Our premature wonder child

 It is a bitter sweet pill, bitter in that there is even a need for the girls to need a home, but sweet in the fact that we have the honour to provide care, love and hope to each of these precious children. Over the coming months we will continue to pursue an aggressive building campaign in order to complete additional accommmodations for other girls who are in need of our help. Clearly the need is greater than every and we will do all that we can to provide hope to as many as possible.

Celebrating the birthday of one of the girls

Work on the laundry room and outside wall - Feb 2011

2010 saw the mandate of the organization shift from construction to ministry support. The home was officially sanctioned by the Peruvian authorities in July and while it took more time than we would have liked to get the first girl into the home, we are now hosting and helping girls on a daily basis. Several girls have come and gone, needing only to stay for a few days in order to work through a crisis situation, others will stay for an extended period of time, sometimes years. At present we have four girls living in the home on a long term basis; each has a unique and painful story. One of the girls was a burns victim and we have had to assist in helping her with medical expenses and schooling. The home was able to offer a place to heal and convalesce. We have just heard that she graduated to her final year of school and that is exciting news for her and us. The second girl is 15 years old and has been a victim of prolonged physical and sexual abuse. One of the things we do at the home is to offer programs and support that will help her and others to process through the pain of her life experiences and to find healing. In addition we will continue to ensure success in school and that the basic needs of each girl is met. The third girl in the home is a 13 year old girl who has also been a victim of significant abuse. The final girl in the home arrived this week. She is 17 and a single mom who just had a premature baby by caesarean section. The baby was over two months premature and is still in the hospital which is causing great anxiety for the mother. Once the baby is well enough she will be reunited with her mother at the home.

The arrival of the girls has created new challenges for the mission. Financially when times were leaner we could back off of construction but with girls in the home we must ensure that their needs are met and so there is added pressure for us to raise the revenue required to run the home. At present it is costing approximately 500 soles a month ($200) to support each girl and so one of our priorities for this year is to find financial sponsors for the girls. It costs approximately one dollar for each meal we serve at the home and so one of the things we are doing this year is to ask people to consider buying a meal for one of the girls. Simply put 30 dollars buys 30 meals and so on. If enough people contribute we will be able to meet the needs of the girls at the home and continue with our construction program. If you are able to help, information on how to do so is available through this website.

The goal for construction this year is to complete the outside wall of the premises thus ensuring a safe place for the girls to stay, completion of the daycare which is already under construction, completion of  the laundry area which is also already under construction, and to complete the construction of the west side of the compound. The west side includes a home for Patti and Joel as well as four additional bedrooms for girls. Three teams have committed to help with construction so far, a Youth team from Lakeside church who will travel in March, an adult team from Lakeside Church which will go to Peru in May and a young adult team sponsored by iProjects which will travel to Peru in June. There is still room for people on some of these teams so if you would like to help, please contact the mission through this website and I will help you make contact. A fourth team is also being considered for the summer of 2011 but will depend on if there is sufficient interest.

 iprojects ca – Girls’ Refuge – west wing

Finally, I am pleased to announce that we have also recently completed construction of a home for Nidia (a graduate from a similar home three years ago) on the property. The home is all wood construction and is situation 200 metres from the girls home. Nidia will be assisting Patti and Joel with the running of the home and is a very welcome addition to the iProjects team. Nidia’s son, Carlitos also lives in the new house. For those who are sentimental I would like tell a brief story:

Several years ago when I purchased the land on which the girls home sits, I was not aware of the fact that at some point Nidia’s family had owned the land and that Nidia was actually born on this property. The home that we have built for her is less than 150 metres from where she was born and so in some ways this is a real homecoming for her.

Nidia in her new kitchen

On the macro level, all of the foundation work has been completed on the left wall and we are starting to lay block. The foundation on the right side of the compound has been dug and the base foundation has been poured, by tomorrow cement wall necessary to lay block on will also be completed. The bonus of getting so much done is that we are now also starting to dig the foundation for the front wall. When it is completed the outside wall will be complete which will make the home much safer and secure. So far we have been able to construct without incident and everyone is healthy which is awesome.

Today I had the chance to meet with the justice department of Puerto Maldonado, the people who will be providing the children for the home. On Thursday or Friday we will be receiving a girl from near the Brazilian border who is being abused by her father in law. She will be the first person to find grace and hope in the home. As of yet we know very little about her other than that she is 12 years old and she is living in  horrendous conditions.  We do not know how long she will be in the home but we know she needs to be there. She also has a younger brother and we may also need to offer refuge for him (he is eleven)  at least on a temporary basis.

We have been waiting for some time to receive our first child and to some extent it has been frustrating. We could not work out why it was taking so long. It turns out that the Justice department have wanted to place three girls previously but were unable to contact the home because there is no phone. We are beyond any phone lines or cell service and so this is an obvious problem. Today we have arranged for a contact in town so that this situation can be avoided in the future. There is much discussion about vision and purpose going on but that needs to be processed with the iProjects board before I write about it on the blog.

Anyway in summary:

1) We are all well

2) A lot of construction work is being done.

3) The home will receive its first girl by the end of the week.

4) God is good.

Blessings to all at home – stay tuned, there is much more news to come.

The addition of the  labour has meant a significant ramp up in the expectations we have for getting construction work done before the end of the month. If all goes according to plan the next two sets of bedrooms will be painted, bathrooms will be tiled and shower installation completed. This will mean that the capacity for girls in the home will increase from two to six once we have purchased the necessary furniture. In addition to the bedrooms, money has been sent to purchase the wood to put the roof on the daycare facility. There is also money in the budget to complete all of the foundation work for the left hand side of the building, meaning that over half of the buildings in the quadrangle will have the foundation complete. Some block has also been purchased and this will mean that we will see walls going up as well. I am hoping to upload some pictures of the work while we are there so please feel free to follow our progress.

The foundation work comes at an opportune time as this week we redrafted the design of the home, making it more functional in the long term and maximizing the usage for the building once the whole complex is complete. I am again indebted to Reinders and Reider for their assistance in drafting plans. They must has lost my address because they never seem to send a bill!!  And here is where I need to give thanks to God… Bringing the boys to the worksite from Tarapoto does not come without a price and yet in his faithfulness God has provided much of the funding we need to see this happen without impacting the ability to buy building materials for construction. Part of the money has been reallocated from funds we would have used to hire other Peruvian workers and part of it came by way of unexpected donations this week. God’s timing is always so perfect and I have to constantly remind myself of that.

Speaking of timing, I was able to speak to contacts in Peru earlier in the week and there is a strong possibility that by the time I write next week I will be able to announce that there is at least one, and likely two girls in the home.  Please join me in prayer this week that this would in fact be the case.

On a weekend where we celebrate God’s goodness, I am thankful to all of you who are following the work that we are doing and all who have contributed in whatever way over the years. May next year see an incredible harvest as the home moves nearer completion and  together we impact more and more lives.

Have a great thanksgiving.

Today was the Ride for Refuge an event being held in multiple cities across Canada and the USA (mainly Canada) designed to help raise awareness of the plight of the vulnerable, displaced and expoited throughout the world. iProjects was involved in the event to the extent that our team rode to raise funds to help build the girls home. We were a small team of six but we were committed to both riding and raising money by whatever means possible and I must say  that I am very proud of our team. In all we were able to raise close to $3000, 60% of which will go directly to the girls home. Some of the rest goes to help other missions and some goes to the administration of the ride. I am glad that we could be a part of something that is bigger that ourselves and will help in the global fight against poverty.  In addition to the iProjects team, others  from Lakeside Church, our largest donor, were also riding and Lakeside has agreed to donation 70% of the money they receive from their ride grant to help with the home as well. What this means in practical terms is that some time in December we will likely receive around $8000 to help with construction materials for the home. That’s the happy part. The hurtin’ part is that I rode a bike today for the first time in years and so the muscles are a little sore. I am sure tomorrow it will be even worse but it is a good kind of pain, and as I often have to remind myself these days… this too shall pass.

Our fearless riders

Hopefully some of the money will also be used to support the welbeing of the girls in the home but as of this writing there is still no news of a girl in the home. We wait patiently, but in one sense there is pain in the waiting too.

On the construction front, I am busy preparing for a small team that will be heading to Puerto Maldonado (hence forth to be know as Maldonado) on October 18th. We will be small and mighty as we spend our days alternating between construction and ministry. Our ministry focus is on teaching Patty and Joel about God’s healing power through a biblically grounded 12 step study called Celebrate Recovery. We want to enrich the lives of the girls in any way we can and that includes helping them find healing from their hurts, habits and hang-ups. In addition we will be laying the groundwork for a child sponsorship program. I know that many will wonder why we would take this on when there are so many other good organizations already doing this? My answer is simply this: nobody is reaching the kids that we are dealing with in the place that God has led us to. We need to provide a good education and basic necessites for the girls in the home and the orphanage next door that iProjects has been helping to construct; these are the children that we are trying to help and we are doing this because nobody else is. We will also be making sure that 100% of the money we raise goes to help support the children and the community they live in as opposed to the 80% that many other organizations pass on. I am sure you will hear more about the program in coming weeks.

In terms of the construction of the home the next two bedrooms are nearing completion. All that remains to be done is to complete the subceiling and then paint and tile for the bathrooms. We have chosen to go with tile because although it is marginally more expensive, it is so much easier to keep things clean, and in a dusty environment that is a God send. We also need to put in doors and window screening but that will come in time. The rooms should be ready for occupancy by early November. Finally the plans are in place to put the roof on the daycare room.

Well that’s it for now. Thanks for sharing the last few minutes with me and be sure to check back next week to find out how we are doing.

Blessings

Alan

“ANO DE LA CONSOLIDACION ECONOMICA Y SOCIAL DEL PERU”

“MADRE DE DIOS CAPITAL DE LA BIODIVERSIDAD DEL PERU”

Puerto Maldonado 27 de julio del 2010

Senores: Ps. Alan garrett

Junta directiva

Asunto: Participacion a ceremonia de apertura de establecimiento.

Es grato dirigirme a usted , para saludarlo cordialmente siempre en nombre de nuestro senor jesucristo y al mismo tiempo manifestarle que, habiendo tenido la documentacion requerido por las autoridades pertinentes como:- INSPECCION SANITARIA,CERTIFICADO DE DEFENSA CIVIL, Y LICENCIA DE APERTURA DE ESTABLECIMIENTO Y OTROS. Se ha visto posible en cierto modo la apertura y el funcionamiento de nuestra casa hogar, teniendo pendiente la regularisacion del mimdes, en vista que no podemos contar con su presencia en esta oportunidad. En tal sentido le hacemos participe de la ceremonia de apertura de actividades, a realizarse en los ambientes de nuestra institucion, ubicado en carretera infierno km 10 – chonta, para el dia Lunes 02 de agosto del presente a horas 10;00am. Agradecido por su presencia me suscribo de ud, no sin antes hacerle llegar las muestras de mi especial consideracion y estima personal, Dios guarde a ud.

Atentamente.

Joel Labajos Caballero
Now one the most frustrating things about not speaking Spanish is my inability to be able to actually translate a message like this when I get it so… like I always do I cut and pasted it into a free translation service. I don’t know if you have ever tried to do that but let me tell you the results are often not far short of hilarious. Anyway what I was able to gleen from the service is that I have been officially invited to attend the opening of the girls home next Monday 2nd August at 10.00 am. Culturally that means the festivities will start closer to 11.00am but either way Monday will be the day forever marked in my calander that The Lakeside Girls Refuge shifted from being about bricks and mortar to being about flesh and blood, the lives of young abused girls who will have a second chance at the kind of life that God intended. It’s hard to beleive that 18 months ago the land where the home is now located was covered in trees, and animals were crawling in the undergrowth. Now there are completed rooms: a kitchen, dining room, bedrooms and the shell of a daycare. There is a well and intermittently there is power (when the all too often on the fritz generator chooses to work). On Monday there will be celebration as the sweat equity and finances that so many have generously and sacrificially given will result in the official cutting of a ribbon, a token gesture that will mean so much to those who are ministered to at the home over the course of many years.

As I reflected on this milestone I was reminded of a scripture verse from the book of Romans where Paul says Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn (Romans 12:15.) For me the mourning will come in that I will not be able to be in attendance to share in the moment of the homes opening, but far more important for me is the opportunity to rejoice in all that has been accomplished and remains to be accomplished over the next couple of years as construction of the home continues. To all who have been a part of that journey, thanks so much for all you have done to make the refuge a reality. On Monday I am going to take some time to pray for the home, and for Patti and Joel as they start to care for girls, I will pray for the completion of the additional rooms that will allow us to continually increase the capacity of the home. and that God will provide a team in October to continue the construction. Could I be so bold as to ask you to join me in pray also, and if you know anyone else of like mind, that you would forward this to them or ask then to read this entry on the iprojects blog and pray as well. In a world where at times there is so little to celebrate could we all take some time out of our day on Monday to celebrate God’s goodness, grace and mercy.

The next piece of bad news/good news is that we will officially receive our operating license for the home on Monday and that the home will officially be open for ministry. It is very likely that we will see the arrival of our first (and second?) girl by the end of next week and this is exciting and good news. However, we have also just discovered that there will be a 2080 sole fee for the license (Approximately $750 USD) which we were not expecting. Such is the life of a mission!! Fortunately because we are paying this fee there will be no renewal fees for the license in subsequent years as it will be designated as an "indefinite" license. Once we are open we should be free from the bureaucracy we are currently working through. It is exciting that we are on the threshhold of opening the home and I look forward to the day when we will start to impact the lives of these young and vulnerable children. I am still hopeful that we can send another team to Peru later this year to help to both minister and construct at the home. Time, as always, will tell!

Overall the team did a great job of moving the project forward. The daycare is now completely blocked as is much of the laundry room. In addition the foundation has been poored for the left wall of the entire compound. Our Peruvian brothers will continue to work on the project in our absence and having returned home I will raise awareness and the funds necessary to buy building materials, and pay their salaries ($14 a day) . We would like to send another team in October but need to find those who might be interested in going. Might you be one of those? Anyway for now it is time to decompress from the trip and reflect on what the organizations next steps are. Thanks to all who followed the blog, and especially thanks for your prayers.

The walls for the daycare are blocked

Alan