Yesterday, we welcomed ten new teens into the Hope Education Program.
Top Row (L to R): Jaime, Adan, Mario, Camilo, Jovani; Bottom Row (L to R): Yadira, Selene, Yaquelin, Shirley, Shannon
Through the Hope Education Program, we offer students from children’s homes a way to continue their education when free public school ends at ninth grade. The students stay on the Back2Back campus in homes with staff families (house parents), experiencing a healthy family life. Students are mentored, provided with an education, and encouraged to pursue their dreams so that they can become self-sustaining individuals.
Selene, Shirly and Shannen are the three new girls living in the Hope House, the home where my husband and I live as house parents.
(Left to right) Selene, Shirley & Shannon
They are from Villa de Juarez and Manantial de Amor. Selene is fifteen years old and the other two girls are sixteen. They started high school yesterday. They are easing into their new transition and as they say, their new life is “super chido” which means “way cool”.
The John House welcomed Jesus Mario “Chuy” from Douglas, Adan and Camilo from Imperio de Amor, and Jaime (a.k.a. “Jimmy”) from the government orphanage DIF Capullos.
Mario (Chuy)
Adan
Camilo
Jaime
Jovani, who is from Galeana, will be living in the Joseph House with Juan and Rosa Porta.
Jovani
The boys walked into their new homes and didn’t skip a beat. They are the new kids on campus along with three other students in the Esther and Joseph Houses. Already, they are being faced with the challenge of learning how to navigate the public transportation system to and from their new schools. They are attending schools with some of Monterrey’s wealthiest families and are being challenged to compete academically and blend in socially with this new crowd. Additionally, they are learning to manage new jobs on and off campus to help pay for their transportation. As house parents, we are excited to say that the seasoned veteran students in the Hope Program have extended a warm welcome to the new kids on campus and are showing them the ropes. As house parents, we are full of anticipation, eager to see how the Lord will use us and the teens who we have already invested in to shape and mold the new students. We are hopeful that with the start of an education, the love of a family environment, and the encouragement of other believers, that these seeds have landed on fertile soil ready to grow.