October 2026 News Letter

When Martina was 16 years old she fell from the second floor of her house and suffered severe bleeding in her brain. Her parents were poor and suffered from chronic alcoholism. She was taken to the hopital, but received limited help and permanently lost her eye sight.

   The government hospitals being as they are, had no resources to to help Martina; and her alcoholic parents being who they were, put her in a small room in the back of the house and locked her in. She doesn’t know how long she was locked way but it was put in terms of years. When her mother died, then things got worse because her father began assaulting her. Then he died her brothers and sisters sold the house and took Martina with them.

In   Over time, the money from the sale was spent, and an Martina’s situation became increasingly difficult. Now her siblings tell her that they can no longer care for her, and that she needs to find somewhere else to live. Currently she is living outside with her brothers and sisters families livig inside.

She may remain there until one or two in the morning, hoping that a neighbor will come outside and notice her. Sometimes, a neighbor will see her, take pity on her, and bring her into their home.

Martina is currently 51 years of age , and like the stories of Maria and her special needs daughter Ilma who is 28 years old, all of them have special needs, exaggerated by years of abandonment and homelessness. They are limited in how well they can care for themselve, and are not particulaly emploable at this point, but we still have hope. We have been delayed in our remodeling but hoping to see the backlog of the builder finish the work they started, you praer that they completeb the work they 3/4 of the way finished. Our three sister are still looking forwrd to the first permanent home they have ever lived in. Your prayers are appreciated.

Above all we pray to be, everything God has called us to be, as a Holy Spirit filled ministry, overflowing with God’s grace to address the healing  needs of those, whose memories have been so wounded and disfigured by domestic abuse, there is not much left of them; they have no real skills that they can say are going to sustain them, and have no family claim for them. We pray that we might be in our own humble way, a dream come true, for those who have never felt at home. We are ¾ of the way home financially, times are tough and may get tougher, but we are filled as always with gratitude for your prayers and donations in this hour. Blessings of grace and peace from Guatemala, Neil