Geovadny House Project

 

What do you do when you see a child who is on the street the moment you leave your home early in the morning and remain there when you arrive home late at night?  Do you stop to ask them who they are or why they are on the streets and not in school? You will find that in many cases, that child has minimal to no education and eats the leftovers found on a table, food that have been handed to them or found in a garbage can.  You might also find that these children spend the day selling everything from flowers, sweets to jewelry. What do you do?

 

Over the years of her travel to Mexico, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Guatemala and other countries of the like, our Dr. Smith has witnessed firsthand these children who live on the streets and learn at an early age to provide for themselves and their families.  On several occasions, Dr. Smith engaged some of the children in conversation and learned that many of them did not have an option. They had younger siblings to provide for or due to the situation at home were forced to leave school and help the family. 

 

Last summer, while at a restaurant in Panahachel, two children approached Dr. Smith and the group of students who were with her to sell their goods.  Instead of purchasing the items, Dr. Smith invited the two to join them for lunch.  They gladly accepted and sat down at a table adjacent to the group.  Dr. Smith ordered a simple lunch of chicken, beans, and fries along with a soda.  In just a short while, the two struck up a conversation with the group.  The boy who was the older and should have been enrolled in the 6th grade, shared that his mother told him that now that he finished the fifth grade, he needed to go to work to help support the family.  He and his younger sister took the lancha, a small boat, daily to cross over to panahachel where there were many tourists from all over.  At the end of each day, this little boy and his sister would return home. In contrast to their story, is that of Cleity and her siblings.

 

In the Loma del Viento of Zacapa, Dr. Smith met and fell in love with a family of seven siblings.  Cleity and her brothers ranged in age from 5 to 14.  They lived with a grandmother who could not provide for them.  Their mother was rarely in their lives.  Dr. Smith learned that once again, mom was once again pregnant.  These children lived on and off of the streets.  They wore the same clothes everyday and most times wore no shoes as they ran the dirt roads.  These little ones lacked a stable roof over their heads, a healthy meal daily, and someone to love them.  Dr. Smith learned that their story was not the exception but the norm.  In fact, such was the case in many of the places LWBI has traveled to. 

 

The goal of LWBI for the Cleity’s of the world is to build Geovadny Homes.  These homes are not orphanages. They are homes to service between 6-8 children.  In these homes, children who have been abandoned, abused, and or rejected will have a safe place in which to live.  They will receive the social, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual supports they will need as they grow and reenter their society. In contrast to an orphanage, Geovadny homes are small intimate homes allowing the house parent to better meet the individual needs of their residents.

 

Partner with LWBI today and help us build the first of many Geovadny Homes.