What's going on at Dulce Refugio
I know that many people have passed through this orphanage and left their mark at Dulce Refugio. I want to keep all of you informed about what is going on with the kids and the construction process. Please remember to keep us in your thoughts and prayers; I hope you continue to help us out here at Casa Hogar Dulce Refugio. Gracias amigos!
Well I hope everybody had a great start to the new year. January 2019 has already flown by and we are staying as busy as ever at Dulce Refugio. This new year please keep us in your prayers and I hope that you will continue to be a part of all that God is doing down in Aguascalientes, Mexico.
I got back to Aguascalientes on January 8th. It was nice to see family over the holidays but I had to get back and continue the mission that God has called me to do. Lots of things going on this year and hopefully the school and many other projects will be finished!
We had to say goodbye to 4 kids this month:
When I returned I was sad to learn that one of the girls, Daniela, was taken by the DIF agency and I never got to say goodbye.
Fani also left. I believe she went back with her mom who is now more financially stable to take care of her.
Naomi was one of the older girls and she arrived last November. She was very emotional and was crying almost everyday. She decided to leave and snuck out of the orphanage. I hope she has a good place to go.
And Luis was one of our "chiquitos" (very small boys) and such a cutie! He was always smiling and such a joy to be around. He was too young to understand what was really going on when the DIF took him and just kept smiling as the car drove off. He will be missed!
We welcomed 4 new kids this month:
Fani, Natalie & Mayte are sisters and they are all good kids. They came with lice so we had to shave their heads. They are fitting in nicely here and will be well taken care of.
Giovanni arrived on the last day of the month so I haven't had much of a chance to get to know him...that will change soon.
In the construction...
We finished tiling and grouting the hallway on the 2nd floor of the school. Kyleigh helped me a lot with this project. We used broken pieces of tiles on the edge of the floor for a cool design and she did most of the grouting.
Kyleigh added another mural to our "wall of fame." These are the businesses/organizations that have helped us out tremendously over the years and we wanted to show a sign of gratitude. We really appreciate all of the help & support we receive at Dulce Refugio.
We celebrated Nadia's 17th birthday! This was truly a special day. A little over a year ago Nadia was diagnosed with cancer and celebrated her 16th birthday while suffering in the hospital. No doctor thought she would have made it to the following month let alone the following year. She was in really bad shape but now she is happy and pain free. She is a walking miracle!
Nadia currently lives in a government senior center where there are nurses on staff 24 hours a day. She hasn't returned to Dulce Refugio but isn't that far away so we get to visit her regularly. Please keep praying for her health & well-being.
There is a gasoline "crisis!" It took me almost 2 hours to get gas for my car and I could only buy 500 pesos (about $30US) worth. I have never seen my car so low!
The new president of Mexico has decided to fight against the "huachicoleros" (people who steal gasoline...apparently it is a big business here). As a result certain pipes are getting shut down and some regions of Mexico aren't getting their full shipments. The few stations that have gas have really long wait times and are constantly running out. I hope it ends soon!!
The gas situation was making me nervous because I had to make another trip up to the border. Luckily I was able to fill up before I left and the states north of Aguascalientes weren't affected by the situation so I had no problem traveling. Anyway, I got my visa & car permit so I'm good to go for another 6 months.
And sadly, Kyleigh had to go home. She has been here for the past 5 months helping out and she has been a huge blessing! Kyleigh is going back to Ohio to work as a nurse and take care of her student loans. She plans on bringing a missions team down in July to help out for a couple of weeks and we are all excited that we will see her again soon.
Before she left we were able to plan a couple of events with the kids. One night we had a bonfire and taught them how to make smores and another night we took the older ones downtown. Kyleigh has a deep love for these kids and this ministry and I pray that God will bless her abundantly in this next chapter of her life! Thanks again for all that you do for Dulce Refugio.