Archive for 31 December 2005

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December 2005 Newsletter

31 December 2005

It has been a joyous December at Hogar de Esperanza. There has been a massive outpouring of gifts to children of the Orphanage. What has really been special is that the Peruvians have given a great deal of gifts and have spent time in visiting. The 24th of December we had a special dinner for the children with a presentation of gifts and a program. The staff and the children want to thank all the people that sent gifts this year.

Vickie and I would like to thank the students of Michelle Elias and Michelle herself for the tremendous passion in supporting Hogar de Esperanza. Michelle’s Christmas concert featured 35 of her students who sang for over two hours. A DVD was made of the concert with all the proceeds going towards the orphanage. Seeing as this has been such a success, Michelle is looking at putting on another series of concerts this summer to continue to raise funds for the children of the orphanage. Michelle Elias along with Paul Roy have called the project “Kids helping Kids”. A website is being developed called http://www.kidshelpingkidsfoundation.com to provide a way for Canadian kids to help the children of Peru and specifically the children at the Hogar de Esperanza!

Looking toward the new year we want to continue developing the educational system we have at the Ranch and Orphanage. The Ranch is especially challenging because the boys are 13-15 and come in having very little interest in educating themselves. We are working on programs where the boys take on responsibility like farming chores in the morning and in the afternoon and are giving individual studies including technical skills training. The program is bearing fruit with several of the older boys taking on a lot of responsibility. Also they are excelling in their studies and spiritual growth. At the orphanage, we are working on obtaining more library books and refining our basic curriculum.

Also, I would like to put out a call to everyone that we have 13 boys and girls that would love to have a father and mother. If you know of anyone that is thinking of adoption, please have them contact me. Thank you for all of your support and que Dios Les bendiga.

Chau,

Dave

November 2005 Newsletter

30 November 2005

Count your blessings, name them one by one. Well, November was a month of bountiful blessings. We had a Christian couple, Matthew and Amanda, come from Illinois to volunteer for 4 weeks. Before they left, they talked to their church about the needs the orphanage had for Spanish books. After their presentation, they collected an offering of $2,000.00. Matthew and Amanda along with David Alenskis, our long term volunteer, went out shopping for books. I am enclosing a short excerpt from the e-mail that I received from David.

“Lots of changes are happening, and things are really looking good. I’ve spent quite a bit of time trying to buy books with Matthew and Amanda, as that has been a fairly involving process: we have a huge mass of books, and we haven’t even spent $1,000.00 yet while the sum is twice that (although we have bought tables and shelves and such as well). I would estimate $800 left to buy books. It’s a beautiful thing, and that Albergue workers such as Liz and Aracely and Alex are rejoicing in the bounty, although cursing their fate at the same time, as they have to cover each book (an incredibly tedious task, I have to say).”

The ranch is coming along well with eight teenage boys in the program. A Canadian supporter Paul Roy is trying to get funds for a technical school in the orphanage. The program objective is best phrased by Paul: “I was thinking that it might be possible with the help of CIDA to open a small trade school located directly on the grounds of the orphanage that would provide skill training such as welding, drafting, electrical training, woodworking, and computer skills for the teens that currently reside at Hogar de Esperanza. I also think that it would be wonderful to provide this skills training to not only the young teens within Hogar, but to provide the skills to many of the young teens in the immediate Salaverry area that cannot afford the costs associated with schooling.” Pray that God will work this out.

We want to thank all our supporters for the financial gifts and the Christmas gifts to the children of the orphanage. This year will be very special for them.

Chau,

Dave

October 2005 Newsletter

31 October 2005

The last two weeks of October, Vickie and I have been at the orphanage. It is always great to see and hug the children. This month’s update is focusing on the Ranch (a home for boys ages 12-17). This ministry is a real challenge with a lot of ups and downs. We have been developing a program over the last year whereby the boys grow spiritually, mentally and physically. The spiritual part involves asking pastors from the city of Trujillo to come to the orphanage and give courses in Biblical study. We also take them to church Sunday morning and evening.

Educating the boys is accomplished by sending them to special schools during the week. These schools teach basic education in which after completion a student can earn an equivalent high school diploma. Some of the boys are taking special technical training courses to develop a skill for future employment.

The physical part is doing various tasks around the Ranch, such as putting up fences, building the stall, feeding the horse, and harvesting the corn and the alfalfa. Some of the boys have been so physically tired that they have to take naps during the day. For the last two weeks I have been working with them and feel physically beat up.

The long term goal of the program is to prepare them to be responsible men who can break the cycle in Peru of being abusive and irresponsible to their family.

Thanks for your prayers for the orphanage and the Ranch.

God bless you.

Chau,

Dave

September 2005 Newsletter

30 September 2005

In September we focused on our educational system in the orphanage. The problem we have is that the children that come to us, in general, have little or no formal education. That means that we have children who are 12 years old and are in second grade. This presents us with the situation of sending a 12 year old to a second grade classroom, which socially and intellectually will not work out. Thus, we have to have our own special school in the orphanage. With the special school we have tried different methods and now we are testing individual study with a licensed school teacher. It is working and the children are doing well. Our goal with the special school is to bring them into public schooling.

Another item that we are focused on is our library at the orphanage. In Peru, there are very few libraries, and they are very inadequate. Our goal here is to build our library with good Spanish books so that the children can open up their world. We currently have 50 Spanish books that are geared mostly toward preschool age students. About 20 books are geared to 4th grade and above. We welcome gifts of Spanish books from groups and individuals that would like to contribute. The library is probably our best tool in giving our children a good education.

We are also focused on using the laptop computers that were donated to us incorporating them into educating our children. Right now, we are teaching classes and developing their skills. These classes are very difficult to teach to young children, but we are having some success. The next step is to teach them about the computer and then have them start on some educational programs.

The last item we are focusing on is teaching English to our children. It seems in Peru that when you have a good command of English then a lot of educational opportunities open up as well as job openings. The volunteers that come from the U.S., Canada and England help to teach these classes.

I would like to invite everyone to our new revised website at http://www.perukids.com. Paul Roy dedicated a lot of time and energy to improving this site.

Thanks for all the prayer and financial support.

Chau,

Dave

August 2005 Newsletter

28 August 2005

I would like to start with the most important event this month. Manuel (a 5 year old boy) was adopted by a couple from Italy. He had a very tough life. His parents abandoned him when he was two years old. He was then adopted by a Peruvian couple who also abandoned him after 18 months. He came to the orphanage about a year ago with a lot of behavioral problems. We were fortunate to have a Psychologist from the U.S. come and evaluate Manuel. Dr. Roland came up with some very practical ways of helping him adjust. After a year at Hogar, Manuel really turned around. Pray that all goes well with his new family.

We have really started focusing on our children who are far behind in their studies. We have been evaluating several curricula, and have decided to pick one and start. We have hired a new teacher and bought the curriculum. We want to develop a good system that could possibly be used at other orphanages. Also, with the new curriculum, we are going to incorporate the laptop computers that were donated to us. Our goal is to prepare each child to be able to go on to college or technical school.

The boys ranch is growing with two more fellows. We have planted about 25 acres of grain, so we will be able to have our own milk, eggs and meat. The boys are given a lot of responsibility and are taught life skills. We have a short term volunteer who has been working at the ranch and has developed a real friendship with the boys. The boys call him King Kong because David is 6′ 4″ and weights 275 lbs.. That is almost double the size of some of the boys.

This summer we had 4 groups come to the orphanage and do various things around the premises. Our most popular chore is painting the facility. Being locate in the desert we get sand blasted everyday and it really works on metal and concrete walls. If you would like to bring a group to Peru, just send me an email at mrdavidmiller@hotmail.com.

Thanks for the prayer and financial support and we would love to hear from you.

Dave Miller

July 2005 Newsletter

28 July 2005

Things have been really exciting around Hogar de Esperanza. Tim and Susan Striebeck have taken Yan and Roxanna back to the U.S., which means a whole different life for both of them. Pray that all goes well for them and their new parents.

Another exciting thing happened in July when a couple from greater Kansas City area came to the orphanage with a youth group and felt called by God to adopt Yessenia and Paul. Brady and Trish came to the orphanage to minister to the children, but found themselves attracted to Yessenia and Paul. Brady wrote an email to me when he got back to KC, and said that he and Trish missed them a lot even though they hardly knew them. He then wrote, “that must be a God thing”.

We are also excited about our new director of the Ranch, Renato. He is a single guy who has worked at a drug program in Lima, and he is excited about the challenges ahead. We also finished the second floor of the Ranch which will increase our capacity from 6 to 25.

There children entered the orphanage that came from Southern Peru. Their mother died of cancer and their father died 15 days later of a heart attack. The children ages are 7, 5 and 1 1/2 years of age. The first day they came into the orphanage, the 7 year old boy was eating in the cafeteria and his mouth was even with the plate, and he was scraping rice directly into his mouth. I would do the same if I was on the bus for 3 days with little food.

We have had a great number of visitors in July. A church group of 17 from KC, two women from Great Britain, a young man from Indiana. David Alenski, who will be here for one year, Samantha who is from Virginia and has been here 6 weeks, the Roy family from Toronto Canada, who have stayed 10 days and a church group of 4 from Shenandoah Iowa, who are here a week.

Vickie and I really appreciate your prayers and your financial support for the ministry. Also, if you would like a DVD, we will be glad to send it to you. Just email me at mrdavidmiller@hotmail.com. Gracious por su support.

Dave Miller

June 2005 Newsletter

30 June 2005

Sharing a letter from Heather to Vickie:

Dear Vickie,

Things are going really well here. The Striebecks are so so excited to finally be here and be reunited with Yan and Roxana. I know it is a very emotional time for everyone, and it is hard for them to be “on stage” all the time, with people watching to see how they interact. Today is the “Acto de Externamiento” and then Liz says there are the 5 days of “empatia” to see how they all get along. But everything seems to be going smoothly. And Yan and Roxana are so excited. It is a special time. I wanted to let you know that mom is sending a small small package to you for me. And also, she ordered some Spanish kids books that could be arriving to your house. She wasn’t sure if they would get there on time. So if they don’t make it, they can just be brought down at a later trip. She has really gotten into finding books for the kids. She ordered a bunch of books and sent them to Samantha to bring down. I thought I would give you the info on the place she is ordering them from in case you also want to check into it. “I ordered about a dozen books from CBD (Christian Book Distributors), so hopefully, they will arrive on time before the Millers leave. Some are back ordered and like you said, they can bring them another time. Please let them know so they will know what it is when it comes.” She ordered them from Scholastic. The phone number is 1-800-724-6527 and the website is www.scholastic.com. My mom got a set of the Clifford books and the Magic School Bus. It could be neat to get a list going of what we have and what we want, so if people are ever interested in donating books they could just order them online. The books my mom is sending to you were ordered from CBD (Christian Book Distributors). I have a feeling they might not make it to your house in time because my mom said some of the books had to be back ordered.

So, maybe just the next time you come down you can bring them. I am working on starting a little reading program for the kids. I want to start with the older kids first to see how it goes. Liz thinks it is a good idea. I want to set various reading goals for them and have them work on the goals and then receive a little surprise, like ice cream in Trujillo, etc.. We’ll see how it works. Liz wanted me to also write to you about Lazaro. Apparently, it seems that it might be necessary for him to be pulled out of the special ed school in Salaverry. I know we had highly considered this when school started. But Liz and the Madres felt that it was better he stay. The problem is not that he is being harmed or that the teachers don’t take care of him. What has occurred is that the other parents have been complaining, saying that the teachers give too much attention to Lazaro and neglect the other kids. They know that Lazaro requires a lot more attention than the rest. I’m not sure what the best solution is. Sarita had a meeting with Liz and presented her ideas. For the month of June, Mariyi has been on “vacation”. So there is no helper in the morning for the Tesoros. But in the afternoon, Flor’s daughter is taking her place. Sarita has realized that it is not entirely necessary to have a helper in the morning, she has been getting along without a problem. The only time it is a problem is when one of the moms has to leave to take a child to a doctors appointment, because they don’t have Mariyi to fill in. However, Sarita is thinking maybe Mariyi could be better used in the mornings if she focuses on Lazaro. Lazaro would stay home and work with Mariyi instead of going to school. They were thinking that Mariyi would spend some days at the special ed school to get an idea of what they do so she can work with him. The other option is sending him to a private school. The cost is around 120 soles, more or less. Liz thought we could wait for you to come to ask you about this. But I thought perhaps it is better to let you know right away so that you can be thinking it over and so we can all make the best decision.

One other thing, the after school program is going really well with the tutoring. I know you are probably all packed, but we have been using those plastic drawers in the closet to give out prizes to the kids each week, in accordance with their behavior and efforts made according to the stars they receive in their folders. They like the prizes, but if you have any random little toys or prizes, or anything you think the kids might like, feel free to bring them. Some of the kids were asking for “juegos de razonamiento”, which I think they want reasoning games, like memory, etc.. They pretty much like any prize though. But I know I am asking so late, and you are coming soon. So don’t worry.

They did buy sweatshirts for the “Ranch boys”! Yeah! I’m so glad. And they got some clothes for them because they are going to a “banquete de jovenes” tomorrow night. Myself and the other girl volunteers are going too. It should be fun. I’m singing a song with Lelders, the oldest boy. He wrote a song on the guitar, and it is beautiful. It is amazing to see how they are finding their talents and using them for the Lord!

Also, Amelia will be leaving the 14th. So, she won’t be here when the group is here. Also, is the older person, “Gene”,who is coming a male or female?  Just curious, so we can make sure with the rooming arrangements. Probably David Fhon already asked you.

Okay, I think that is all! I am excited to see you all soon!

Love,

Heather

Dave Miller

May 2005 Newsletter

12 May 2005

Tim and Susan Stiebeck have finally heard from Lima that they have been approved for adopting our oldest boy, Yan, and his sister, Roxanna. The process has taken approximately 9 months since the Stiebeck’s decided to adopt. They are willing to help other couples that are ready to adopt with valuable information on the process. The orphanage has about 7 children that can be adopted immediately.

This month we are having a record number of short term volunteers that are coming to Hogar de Esperanza to help. We are using them to teach English to the children, also they help the children do special learning projects and help with painting the facility. We are encouraging other people to come, and if you are interested, please send me and email.

The second floor of the Ranch is completed, and we are now finishing the interior. Right now we have six young boys ages 12-16 in the program, and with the addition of the second floor, we will have a capacity of 24 more. We specifically need young men to volunteer and come to the Ranch and tutor 5 young boys in learning life skills. For the men volunteers, a good working knowledge of Spanish would be important.

We want to thank everyone for the donations that are given every month to help support the ministry. We also want to invite anyone who has a passion to help in this ministry. Please email me at mrdavidmiller@hotmail.com. Thanks so much for your support.

David Miller

April 2005 Newsletter

12 April 2005

In one day we saw an increase of 5 children. It was one of the most incredible days I have seen. A van came to the orphanage in the afternoon from social services. When it parked I heard a lot of crying and screaming. A gentleman and lady exited the van and asked me if I wanted to house 14 children immediately. The request knocked me off my feet.

What happened was that the police department decided in the morning to clear some of the streets of children’s gangs. They did not inform us of their intentions before they started rounding up the children. I asked them how many children there were that were 7 and younger, and they said five. So, I said I would take them into the orphanage, however, the children would not get out of the van, and a 13 year old boy, who was their leader defended the boys. So there we were, the young boys screaming and crying, holding on to the 13 year old boy. One of the social workers grabbed one of the 5 year olds and was then in a tug of war with the other children. The social worker had the child’s two arms, and the rest of the children grabbed the child’s two legs. The child was suspended in mid air crying and yelling. What a scene! This went on for several minutes. Finally, the social workers prevailed and wrestled the child away. To get the 5 children out of the van took 20 minutes. We took the children to their dormitory and gave them new clothing, a bed, and a good meal. The next day they were calmed down and enjoyed the orphanage. We found out later the reason the children were so upset was that they thought we were going to take them and beat them like their parents.

In March, we had an eye clinic for 550 persons over the age of 55. We wanted older adults to come so we could also identify if they had cataracts or other diseases. We are working with the Trujillo Lions Club’s program of cataract removal. Trujillo Lions Club donates 100,000 dollars a year to the local University to do 1000 cataract operations. I am working with the Lions International to get a grant to buy up-to-date equipment, so with 100,000 dollars from Trujillo Lions Club as a possibility, next year we will be able to do 2000 cataract operations.

Our children started school in March. We started a special school at the orphanage for children that are slow learners and are way behind. We have 5 in that school and one Peruvian teacher that conducts the program. We also have one student who is gifted, and a family from Canada has sponsored her to go to a private school. The other children go to public school.

We started construction on the second floor of the Ranch. This will increase our capacity to 30 young boys. Also, we started planting crops around the ranch so we will be self sufficient in food and milk. This program gives the boys work and responsibility and develops good character. Our goal is to develop Godly leaders for Peru.

I would like to encourage all our supporters to pray for Hogar de Esperanza and maybe plan some day to come and help. Thanks so much for your support.

David Miller

February 2005 Newsletter

12 February 2005

February is a month for enrolling the children in school, and also, we had enough sponsors to send twenty children to a week of camp. We are going to start a program for the challenged learners at the orphanage. We will have five children in that program with a Peruvian teacher. Also, we will have children in the public as well as a private school. In all, we have 5 different places we take children to learn.

This month we had a number of children enter the orphanage and are now up to 45 children. We have a crash program of painting the casitas and decorating them with curtains and furniture. The children are now enjoying summer break with activities on the beach and playing on the playground equipment.

We are planning to have another eye clinic in March. This time we are having people 55 and older to the clinic so we can identify more people for cataracts. We would like to identify about 300 people for this disease so that we can bring in a team of eye surgeons for one week to do the procedures.

We are having a lot of people give clothing and money for the children in the orphanage. And believe me, that support really helps meet the cost of running the home. On March 15th, we take a group of supporters to Trujillo, Peru packing about 300 pounds of clothing, computers and televisions. Those 5 foot army duffle bags can take a lot. Muchas gracias for all the support.

David Miller

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