with my question. He seems to be okay with me asking my dumb questions. “How do you manage to get to your second floor apartment? Who helps you?”

His answer: “I climb the stairs. It hurts my hands, but what can I do?”

Indeed.

I felt a little sick. I’ve prayed for this new friend, and of course I try to help him a little financially when I see him. He has a good attitude, given his circumstances.

But given his circumstances, my help doesn’t seem like much. I can’t pay his rent; I can barely pay my own. Outside of the safety and the secure cocoon of the culture that is the USA, the needs are overwhelming. A staggering, crushing weight that is simply too much to carry.

You can’t do it all, so you do what you can. God help us if we do nothing.

A Year in Peru!

We’ve been here for almost one year already! Our “anniversary” will be on May 8th, our first day living in Peru. We’re not sure yet how we’ll celebrate it, but it’s a real milestone for us. It seems to have flown by rather quickly.

The completion of a year also means a renewed rental agreement. Our landlord told us he would be raising the rent 25%, but we were told that it’s still a good deal for our apartment. But… when he gave us the lease agreement, the cost hadn’t changed. We did the honest thing, and brought him the lease he had already signed, and asked about the mistake. He told us that he had changed his mind, and our rent would remain the same! Praise God for that!

…especially since things are getting pretty tight, financially. This time last year, we had money in the bank and support coming in monthly. At this point, the only thing sustaining us is our monthly support. But we couldn’t see the needs of the girls and not help them when we had the money in our account. They all received much needed clothes, shoes, dental work, and general health care. We also had to setup house, and then there are the constant repairs at TF, as well.

We had asked our supporters to commit for one year. That year is now up. If you are able to continue supporting us in this work, that would be wonderful. We are very thankful for the way that you have helped us and these girls. If you haven’t given in the past and would like to begin, this would be a perfect time to start. You can easily start your support by following the Donate button at the top right of the blog, where you can give through PayPal.

Some BIG changes with the TF girls include those who have dedicated or rededicated their lives to Christ as their Savior, recently. Praise God for what He’s been doing in the lives of Gianela, Victoria, Carmen, Ester, and Vilma!

There have also been girls who have left to live with family, to live on their own, or have been placed in other homes. Included in these changes are: Carmen Rosa, Carmen, Tatiana, Annie, Leonor, Rosa Janet, Marisol, Luz Marina, and Monica. We are learning to deal with these changes and have come to realize that our time with each girl could be shorter than we think, so we need to be impacting their lives for Christ at all times.

Some staff changes that have taken place over the last year include two new dorm mothers. Hermana Elena, who was the dorm mother for the oldest group of girls, is now managing the Snack Shop due to her bad back. Hermana Doris is her replacement. Hermana Ana has moved to Chile and her replacement, for the youngest group of girls, is Hermana Sol. The rest of the staff has remained the same.

Another big change for us will be when Katie moves back to the States in the Spring of 2013 to pursue her studies in Criminal Forensics. Before she takes this big step, we’re hoping to afford an online course for her to finish her senior year of high school with a diploma for a smoother transition into college.

We are down to having only one bunny but hope to have a new puppy soon. Pastor Dario has given the girls a challenge: If all the girls get good grades for the 3rd trimester, we get a puppy! The girls are excited to meet this challenge. We’ll keep you posted!

One Big Family

 

 

 

 

Having our son Josh and his girlfriend Jennie here to visit has helped me see how much the girls at Torre Fuerte accept us as family. There was an instant attachment as they played American football, Ninja, Go Fish, and even did homework together. Some of the girls asked why Daniel & Stephanie didn’t come with baby Michelle. They are anxious to meet them as well.

Having the girls meet our older kids bonds us all together as a bigger family. The girls admire the family we have. It is healthy for them to see what a “normal” family is like. Seeing that Josh & Jennie care for them helped to confirm that our family truly loves them. When it was time to leave, there were many hugs!

Connecting the dots….

It’s amazing to see how God networks people together to do His work. Since we’ve been here, we have seen God weaving people into the ministry of meeting the needs of the girls at Torre Fuerte. Just to mention a few:

The dentist & orthodontist we’ve been working with are giving discounted prices in order to help minister to the girls.  After a dentist visit the other day, I was on the bus with three of the girls when I had a “God encounter”.  Two of the girls were seated in front of me with a man standing next to their seat (when all the seats are full, people continue to cram onto the bus and stand in the aisles). The man’s backpack was right in Luz’s face and I was afraid it would bump her since everyone shifts back and forth as we travel over the rutted roads. I asked him to please be careful that his bag wouldn’t hit her face. He looked at me and said, “Thank you” and I smiled back at him.

He then struck up a friendly conversation with many questions as to why I was in Arequipa. Long story, short, he personally knows Pastor Dario from being in the church many years ago when he was a boy. He said that he hasn’t been to church in a long time. I told him, “You need to get back into church. Maybe that’s why God had us meet on the bus today”.  He agreed and said he would be there on Sunday. He didn’t show up but I was encouraged that God used me (of all people) to draw this guy back to Him. I’m still hoping he will come.

Another amazing connection is Freddy. Freddy is the interpreter that Compassion International had arranged to help Jake meet with one of his sponsored children while he was here in Arequipa back in October 2011. Scott and Freddy have met several times and he wanted to help the girls in some way. He is an English professor at one of the universities here. He asked if he and some other professors could come to TF and meet with the girls. They have now been coming to TF on a WEEKLY basis to tutor the girls, visit with them,  and give them hope for entering the university when they graduate from high school. Last week the girls filled out a questionnaire to help them discover where their interests lie and what possible careers would fit them.

Most recently, Scott bought some things at the Christian bookstore he frequents and the owner asked about the ministry at TF and gave Scott discounted prices and free tracts for the girls. The owner also asked if he could have his prayer group pray for TF, and then suggested the possibility of them visiting sometime. Scott walked away encouraged. He caught a taxi to return to TF. The taxi driver asked him why he was in Arequipa. For the next 20 minutes they talked about TF. Scott told him how we had moved here to help at a home for girls. He was intrigued at our willingness to move the whole family here to help these girls. He wanted to know all about the ministry,  what we do there, the needs, the ages of the girls, etc. etc. etc. He later mentioned that he owns a clothing store and only drives taxi three days a week. Imagine that, God put them together with such tiny odds.

Today, I was online with a friend who was getting more and more excited as she thought of ways to get people involved with TF. We will both be jotting down our thoughts and then brainstorming some more together.

Many Happy Returns

Marisol returned to Torre Fuerte from Lima so that she can be with her sister Diana, 13, who had returned a couple of months earlier.

Marisol is 19 and wants to work to earn enough money to live on her own.

In the meantime, she is working to finish her last two years of high school. This will be a great help to her later job search.

Olinda, age 21, returned as a single mom seeking help and support to raise her daughter, Naladi. Olinda asked our former dorm mother Elena, and her husband David, to be godparents for her daughter. This is a picture from the dedication service. Olinda is not living at TF,  but we are helping her with free child care so she can attend classes.

Shane & Steve, from Washington state, returned to TF again to visit with the girls. Shane and his wife, Kim, are “padrinos”, or Godparents, to Carmen Rosa and her daughter, Katia.

While the guys were with us, they bought and installed two brand new stainless steel water pumps, along with the gauges and various switches needed to modernize our water system.      

Steve was asked by one of the girls if he would be her padrino, so maybe we’ll see Steve back again in the fall for the big quinceañero?

A big thanks to Steve and Shane, and hopes that you can return again soon!

We continue to return to the dentist office with more bad teeth to be repaired, making for happier smiles. In the first picture, Karen is in the chair, the center of attention. In the next, it’s Karen’s turn to watch…….but………. she’d rather sit with Katie

 

 

 

 

God’s faithfulness “returns” EVERY day. He never leaves us or abandons us! Thanks for keeping up with our Peruzings.

Many blessings to you, Pastor Scott, Leslie, Micah, Katie, & Luke Hargrove

Fun in the Sun

Why a vacation when there are basic needs to be met?

Three answers:

1) The money that was used for the vacation was given by an individual who wanted to do something special for the girls as a Christmas gift.

2) Children need fun times in their lives to help them become well-rounded individuals, especially children from shattered backgrounds.

3) This was a low budget vacation, traveling in the TF bus, staying in housing provided by a member of the Ilo Church, and eating at a home arranged by the same Church.

Torre Fuerte is not only a home for girls, but a family. These fun times together help bond the family together and make wonderful memories for them to look back on, someday. We are blessed to have been part of this memory with them.

There was time on the beach for swimming (and sunburn), seeing the town, a boat tour, searching tidal pools, souvenir shopping, and just lots of time to play.

Kelly, Monica, Gabi and Kelly	Katherine, Luke, Karen E., Mercedes, Katie, Davey

Looking for sea lions	Sea lion close-up

Port English	Most of our gang at Port English

Gianela, Ian, Rosa Janet, Ester	Mercedes and Xiomara searching

 

Milagros & Mayra	Pastor Dario, Ian, & Ursula	Pastor, Ian, Pastora Indira

 

 Thank you James and the Ilo Church for these wonderful memories!

Something “New”…

A new year of volleyball and softball! Luz Marina, Victoria, Diana, Ruth, Delia, and Gabriela are in volleyball.  They are also playing softball along with Milagros, Mayra, Karen Luisa, Xiomara, Elena, and Mayra Estefani. We walk with the girls to the field/court on alternating days and watch as they hone their skills. It’s a lot of walking, but we are glad to follow their sports, as we did with our own kids. On the way home, we pick up the girls taking summer classes.

 

 

 

 

 

We have a “new” ping pong table that  Scott and Micah refurbished with money that was received at Christmas time. The girls are enjoying it, as are we Scott used the extra material for shelves in his office and now Micah is building shelves in Pastor Dario’s office from the rest.

The other part of the money received at Christmas time is being used for a week-long trip to a new place vacation spot at the end of January.  Our family will be going along to help as chaperones for the girls. It will be a treat for us to be on the beach again.  Photos will be coming!

We have an opportunity to buy a “new” Landcruiser! It costs $6,000 as is, but after some repair, it will be a little more. We would LOVE to have one again. It’s a 1972 and ours was a 1969 but they are very similar. The only problem is, the lack of funds…  We used all of our money from selling the cars and furniture to make the move (and buy 30 new sets of clothing that were desperately needed for the girls). The Landcruiser isn’t available until the end of February at the earliest, so we’ll see if God supplies the money??? Maybe He’ll show us a better deal on a different one?? We would appreciate your prayers about this.

A Step of Faith

We had a visit last weekend from Pastor Isaac and his wife, Dora. While Pastor Dario Quintana is the lead pastor of both the Torre Fuerte church and girls home, Pastor Isaac has been the main preaching pastor at the church for the past six years.

They have recently announced to the church that they will be leaving this at the end of the month, and moving to the city of Cusco.

They visited us this morning to talk about their call, their positions in Cusco, and the uncertainties that await them. They thought maybe we could relate to their circumstances.

They have been praying for almost a year, feeling that God was telling them that they were finishing their time at the Torre Fuerte church. They have been uncertain where God was sending them next, but began to feel a tug toward the ancient city of Cusco, close to the famous ruins of Machu Picchu.

They have a pastor friend in Cusco, whom they contacted, to discover that his church in Cusco has been praying for a pastoral couple to come along and help them. From what I can understand, the church where they will be serving has had some problems, and their heart is to help restore and rebuild that church.

Of course, a move to a church that is struggling is a move into financial uncertainty. Pastor Isaac is moving his family, not knowing for certain where they will live, or how they will earn enough money to live. But… they feel certain that Cusco is where God wants them, and that God will provide.

So, maybe you who are reading this could be one of the channels God uses to help provide for this family? If you would like to help them in their work in Cusco, please contact us.