This past summer David Holbrook, co-founder of Caroline's Promse was blessed to take a team to Guatemala City. At the beginning of the week he was overwhelmed by the projects that needed to be completed. The number of men in the community around Casita Adonai seems to dwindle each year. Many have moved away and those that are there are busy working when they can find jobs. This leaves very few in the church who can do basic maintenance. One of the goals of Caroline's Promise is to invest in these young men, husbands, and fathers and equip them to meet the needs they see at the church and school. Douglass is a leader in the church who spends countless hours helping out when he's not looking for employment. He spent every day with David. These guys had a full plate of projects to complete in one short week.
To make matters a little more interesting, the guys had to work around 100 kids who were in school each day until 12:30pm. This made life interesting to say the least! One day as our team was holding a P.E. class, David stopped long enough to watch a little boy who had caught his eye. Cesar is 8 years old and when he heard that they would be learning to jump rope, he looked panicked! David was drawn to Cesar and the coach in him decided he would try to help.
He grabbed a translator and began to show Cesar how to do it. He began to verbally affirm Cesar and would not let him quit or say "I can't do it."
Over the course of the next few days David would stop working long enough to greet Cesar, give him a high five, and teach him a few more skills. It seems so simple - just encouraging a child. But many of these kids have only the love and affirmation of their teachers at Casita. A lot of them don't get it at home. And, based on the number of men in the community, it's pretty clear that few of them have strong, positive men investing in their lives.
It mattered that David was there. Not just because of the physical tasks he and Douglass accomplished. But because Cesar needed him.
At the end of the week we all celebrated as Cesar jumped rope by himself. Words could never describe the smile on his face! Or the feeling in David's heart.
Cesar is one of approximately 40 children at Casita Adoani who need a sponsor. Is God asking you to invest in his life so that he can remain in the safe, positive, atmosphere of Casita Adonai?
For more information visit our Child Sponsorship Page.