by Lisa Steele, FLM Executive Director

En Español

Thirty years ago, LaRue Hilton had the vision to help the vulnerable children of Catacamas, Honduras. She and her husband, Richard, visited Honduras and decided to pursue an adoption. They saw a great need but could not adopt every vulnerable child. Instead, they purchased a house in this small, growing town surrounded by mountains and need and began caring for orphaned, vulnerable, and abandoned children. They soon realized they needed more space, so they found four acres of land on the outskirts of Catacamas and began building residential homes for children. So many (including many of you reading this) answered the call to help build the Por Los Niños village.

Over the years, our village has changed to meet the community's needs. We have fewer children living on our campus. Many have graduated or have been reintegrated into their biological family. We have found that there are fewer "orphans," but the needs of vulnerable children and families are still great. Families need resources and tools to stay together. In the past, parents would leave their children at Por Los Niños because they could not afford to feed them. Or perhaps it was a single-parent household. Or the child was simply abandoned, but few were true orphans.

Today, we know that when families have the needed resources and tools to stay together through our Family Preservation Program, they can remain together as God intended. When a family has a safe and healthy house, they have a stable place to live. When families receive parenting classes and workshops, we provide them with the tools to stay together. When children have access to a quality Christian education, they have a foundation for a better life. When abandoned babies are placed with Christian foster families, they thrive. And when families have access to spiritual help via the local church and our spiritual coordinator, they are connected and become part of a church family.

How we serve the community has changed over the past 30 years, but our mission remains the same: "to partner with God to place the lonely in families." Many times we place children back into their biological families when possible. This is often hard work. We provide care and guidance through our social worker, psychologist, community spiritual coordinator, and Honduras Children's Services. A biological family may be the child's parent(s), but often it is an older sibling, a grandparent, or an aunt or uncle. Whoever it is, they go through a stringent process with our staff to ensure their home is healthy and they have the tools needed to thrive.

By reaching out to the community of Catacamas, we are working toward our vision "to bring hope, health, and stability to the community with the church leading the way." That brings spiritual, economic, psychological, and academic help to a needy community. It will serve and teach and change family trees forever.

We are thankful for the vision, dedication, and foresight of LaRue and Richard Hilton 30 years ago. And we are grateful that God continues to guide us in the best ways to serve the Catacamas community. And as always, we are thankful for our many supporters who remember us in their prayers and faithfully give in many ways.

Happy 30^th Anniversary, Family Life Missions!