A Brighter Tomorrow...

Summer in the Philippines is in full swing and not only has it brought in the heat, but also many opportunities for Lilia's Place to impact the young lives of our street children. In March, the doors of the Lilia's Place Mission House opened. Each week, we bring in some of our families for a visit. During these visits the families are given clean clothes, allowed to shower, and a nice lunch. Afterwards we visit with the families and get to know them as individuals. It was during these visits that we became aware of a huge problem facing the children.

On many of our trips to the streets during the school hours I would notice a large number of children. I was curious as to why they would rather be on the streets than in a classroom, so during our visits I would ask the children why they were not in school. The answers I received from both the kids and the parents was not something my heart was prepared to hear. In a nutshell, there were three major obstacles keeping our children from getting the education they deserved.

The first obstacle was a lack of a birth certificate. Because many of the children are literally born on the streets their births are not registered and if they are not registered, parents cannot obtain a birth certificate, which is a requirement for entering school. What really saddened me, was discovering that registering a birth and getting a birth certificate only cost 150 Pesos (app. $3). Yes, that may seem like very little to you and to me, but for these parents that do not know when their next meal will be, $3 may as well be $3,000. This was an easy obstacle to overcome! Lilia's Place team member, Rizal, helped many of our children get registered at the National Statistics Office.

The next obstacle is a little more challenging to overcome, no food to eat for lunch. Unlike schools in the states, lunches are not provided for students. The school day for children here in the Philippines usually starts around 7:00AM and ends around 4:00PM, or whenever the children finish cleaning the rooms and the grounds at the end of the day. For children who have had nothing to eat, this can make for a very long day. When your little tummy is roaring with hunger, it can be very difficult to concentrate on your studies. It is also despairing to see your classmates enjoying a nice lunch provided by their mommies and to not feel angry and resentful at your situation. With our funds being so limited it was frustrating to understand how we could help. We knew the children needed food to sustain them throughout the day. We prayed earnestly for a solution to this problem and God has provided. Doug had a friend, out of the blue, offer to donate a 25 Kilo bag of rice each month to Lilia's Place.  We are going to use this rice to begin a lunch feeding program for our kids three days a week. No, it doesn't completely solve the problem, but it is a start. Please keep this ministry in your prayers!

The third obstacle is the most challenging and the one that had me so angry I couldn't see straight! Because our children do not have a home address they are not issued text books, but yet they are still expected to complete their assignments. When they do not complete these assignments they are given failing marks. How many of us, as parents, would accept a teacher failing our child when they have not provided our child the necessary supplies to be successful? Yet, that is exactly what our parents must do because they have no voice and their children are seen as more of nuisance in an already overcrowded school system, than as a student with much potential. So how do we overcome this system when our children are set up for failure before they even enter the classroom? We have done much research on the issue and our next step is to meet with the school administration, since all of our children live in the streets of the same community, they all attend the same elementary school. Our plan is to get the textbooks assigned to Lilia's Place so that we may get them photocopied, yes it is legal here and to be honest, is what the majority of textbooks are. We are going to establish an after school tutorial program where our team will work with these kids to help them complete homework. We will also meet with the teachers of our children. Lilia's Place will be a voice for our street children. We want the school system to know that yes, these kids do matter and yes, they have someone that loves them and believes in them and we want to work together with you to give these kids a chance for a future.

Our team began a "summer school" campaign last month. Each Thursday our team takes to the streets and we do story time for the kids. As I read the story, the team acts out the story. The children and the parents love it! After story time, our team reads to the children individually and we have even distributed Children's Bibles to them. We have more summer fun activities planned to get the kids excited about entering school in June. Our slogan is, "A brighter tomorrow begins with school today."

I know many of you are probably wondering if all this time, energy and hard work are really going to make a difference. I don't know what the future holds, but what I do know, is that if we don't at least try, then all we are really doing every street feeding is feeding the next generation of homeless families. Norma is a perfect example of why I care. She is one of our street mothers. She has fifteen children and has been living on the streets for 18 years after losing her home in a fire. Norma now has three generations living on the streets with her. Just like us, she believes that an education for her children and grandchildren is the solution to getting them off the streets. Every school year she sends her children to school hoping that this year will be different from last year. That maybe someone will see what she sees in her children and help them to reach their full potential. I am praying that Lilia's Place is the answer to her prayers and that yes, this school year will be different for our street kids!

If you would like to help support us in this effort please contact me by email or on Facebook. We need lots of prayers and more financial support to help these children be successful.