A story from TJ...

Right after we crossed the border into Mexico the group went to a market to buy blankets, jewelry, giant sombreros, etc. Since it is not the safest area, Scott and Marcia stayed back to keep an eye on our vans while everyone else went shopping. As they were waiting for us they met a little boy, Jesse, who was selling gum. They learned that he lived in the same neighborhood where we would be doing VBS the next week, so they invited him to come. I should add that this neighborhood was over half an hour away, so it was pretty amazing that they connected! Monday came along, and Jesse showed up with his 4 younger siblings. Many of us grew attached to him right away, partly because he was an awesome kid (with some killer dance moves!) but also because he spoke English! (His siblings, however, did not.) After VBS on Monday all of the kids went home, and our group took a break for lunch before starting to paint the church. Then back came Jesse and his siblings, wanting to help! The same thing went on for the rest of the week, they were always ready and willing to help us however they could. As the week went on we learned that they used to live in the US, near Los Angeles, but didn't get much more detail. We saw that their shoes were very worn, held together with nails, and they didn't have socks.
Some of the girls decided to take a collection from our group to try and get the kids new shoes. Within a half an hour we raised exactly $350. We got a pair of school shoes and tennis shoes for each of those 5 children, a shirt for an older sister (who we hadn't met), socks for each child, school supplies, and a new soccer ball, with money left for their mom to use as they needed.
On the last day their mother came to VBS, and a few in our group had an opportunity to talk with her and get a little more of their story... The children were all born in the US, so they were all US citizens. 2-3 years ago her mother-in-law died, so she got on a bus with all six children to go to the funeral. She had a child in each arm, and a bag over her shoulder with all of their money and identification. Her bag was stolen, along with their money and proof of citizenship. So they have been stuck in Mexico ever since, trying to get the money to get their paperwork together so they can go back to the US.
We told the mother that we had a suprise for them, and she invited us to their house after we were done with VBS. When we got to their house, they welcomed us inside. There was a small "yard" (dirt) and then a house built out of old garage doors and a plywood roof. The house had two small rooms with dirt floors, the first one was basically empty, the second had two very worn queen sized mattresses on the floor (to sleep 7-8 people- I don't know if the dad is in the picture), a small table with a little pile of clothes, a tv, and a crock pot.
When we gave the family their gifts their mother did not have the words to express her gratitude, she just cried, and gave us HUGE hugs. We all stood in a circle and held hands and prayed together, with Jesse translating for us.

So often we take what we have for granted, and are always wanting more. It was so humbling to see time after time in Tijuana people who literally had basically nothing, yet were still full of joy. We were so blessed to have met Jesse and his family, and I hope that we have changed their lives at least a fraction of how much they have changed ours! Jesse, Soledad, Gregoria, Isabel, Gilberto, Mom, and Marisela

Praying with the family