I Thought My Missions Trip Was to Help Orphans
I was surprised to discover whose life changed the most
Back when I was thoroughly ensconced in churchianity, Franklin Graham did a guest presentation at the mega-church I attended. His charity, Samaritan’s Purse, had semi-truck loads of “Christmas Shoe Boxes” which had been donated by churches all over the country. Each box was loaded with both toys and practical needs like socks and toothbrushes.
He was there to assemble a large team of volunteers who would help distribute boxes and entertain kids on El Día Del Niño, an annual Children’s Day festival held in Juarez, Mexico. He tugged on our heartstrings by describing that many of the children we’d be meeting spent their days as scavengers in the city dumps. They were looking for food and home goods that could take back to their families — if they had families.
Of course, I went.
My whole life has been focused on helping children. When I was growing up my Mama took in foster children, mostly babies and toddlers. Even when I was a kid, five years old and beyond, I often had a tiny infant in my arms. Mama specialized in “failure to thrive” premature babies. When abandoned babies, especially the ones born with drug addictions, started losing weight in the NICU they placed the babies with Mama as a last resort. We used near-constant skin contact to comfort them. It worked. The babies were returned to human resources to be placed with relatives or new families after they gained up to a normal birth weight. We had over a hundred infants come through our home in the sixties and seventies.
I became a lawyer and was appointed over many years to represent hundreds of children in crisis as their guardian ad litem. I also served as an assistant attorney general protecting abused kids. Their stories were often gut-wrenching. I retired from my service to kids and families after having a stroke. I hit a point where I could no longer hold the sorrow of all the people I sought to help.
I joined dozens of people from our church as we took vans down to Juarez. We were excited and motivated. On our first couple of days, we helped with the construction of an orphanage. I had done some light construction and framing, but in that area wood was unavailable. They taught me to build rooms with concrete and steel beams. In the evenings we had dinner with some of the kids who would be living in the structure when it was complete.
It was hard work but very rewarding.
On Children’s Day, we set up dozens of large tents for shoe box distribution and also for activities and games. Some of us dressed as clowns.
Thousands of kids came. It was overwhelming. My job was to greet each child in line, take their hand, and draw a cross with a sharpie so the team would know they had received a gift box. While I drew the cross I spoke a blessing over each one — hundreds of them. The joyous looks on their faces when they got their box made me cry.
I looked over and saw dozens of adults in line near the semi-trucks. I asked a Samaritan’s Purse employee if they had something for them. He said they were hoping to get the huge boxes where the shoe boxes had been stored. I asked why in the world would the adults want those. He said, “Housing.” My mind was blown.
On the way back I somehow ended up in the van with national staff from Samaritan’s Purse. I was overwhelmed and weeping. I told the man who was driving that I was so grateful to be able to come down and help those kids and for the privilege of making a difference in their lives.
He looked over at me and said, “We didn’t bring you down here to help the kids, we brought you to Juarez to change YOU.”
I’ll never get over that.
I’ve had an amazing life and look forward to telling you many more poignant and amazing stories. Please follow me and consider buying me a beverage by clicking here. Thank you.
