Pamela: our typical, yet not-so-typical teen

Originally posted November 26, 2013

By Michael Carson

-PAMELA IS SPONSORED FOR BEACH CHRISTMAS 2013-

Parenting makes you feel sorry for your own parents, but parenting a teenager just makes you feel down right embarrassed for all the stupid things you ever said to old mom and dad. My teenager Pamela exhausts me with her general 14-year-old-ness, but my fourteen-year-old girl has a big heart for helping others and taking care of her little siblings.

Pamela has spent most of her life raising her siblings. Her biological mom is less than superb at motherhood similar to her mother before her. For a lot of Pamela’s life, Belkis would leave all the kids with her to take care of or would yell at her to clean the house while she left to entertain herself.

Belkis has repeatedly admitted she has not liked Pamela most of her life. This is what my girl has dealt with. When they are together they spend most of the time fighting, and it’s usually Belkis who instigates it.

Pamela has a lot of attitude and authority problems with good reason as you can see. But she is growing. Every day she seems to have less anger. Every day she seems a little more open to love.

Please pray for our Pamela that she will continue to move forward and not backward. 

Jonathan: an ornery, brilliant little chef

Originally posted November 26, 2016

By John Carson

-JONATHAN IS SPONSORED FOR BEACH CHRISTMAS 2013-

I do nearly all the cooking around the house, and I just always count on Jonathan to be right there wanting to help. He was very excited a little while back on a day that my back was especially hurting, and I let him do most of the cooking. “I am the chef,” he said. This boy loves to help with anything you are doing. And there has yet to be a meal that he does not want more of. He is a bottomless pit when it comes to eating.

As a little brother myself, I understand Jonathan’s sweet and ornery nature. He is very adept at knowing what buttons to push to bother his brother and sisters, and at times, his parents. But hey, what are little brothers for? Slowly, but surely he is learning when to leave people alone.

Every day in school, I am always impressed with how smart he is, even though he started school later in life and has had not been in the same school for an entire year. A few weeks ago, I told him to do his homework, and he said “It’s science; it’s really easy.” As a person who loves science, this makes me very happy. And he loves to read so much! We had to move his bedtime up a while back, and the bargain he made was as long as he could read two books instead of one.

We are blessed to have our ornery little reader in our house. And I cannot wait to see what God has in store for him as we continue to live together as a family. 

Skarleth: our skilled stylist

Originally posted November 26, 2013

By Courtney Mathews

-SKARLETH IS NOW SPONSORED FOR BEACH CHRISTMAS 2013-

Skarleth Avila, the beautiful girl pictured above, is one of our newest residents at Breaking Chains. After having a friendship with them for the past couple of years, she and her friend Sara moved in with us this past August.

Skarleth, like many of the other kids at our building, has had a rough childhood of bouncing between various children’s homes. And like most others, she at times has a tough exterior and an occasional attitude. But below is a girl who just wants to be loved, and she is always ready with a hug and a smile to brighten your day.

Skarleth recently completed a barber training program and was one of the best in her class. She has recently been on the job hunt and found a position in a salon that we hope will turn into steady employment.

Skarleth has the skills and the true potential to change her circumstances if she wants it. We pray that God places within her the persistence necessary to elevate herself to a better position. And we pray that she continues to seek God’s strength and guidance throughout it all.

Dayana: a little mess with a sweet heart

Originally posted November 26, 2013

By John Carson

–DAYANA IS SPONSORED FOR BEACH CHRISTMAS 2013–

Many have come through the doors of Breaking Chains, and thought exactly what I thought when I first met Dayana: “She’s a wild one!” Furthermore, she was probably doing everything she could to annoy you. That was the old Dayana.

I only know some of the abuses and terrible things that she has endured that make her misbehave.She still has a lot to work through. To say she’s a strong-willed child would be the understatement no one could ever trump. But she’s learning slowly, perhaps one grey-hair created at a time.

After a scary year for us and her while she was in INHFA, we are now blessed to read to her and pray with her every night. And that has helped with a lot of her behavior issues – simple stability.

My wife likes to say that she has me wrapped around her finger (which may be a little true). But she continually finds ways to melt my heart even when she is in trouble. Often when she is in trouble, she has to go to her room for a while. Getting her to stay in there is sometimes a challenge as she loves to draw you a picture and bring it to you, and then say “I love you so much!”

She is a bundle of energy who loves to play with any animal, draw or color anything she can and give hugs and kisses. I have seen this girl transform from being a little terror to deal with to now my sweet little girl who is fighting to learn to behave. And for that, I am immensely blessed.

Angi: our preschool sweetheart

Originally posted November 26, 2013

Angi (right) with Alba after church one Sunday

By Amber Foster

-ANGI IS NOW SPONSORED FOR BEACH CHRISTMAS 2013-

We have had the absolute joy of watching 5 year old Angi blossom over the past year. She has gone from being a shy little mouse we rarely saw to a favorite of anyone visiting the building. With her funny little run, her bright smile, and eager hugs, Angi finds her way into the hearts of all who cross her path.

Angi went to preschool this year for the first time and was always excited to tell us about her day. Her sweet spirit has made her a willing sidekick to my bossy little princess. It is rare when they are both at the building that Rosie and Angi aren’t attached at the hip.

I’m very excited to see the two of them creating adventures and memories for themselves on our Christmas vacation. 

Nancy: Our loving, teen mom

Originally posted November 25, 2013

By Courtney Mathews

–NANCY IS NOW SPONSORED FOR BEACH CHRISTMAS 2013–

Raising a child is hard. Raising two children under two, and doing it without your husband is even harder. But Nancy does it with incredible grace.

We first came to know Nancy a few years ago as a somewhat scared, pregnant teenager who came to our building with then boyfriend, Josue, and two of her friends. They were the first group of teenagers who ever lived in the building.

Since that time, we have had ups and downs. We have witnessed her marriage to Josue, the birth of her two beautiful baby girls and Nancy’s beginnings of a training program. And also the sad news of husband Josue’s recent incarceration for minor crime. But even through times of living with us and living apart, Nancy has always remained part of our family.

Nancy is sort of an anomaly among teens on the streets. She doesn’t have any drug or alcohol vices. She is educated and, thanks to a children’s home where she spent part of her childhood, even speaks a tiny bit of English. And she is a caring mother. Nancy’s biggest downfalls just come from following the attitudes of poor associations.

But Nancy has desires for her future. She wants to provide a good life for her two daughters, and she wants them to see in her a strong, loving, godly example. Though she dropped out before the end of her beauty training program earlier this year, she wants to finish or begin steady employment in another field. Her first concern is that her children are well taken care of during the day while she works or studies, so we will soon enroll them in a daycare program.

We are so proud of this loving mother and the way she is looking toward the future. Please continue to pray for Nancy has she takes on the role of single mother for a while.