Hi Everyone,I was fortunate enough to travel to Mexico and visit the orphanage that we support as a church. Gwen Edwards and Emily Wagner from KidzLife also came and had a great time hanging out with the kids there. In the next couple of blog posts I will share some more pictures and stories about what we experienced there. First, though, I want to share the story of Lupita, who you see pictured between NLCC member Dave Bourbinay and his son, Jonah.
Lupita was found going from truck stop to truck stop in Baja California when she was 7 years old. She was brought to the Casa Hogar orphanage by the authorities. This is the orphanage that we help support as a church.
Devon and Cindy Dickinson, former members of New Life Community Church, began to work with Casa Hogar in 1998; around the same time Lupita arrived there. Devon had a friend who was in medical school at the time and thought it would be a great idea to bring him down to Mexico to perform some minor health check ups. When he got to Lupita, he noticed she had a heart "murmur" of sorts. He believed it to be unique enough that it warranted further investigation. Mexican physicians confirmed that Lupita had a hole in her heart.
Lupita, being extremely young, said that she remembered having surgery at an earlier age, but couldn't provide any more information than that. Devon and his friend were able to get travel papers for Lupita to be seen by a heart specialist at Loma Linda University.
Her condition was so serious that the doctor said he couldn't explain why she was still living and breathing. The good news was that Lupita's serious condition was operable. The bad news was that, even with Loma Linda's kindness and generosity, the surgery would still cost around $50,000.
A group of concerned members from our church sprang into action and started to "shop" heart surgery rates.
God provided. The pediatric heart specialist team at Cedars Sinai was able to provide the surgery for $20,000. The funds were raised and Lupita had the surgery.
As a testament to the toughness of this young girl, she had open-heart surgery on a Wednesday and was released on a Sunday evening .........that's one tough 12 year old!
During the next year and a half, Lupita stayed with different NLCC families while commuting back and forth from the orphanage in Mexico so she could see her doctors for follow up.
Lupita just celebrated her Quincenerra Fiesta for a Mexican girl's 16th birthday. She has a strong faith in our Lord and has personal, first hand experience of His grace and healing. She has made strong ties to friends on both sides of the border.
God truly provided “New Life” to this young girl. Lupita's story is awesome and inspirational, but not rare. Each one of the 90+ children and adolescents at the orphanage have unique and amazing stories to share. God says He will neither leave us nor forsake us. When we are dealing with our own difficult times, let us all remember the strength, courage, and faith that these children have shown us.
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