The importance of keeping vulnerable children in families - Isabella's story

One of our main goals throughout the Kids Alive ministry is family reunification. For example, in our Oasis project in Guatemala, our team of social workers and psychologists work very hard to come alongside the girls’ families and offer them support and resources. If immediate or extended family placement is not an option, we have our foster family programme. Families in the community, through the churches we partner with, open their hearts and homes to our precious girls as they continue to heal and learn to lean into the victory and abundant life that Christ has for them.

By the end of 2021, the Oasis celebrated having more than 30 girls go home with a family this year!

Isabella* (17) went home with her grandmother this autumn after living at the Oasis for some years. After we had been working with her for seven months, she shared this with us during one of her sessions: 

“I’m thankful God brought me to a place like the Oasis. It has been hard at times, but I am not the same girl I was when I first arrived. I am excited to be with my family, but I am sad to leave behind everyone here. 

Thank you for everything. You [Isabella’s counsellor] are a special person to me. I could share what goes on in my heart and my struggles with you. I learned I love art and I can see how I have advanced and grown. I can share my testimony with others and encourage them the way I have been  encouraged. I am thankful to God for this time at the Oasis.”

Isabella, along with the other 30+ girls who went home this year, still has mountains to climb and valleys to traverse as they continue on their journeys of restoration and reclaimed stories. God has such rich and beautiful plans for each one of them. I can’t wait to see how He will use the testimonies of His precious daughters to shine light in the darkness.

* name changed for privacy

Read more about our work at the Oasis Centre in Guatemala here

Read more about our work with art therapy here