Puerto Alegria

Weekend in the Jungle

Posted on 1 Comment

Marcelo

This past weekend, I was able to return to Iquitos for a brief visit with a work team from Scotland. They were interested in seeing the jungle, Amazon River, our medical ministry and I was particularly interested in visiting the new Girasoles home in Iquitos and seeing some familiar faces at Puerto Alegria. Like Marcelo, above.

Since the group had quite a busy itinerary during their 2 weeks in Peru, they only had 48 hours in their schedule devoted to the jungle.

We managed to spend a few hours in Puerto Alegria, painting the faces of the 40 boys that live there.
A Tiger

And, we spent the evening at Girasoles Iquitos – the newest home for abandoned boys in the city.
Girasoles Iquitos

You might remember I wrote about a week I spent in Iquitos this past summer? During that week, I was working with another group from Scotland on the construction of the new home. We spent the week sanding, painting, plastering and all sorts of other things, preparing the building for its August inauguration.

On August 13th, 18 boys from Puerto Alegria made the transition from peaceful, quiet Puerto Alegria, to the busy, bustling city of Iquitos. All of the boys 14 years and older packed their belongings, said their goodbyes and moved to the city. While it was sad for many to be leaving a place they called home, the move to the city brings new opportunities; a better high school curriculum and a slow reintegration process back into the busy city life.

I was particularly excited to be visiting the home for the first time this past weekend. Over the past few summers, I have gotten to know quite a few of the older boys and have enjoyed their company over board games, stories and soccer games. When I left Puerto Alegria in August I was sad, knowing that the next time I came back, they would be on to bigger and better things, but also grateful and excited for the possibilities that were ahead of them.

Even though a couple months had passed since we had seen each other, the jokes and stories and laughter flowed as if it had just been a day or two. While our time visiting the home passed quickly, I am grateful for the brief opportunity to reconnect.

As the 25 boys in Iquitos continue the transition process and adjust to life in the city, I ask you to continue praying for them as they deal with larger class sizes, new staff workers, new boys in the program, temptations that come from living in the city, and separation from younger brothers at Puerto Alegria.

The 25 boys that live at Girasoles Iquitos (18 from Puerto Alegria, and 7 new to the program).
Girasoles Iquitos

The patio and bedrooms lit up at night.
Patio

Want to see more? More photographs can be found on Flickr.

Randy

Posted on Leave a Comment

What a month!

My younger brother, Randy, was able to spend the month of August here in Peru with me. As I was heading back to my apartment after leaving him at the airport on Friday night, I was thinking about all the things we did during the 24 days he was here…

We spent a 11 days in the jungle at our home for abandoned boys, Puerto Alegria.
Dining Room

Dairo

Dairo

Randy learned how to drive the big boat back to Puerto Alegria.
Randy driving the big boat

We learned how to drive a motorbike.
Randy and I

We spent the week in Lima.
Randy & me

And, we visited friends at Girasoles Ica.
Randy

Cristian

More photos from Randy’s month in Peru can be found on Flickr.

Jacobo

Posted on 1 Comment

Jacobo

Last week in Puerto Alegria, while I was sitting in the maloca (gazebo) down by the river, Jacobo wandered down to join me. He was carrying a book with him that a volunteer had left a few weeks earlier, Curious George. Seeing me sitting there in a hammock, he asked me if I wanted to read the book with him. Before I had a chance to say yes, he climbed into the hammock with me and opened the book to read about the mischievous little monkey and his friend with the yellow hat.

Jacobo came to our home in Puerto Alegria in February of this year through the medical ministry SU operates here in Iquitos. His path to Puerto Alegria is by no means the typical way our boys arrive to the house, but the situation he came from is representative of many.

At the end of January, a team of medical volunteers from the United Kingdom, the Peruvian medical staff and SU staff (including Billy) were working on the medical boat, Amazon Hope 1, providing medical and dental care to villages along the rivers in the Amazon jungle.

Near the end of their 10-day tour, they arrived in the village of Cochiquinas, close to the border of Peru and Brazil. A few minutes after they had docked the boat for the evening, a man approached and asked if the doctors could take an emergency appointment.

The man boarded the large medical boat with a frail boy in his arms. He explained that the boy had been out in the fields with his grandparents while they worked harvesting crops. While they were working, he had wandered away from the little hut he stayed at to go pick a ripe papaya he could see in a nearby tree. While standing at the tree, plotting how he would reach the papaya, a snake bit him between his toes on his left foot. Over the next 24 hours, with the help from his aunts and uncles, and various neighbors, Jacobo made the long journey back from the fields to his home in Cochiquinas, and into the care of a neighbor- the same man who brought Jacobo to the boat.

Immediately, the doctors on board began to treat him. The boat carries a large supply of medicines, including anti-venom medications. They were able to give him the medication, but could not guarantee that it would work since they need to be administered within 24 hours of being bit. By this time, 36 hours had already passed.

Over the next few hours, the medical team did the only thing they could do – keep Jacobo as comfortable as possible and pray for God to take care of him. Throughout the rest of the night, they did just that.

In the morning, things were looking much better for Jacobo as he received his second round of antibiotics. He had managed to sleep throughout the night, but was nowhere in the clear. He still needed more medical treatment. Upon finding out that his grandparents were unable to leave their work in the fields to come take care of their grandson, and with no legal guardian to take care of him, Jacobo remained on the Amazon Hope 1 medical boat. When the boat returned to Iquitos, Jacobo was brought to Puerto Alegria – our home for abandoned boys outside of the city.

Jacobo

After Curious George had saved the day yet again, I gave Jacobo a hug and we swung in the hammock discussing the book. He had never heard of Curious George and thought it was funny that a monkey lived in a house and rode a bicycle.

Jacobo, who didn’t know his birthday, age or last name, now has the opportunity to attend school, play with the other 46 boys at the home and learn about God and His awesome powers while at Puerto Alegria. He is a walking miracle and quite a testament to what God is able to do.

The Summer in Photos

Posted on Leave a Comment

Since I have returned to Lima and have access to both a functioning computer and fast internet, I have uploaded plenty of photographs from my 2 months in the Amazon jungle, at Puerto Alegria and Iquitos.

Here are just a sampling of what you will find on Flickr. (Be sure to check Flickr for the rest of the photos!)

Willinton, a 7 year old who is still learning Spanish. He speaks Tikuna.
Willinton

Luis, who at one time was the youngest of the house, has now grown up.
Luis

Parading with the antorchas, for Peru’s Independence Day.
Antorchas

Jherry and Veronica, the directors of Puerto Alegria, along with Hox, Romario and me.
Jherry, Hox, Romario and Veronica

My brother Randy came to visit, and we learned how to drive a motorbike – something I have wanted to do for the past 2 years.
Randy and I

The three Comeque Coello brothers – Luis Enrique, Harold and Xavier, plus little Alvaro in the red.
Brothers and Alvaro

Bryan and Dexter, two brothers who are nothing alike.
Bryan and Dexter

Rene, Mario and Leyner
Rene, Mario and Leyner

Translating for Jherry
Translating

The 47 Girasoles boys, plus staff at Puerto Alegria.
the 47

Jacobo, God’s miracle from the Amazon Hope.
Jacobo

Jherry with the 18 high school boys that moved back to Iquitos to continue their studies in the city.
High School Boys

And, that was just a small sampling of what you will find on Flickr.

A Week in Iquitos

Posted on 1 Comment

For the first time in three summers, I had the opportunity to spend an entire week in the city of Iquitos. Usually, I spend a few months living at our Girasoles home for abandoned boys in Puerto Alegria – about 45 minutes outside of the city – and spend a day here and there in the city of Iquitos, but I would always return to Puerto Alegria at the end of the day.

As our Girasoles program for abandoned boys grows, there has been a need to expand the home and property into two separate locations and have a home in Puerto Alegria, and another home in the city of Iquitos. As we already own property in the city, it was decided that the younger, elementary aged boys would remain in Puerto Alegria, while the older high school boys would move back into the city to continue their education in high school. This provides them with and opportunity for a better high school and a slow reintegration process back into the busy city life.

Before the older boys can move back to Iquitos, our current property needed to be remodeled to accommodate the 40 boys that will eventually live and study there. To help with the construction, I spent a week in the city with a volunteer group from Scotland. We spent 5 days working at the construction site, plastering the brick walls and painting the new bedrooms that the boys will someday live in.

The building is not complete yet, but sometime in the next month, our high school boys at Puerto Alegria will make the move back to the city. For some, this means they will be leaving a place they have called home for many years and others will be leaving younger brothers behind. And for all, this means they are leaving the quiet, peacefulness of Puerto Alegria and returning to the bustling city.

As the they spend their last few weeks with us in Puerto Alegria, I ask you to join me in praying for the 19 high school boys that will make the transition from one home to another and start a new chapter in their lives.