Rescued

For the last two weeks, we have been working with the Rescue House. This is the house that we go out with on Friday nights to talk to the kids on the streets. They act as the first contact for kids to come into one of the other homes long term. Periodically, they also do a Triage of two weeks, where the kids come to stay and do an initial period of detoxing and adjusting to life in a home again. Last week, Rescue House started a new Triage.
So Monday, we went the slum to one of the boy’s house to pick him up for the start of the Triage. Bruno is 13 and has been coming to the program at the Lighthouse. At the house, his mom was there, where she, her partner and the 5 kids live in two rooms- one where they all sleep, and one for eating and living. So, why is Bruno coming to Triage if he has a home?
The favellas are run by drug lords. It has become so dangerous in these areas that the police refuse to enter them. Recently, Bruno began to get involved with the drug traffickers, running drugs and money back and forth to people. He became scared though, and didn’t want to do it anymore. Unfortunately, this is not something you can do. Currently, his life is under a death threat. Murder by drug lords is something that is expected if you decide to leave and so the staff needed to get him out of the area.
So, when at Bruno’s house, he wasn’t there. His mom sent his youngest brother to find him and bring him back. The brother returned saying that Bruno would not come. We waited. After awhile, Bruno did show up. However, after talking to the staff for a few minutes, he had to leave. Incredibly, he was in the middle of a drug deal at the time and had to return some money. We left, feeling heavy because of the uncertainty of the situation.
Wednesday when we went to the house though, Bruno was there! He had decided to come! He has such a gentle face. We spent the afternoon there, playing Uno with the boys and celebrating one of the staff’s birthdays. There are four boys in total, ages 11, 12, 13 and 14! They are a special bunch. While in the kitchen that day, I noticed one of the boys was missing a patch of hair at the back of his head and there were stiches sticking out. The staff told us later that his mom had been beating him. The 11 year old is especially interesting. His mother also lived on the street and three weeks ago, she was struck by a car and killed. We visited the extended family, who hadn’t found out for over two weeks since the death. This young boy is reeling from that, as well as going through withdrawl symptoms from crack cocaine. The staff have been working with him on the streets for some time now and are really hopeful for a change in his life. He is still so young.
If the boys do well over the next week, they will move here, to the house I’m staying with the other boys. Please pray for these boys over the next week, that they will be able to stick it out and start making some good relationships with the staff.