September 4, 2008

16 Girls Now Call Villa Esperanza Home

Praise God, 16 children now call Villa Esperanza home. Scarleth (13) and Erminia (7) recently lost their dad after a long battle with AIDS. They are now experiencing the love of their Heavenly Father through their new family at the Villa.

These are just two girls whose lives have been forever changed after moving into Villa Esperanza this past July. The smiles on the faces of these children is a true testament to God’s faithfulness through your hard work and generous donations.

Villa Esperanza, or “Village of Hope”, was born out of a desire to provide a safe haven for children who live in the Managua city dump. These children, while living in the dump, are at risk for all kinds of abuse. Extreme poverty and terrible living conditions combine to force many young girls into prostitution as early as nine years old. Families share shelter, beds, and food. Many children go without meals, and drugs are often a welcome relief from the horrors of life in the dump.

God has not forgotten these children! He has provided a vision that is making a real difference in their lives. In 2007, with your donations of time and financial support, FEI founded Villa Esperanza. When complete, the Villa will be home to as many as 72 children, all with stories of poverty and pain like Scarleth and Erminia. The Villa is designed to create family settings for the children, with up to eight children and one house parent in each home. The giggles of the newest residents echoing through the Villa are happy confirmation that the vision has become a reality.

The girls who now call Villa Esperanza home are daily experiencing Christ’s love through the visiting volunteers and housemoms. Because many of the short-term teams who serve in Managua stay at the Villa, they are given a unique opportunity to interact with these rescued children, building deep and lasting relationships.

Villa Esperanza gives you the chance to help change the lives of the most vulnerable in Nicaragua. This oasis, this village of hope, is only possible with your continued support in the form of prayers, time, and finances. YOU can give a child the gift of laughter, of love, of childhood.

Would you like to know how?
• Help sponsor a child for as little as $1 a day; call FEI (360.574.3343) or visit w w w.forwardedge.org.
• Sponsor a housemom who has given up everything to care for these beautiful children.
• Pray for the girls as they adjust to their new home; the housemoms as they guide the children; and Forward Edge as we take on new responsibilities.
• Travel to Nicaragua to help continue the work on the Villa and love on the girls.

You can be the hands and feet of Jesus in this small section of the world, desperately in need of His love.