Casa Aleluya Blog

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Don´t settle

  I went to breakfast with one of the first children at Casa and I really needed the time to laugh at stories of the past. He knew more stories than I remembered.   A team from a Guatemalan church came and had an activity with the children.…

Soldiers at the University

Dottie, Tatiana, Orlando. Quique, Adela, Tony on Valentines Day A strange event happened a day ago. The largest university in Guatemala, San Carlos University, had an emergency shut down due to a law written 75 years ago. In the 40s many students were murdered by the army. When…

Upbeat

I awoke to a banking problem in my account. It is a fraud alert. It is difficult to do overseas banking, so Estella helps me. Dottie has been giggling like a little girl for two days. As sick as she is she is upbeat and joyful more than…

Your prayers needed

The older boys brought flowers and banana bread for our anniversary. I have been feeling very poorly the last three days. I do not think it is physical. It is emotional. There are two situations that cause me great stress. The situation with Dottie is so critical and…

Aggressive

One wonderful thing the neurologist said about Dottie was that she will never go in a coma and with proper care there is no reason she cannot live 5 or more years. Last night Dottie was very agitated and was rude to Adela. Adela is her major care…

Anniversary, Neurologist and Bus Wreck

Today, (Monday) is our 62nd wedding anniversary. Little did we realize the trail we would take and the miracles we would encounter along that trail. There are so many moments in our lives that were incredible and special. But one moment really stands out. Dottie and I had…

62 years of marriage

Our wedding consisted of Dottie and I as bride and groom, Her sister as Maid of Honor, Her dad as Minister, Her mother as pianist and her brother-in-law as camera man. That was our entire wedding party so it was the group plus the cameraman which means we…

Janet’s Story

Janet and her brothers have been in the child welfare system since they were very young.When Janet was able to see her brothers in court hearings, she could tell they were not okay.They were sad and acted so differently from when she was last with them. Then Janet…

Don´t run

Brother Jerry has been such a blessing and finished so many needed odd jobs. I was visited by Pastor Teddie from Grand Bay, Alabama. His daughter has a wonderful ministry in Chimaltenango. The other night we had a 5.9-point earthquake. Some kids sleeping around the water towers went…

Don´t run

With Dottie so ill I took my son, Tony, to the bank and had him listed as a person to cash our personal checks. Dottie can no longer sign anything. (physically). The women had their second Bible study and fellowship with Dottie and she is loving it. The…

Salvation

I was blessed last night after having a very sad, emotional day. One of the older girls came to see me and she told me she could not quit thinking about last Sunday´s sermon on the names that God uses to identify His children. She wanted to accept…

Doris

I love all of the more than 6000 children God has sent us over the years. Even the ones who did not like us and never accepted us as parents. Each child has been special. However, one girl was Doris who was the most abused child Casa ever…

Sheep

We have been interviewing social workers and psychologists. We need to shore up that area of Casa. I Peter 3:20 tells us we are living stones. God is building His kingdom, and we are a part of that. Each of us is part of a foundation for our…

Dottie in church

It was 36 years ago today, February 3rd, that Dottie and I with 5 of our children in the back of a pick-up truck crossed from Mexico into Guatemala. I was filled with fear, and we had no idea where to go nor who to contact. I was…

Air Tragedies

Tammy, a missionary in Guatemala, came with Stacey and her friends to visit Casa.  They are from Bastrop, La. only 10 miles from Dottie´s hometown of Crosset, Ark. One also has family in Bunkie, La. which was my home town. Julietta and Adela walked Dottie to the piano and…

Dottie on the piano

Our pediatrician who has been with us awhile is resigning. She has a practice in San Lucas which is 2 miles away and can be called at any time. Amalfi who was here years ago and is one of my most favorite children ever with an unbelievable story…

Emma

Jerry has been welding 2 sets of rolling soccer goals which is blessing the children. Guatemalans love their soccer. The fifth truth about worry is found in I Peter 5:7. ¨Casting all your care upon Him because He cares for you. ¨ All my life I have had…

My Mentor and Friend

Christianity lost a mighty soldier for Jesus. Charles Rogers, pastor, Bible teacher, evangelist, missionary and my mentor passed away yesterday. He was in his 90s and leaves an unbelievable record of service to Christ. He served on the board of World Ministry Fellowship for over 50 years. I…

Berta and Renee’s Story

Casa Aleluya supporters like you have helped change Berta and Renee's lives. This brother and sister transferred to Casa Aleluya from a different children's home. When they arrived, we discovered that Berta had psychiatric needs, and Renee had cancer in his throat. Casa Aleluya's team pulled together the…

Jerry, Gledia and Kenny

28th:  Jerry Clemmens, Adam´s dad, came and is staying with his sponsor children Victor and Celia. Jerry has been coming to Casa for more than 25 years and is part of the original building contractors. So, he stopped by and brought me a gift which is an Elipse…