Angel ran hard. He could feel his legs burning from pushing himself, but he could see the finish line just ahead. He wasn’t going to give up now. He finally reached the end of the race in third place! He smiled to himself quietly, proud for pushing himself.
Angel couldn’t have known then, though, what one small race would mean for his story.When he was eight years old, Angel and his two older brothers – Carlitos and Jorge – were separated into three different children’s homes in and around Monterrey, Mexico. Angel went to live at a home called Imperio de Amor. While there, a couple who were godparents to one of Angel’s friends at the home began to visit regularly. Angel was occasionally invited to join his friend in the visits, but the day of the race would begin a new chapter for young Angel and his friend’s godparents, Jose Manuel and Cecy.
After watching Angel run and work so hard in the race, Jose Manuel was moved to get to know the young boy. He and Cecy began to include Angel in all the visits with their godson. The three developed a deeper connection and, for the first time in many years, Angel began to feel known and loved.
In an unexpected turn, Imperio de Amor closed and Angel was sent to live in a government-run children’s home. When he arrived, he discovered one of his brothers, Carlitos, was also in the home. The boys rejoiced that this seemingly random set of circumstances found them together once again! But, God’s reconnection of Angel with his brothers was only beginning.
Jose Manuel and Cecy, discovering Angel’s new destination and distraught about the disruption in his life, contacted the new home asking what would be required to have Angel live with them full-time. The answer: foster care. A few short days later the couple entered into training to become foster parents.
In the midst of their training, Jose Manuel and Cecy continued to visit Angel and enjoyed getting to know and care for Carlitos. They listened eagerly as the two brothers told the couple that they had discovered the whereabouts of their oldest brother, Jorge, and wanted to see him. Angel, Carlitos, and Jorge had a small reunion with each other in August of 2016 – four years after first being separated into different children’s homes.
As Jose Manuel and CeCy worked towards now fostering both of the younger brothers, they took the boys to visit Jorge every Sunday. Together, Angel, Carlitos, Jorge and their new champions, Jose Manuel and Cecy celebrated rebuilding the relationship between the three brothers.
Angel and Carlitos are now living full-time with Jose Manuel and Cecy. All three boys, behind academically as the result of their turbulent childhoods, are completing middle school and are again dreaming of what they might become.
“It was important to Jose Manuel and Cecy for each of the boys to have the opportunity to complete school,” shared Patricia. “They are covering the cost for each of the boys to ensure they have a good education.” Once the boys complete middle school, they will all be entering a high school together in Monterrey.
As Angel and Carlitos continue to grow accustomed to living with their new family and strengthen their relationship with Jorge, Back2Back Monterrey celebrates the creation of a safe and loving family. Angel has gone from a young boy, separated from his brothers, living in a series of children’s homes to a son within a loving family. The loving, consistent environment he lives within, and reconnecting with his brothers, is making a lasting difference in Angel’s story.