Casa Esperanza

VILLA AMISTAD, COCHABAMBA BOLIVIA

BY MARIA D'ANTONI

Surely you have heard how our Church is slowly returning to normalcy. The following quote is posted on the Saint Michael website: “Let’s imagine a new way of forming a sacred community here at Saint Michael and out in the world that is better than what we had. We can seize this opportunity to begin new habits that bring us closer to one another and closer to God.”

As we continue our reentry into a “brick and mortar” community it would behoove us to look closely at a community that has been a microcosm of what can work in the midst of a pandemic. One of our international missions, Amistad Mission, a Christian orphanage in Cochabamba, Bolivia has managed through God’s grace and our financial and prayer support to not only maintain a spirit-filled community but to strengthen it, like we have done at Saint Michael.

Since Amistad was one of the recipients of this year’s Easter Plate offering, we thought you would appreciate an update on what life for the children at Villa Amistad has been like during the pandemic and how they are seizing the opportunity to grow closer to one another and closer to God. The pictures included here are of our children from the house that Saint Michael helps support, Casa Esperanza. They tell the story vividly.

Bolivia is one of the poorest countries in South America and limited in its access to COVID vaccines. Healthcare is available but certainly not of the caliber of our country. Quarantine has been critical to limit the transmission of the disease. Until recently, the Amistad children had been living in this safely confined community for over a year. From February 2020 to November 2020 (the Bolivian school year) all classes were virtual. In August of 2020, Saint Michael donated $4,009 from the Relief Fund, to support the purchase of tech equipment for the whole Villa for virtual learning, allowing the children to continue their education. From August 2020 through November 2020 the schools in Cochabamba were closed, and Amistad Mission hired three private tutors to continue to work with the children. The new academic year began this past February, with virtual learning as the only option. Amistad continues to provide daily online classes to 55 students in Villa Amistad.

Missing their relationships with their school friends and having to rely solely on interactions with their “brothers and sisters” in Villa Amistad has been hard. Despite these obstacles, the children have continued to grow and thrive. Please give prayers of thanks for the dedicated Amistad staff and the Mamás and Tías who have labored with increased dedication to make the children’s lives “special.” Birthdays, which have always been a great celebration for the children, have become even more so. Holidays and religious holy days are paramount.

The communal garden has been a joyful outlet for pent-up energy and anxiety for the children who work daily tilling the soil, planting, and harvesting 100% organic vegetables for their own casa’s table. Here, they witness the bountiful blessings the Lord furnishes in the midst of crisis. The communal garden supplies up to 25% of the total produce consumption in Villa Amistad.

When asked what is hardest about quarantine during the pandemic, the children are quick to respond “los amigos.” They desperately miss visits from their American Amigos. Normally, they receive 85-100 visitors in a year. It is hard to describe in writing the impact the American Amigos have on these children. They consider them family and cherish every card, letter, or Zoom call that comes from “Los Amigos.” Even at a time when we are all feeling terribly isolated, we can connect through technology. Amistad has a “Prayer Friends Program” which allows our parishoners of any age to “befriend a child“ with a commitment to pray for and communicate with them. Visitors to Villa Amistad are cherished. When the mission bus pulls up to Villa Amistad, the children’s excitement is electric. You suddenly realize that the tables have turned. Having thought you were coming to serve, you realize that you are the one being changed. Look at the eyes of the children in these pictures.

You will see Christ.

We are hopeful that these trips will begin again in the near future. Please prayerfully consider being a prayer friend for an Amistad child or visiting the Mission on our next trip.

For information on the Amistad Prayer Friends program, contact Terry Demler, tsdemler@gmail.com.

For information about this ministry, please contact Mark Demler, mdemler@comcast.net, or Kelly Reddell, kellyreddell@att.net.

AMISTADMISSION.ORG