Madhu carries the flag against his shoulder as he walks around campus. The colors of his country – orange, white, and green – wave in the humid air as music pulses in the background. It’s Independence Day in India. As a visiting mission team spends three days mixing and pouring concrete, the children on the Hope… Read more
Maria Jose took a deep breath and leaned back into the clear, cool water. She felt it cover her face, and a split second later, is immersed and brought back up to standing. The onlookers standing around the pool cheered loudly. In the heat of the Mazatlán sun, Maria Jose, Nazmin, and Grecia are getting… Read more
Lively laughter and “stop pushing me,” erupt through the multi-purpose room entrance at the Community Center of Tres Reyes. Oti’s 6 daughters, one of Back2Back Cancun’s Strong families, race toward an open table where Dr. Justin Dukes from Greenville, South Carolina, debriefs with a Back2Back staffer over their last appointment. 16-year-old Jeny wins the race,… Read more
Mariah slowly opens her eyes. Surrounding her, small voices fling hopes high to a Father – and she feels her heartbeat quicken. Ashwini’s black veil carefully covers both her head and Mariah’s, honoring an Indian custom of women covering their faces in prayer. Ashwini prays aloud next to Mariah, praying over her new friend and… Read more
Mazatlán, aptly named the Pearl of the Pacific, rests on the west coast of Mexico almost directly across from the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula. Grant Keys and his family have been serving with Back2Back in Mazatlán for just over three years, but the Keys family started surfing only 6 months ago. FloreSer, where… Read more
Adan is a 23-year-old college student who lives at Bethany Children’s Home in Monterrey, Mexico. Recently he served at Back2Back’s Cancun site with his sponsors Ric and Shari Sharrer and their mission team from Apex Community Church in Dayton, Ohio. Ric and Shari have sponsored Adan since 2012. Here, in his own words, Adan shares… Read more
The ping of dribbled basketballs, the deep thud of a kicked soccer ball, and a choir of laughter echo onto the dusty road in front of the Community Center at Tres Reyes. Behind the gates, orchestrated flurries of kids – sporting new, green jerseys – yell, “I’m open!” as anxious parents cheer from the sidelines…. Read more
Fednia came to Harvest Care Children’s Home confused and afraid. She was unexpectedly transferred from another children’s home and wasn’t told why. Being uprooted once again created another painful rip in her heart. She arrived at Harvest Care wounded and angry, with thick emotional walls around her small frame. For the first few months, Fednia… Read more
Fear can be a powerful author of our stories. It has the ability to immobilize each of us. Fear can overwhelm, overshadow, debilitate. It nestles quickly into the pores of our skin and wants to make itself at home. Twelve-year-old Elisa is not unfamiliar with co-existing with fear. She is a young girl coming from… Read more
Square blankets lie on the floor as carefully folded clothing is stacked in the center. The children gather the goods they possess and set them down carefully around the folded clothing and then slowly gather the corners of the blanket and tie a knot. Today is moving day. New, freshly painted bunk-beds await their sleeping… Read more