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Their stories are almost the same.
Both were dropped off by single moms who lead, in
the kindest terms possible, challenging life styles.
They each found themselves, overnight, in a safe
home, warm bed and with plenty to eat- but
surrounded by strangers in a house filled with kids.
Vanessa and Bianca, came into Siempre without
siblings- alone- and needing to find someone to trust,
someone to depend on, someone who would keep
them and never drop them off again. Little wonder that
they've quickly gravitated to one another. I'm curious if
in their childhood conversations they talk about their
memories of what "home" use to be. Neither, as far
as we know, ever knew their own father. When they
were left with us there was no "father figure" in their
lives or a man who needed to sign our paperwork or
surrender their birth certificates. As a father, who
raised a little girl to adulthood, I can't help but look at
these little children and wonder what it is they talk
about when no one else is around. If they're creating
wonderful stories of make believe homes, loving
grandparents and good times... or if in sadness, they
remember only hunger, going without, fear... and
worse... and so they play as if they came from
nowhere... as if Siempre is their new beginning.
I wonder who'll they'll trust? I wonder
how long it takes for a child, abandoned by their
mother, to ever trust again? Their eyes are open-
Vanessa, in the foreground, wearing red, is the
younger of the two. She's been with us for several
months. In the photo, it appears that Bianca's already
turned to her for protection and that Vanessa, now so
much stronger and whole after finding her way to our
doorstep in the middle of the night, is more than
happy to offer a look of "back off buddy!" to whoever
snapped this photo. If it were me, in their situation, I
don't know if I could ever trust anyone again. With all
we have in our homes and our families, we still battle
insecurity and low self esteem. Who will these little
girls reach out to and trust in the years to come as
they're raised up in the midst of our family at Siempre
Para Los Ninos?
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When I first began sending out the
weekly email update several years ago, I wondered
how I'd come up with enough stories to tell. Today, I
filter through my thoughts of this week realizing I can
only tell so much. Each child, every face, has a story
that needs telling. What we imagine is happening in
the poverty impacting abandoned children in and
around TJ is so much less than their reality. The
oasis we've had the opportunity to build at Siempre is
so much more than a temporary rescue station. It's
fertile ground for the foundations necessary to provide
a family, a faith, a hope, a meal, an education, a home
and hopefully the beginning of relationships with
children who have every reason to never trust again,
that will build trust that last a life time... and the good
news is, it's working.
The part each of us play in the
upbringing of
Siempre's kids is but one facet of the legacy we'll
leave behind. What's been done in these first few
years must be protected and what's yet to be done to
see the task through to completion will require faith to
believe that every one of these little Fabian's, Moise's,
Vanessa's and Bianca's is deserving of our love,
support and care. That we long for them to have more
than the brutal treatment they received living in
poverty. Together, we have the money, time, heart and
I believe desire, to see the job through to the end...
even if we never see the end... just as their stories of
poverty and abandonment tell a compelling story, our
story of hope in the heart of darkness is The Story we
were created to live out. It's the reason it feels so right
to work together on behalf of these kids. I look forward
to learning more about your story of love and hope in
the days to come.
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Scripps Institute in La Jolla is a world renowned medical center. Debi and I spent last Friday at Scripps as a dentist there donated an entire office for our new medical center to be built Memorial Day Weekend. Overwhelming! Thanks Don. Thanks George. Thanks to each of you that connected us to the right people. I didn't ask our very generous dentist if I could use his name yet... so I won't... but thanks so much. As we walked through his office I told the story of our work. Loading the 18' trailer with HEAVY dental chairs and every other odd thing a dentist office requires, the doctor followed me and became a willing mover. Soon, he noticed we didn't have x-ray machines. Turning to the workers, he asked them to go up to his office and uninstall one of his machines and bring it down. Looking at him in disbelief, he explained to the workers: "I've got three of the things in my offices, just for convenience. There going to need at least one to run things in their office. I can live without it." We'd walked into his office strangers. We left on a first name basis- now friends, knowing his gift changed the dental care for an entire community for years to come with equipment, worth tens of thousands of dollars. God is so good. Not too late to be very generous! Our building weekend is just a month away. WE NEED YOU! Register now for an amazing time together: Memorial Day Weekend, Friday, May 25-28. It's a great way to get better acquainted with Siempre and to build our best project yet. Join us. We stay at the Marriott- bring all our own food and water across the border- work hard all day, eat well and rest wonderfully. You can get registration online at www.siemprekids.org. If you're not able to make it, write a FAT check! The costs on this project just keep going up. It's Here! Our Golf Tournament is next weekend- Saturday, April 28th. Get registration online or call us. If you can't or don' golf, join us for dinner and the auction afterward. Some of the items on the auction block: a catered BBQ for up to 150, a day sailing in the channel islands, a week in a condo in Leucadia or Mammoth, twin beach cruisers and so much more! It's going to be a fun night and every cent goes directly to Siempre! Thanks so much to those of you that have donated of your time, money, homes and talents so generously. The kids of Siempre need our support, now, more than ever.
siempre,
 Eric Denton
Siempre Para Los Ninos
email:
eric@siemprekids.org
phone:
1-951-689-5806
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