The phrase "All for the One" was borrowed from Bishop Blake, who is a huge advocate for foster care, and he shared that it means focusing on the one child, the one family, the one goal that God has placed in front of you. Living a life that is All for the One is so difficult, but it is beautiful to see how Jesus lived that out when He was on Earth, compassionately tending to people who came across His path even when it interrupted what other people thought he should be doing.
One of the main events that we were focused on over the past few months has been the All for the One event. The purpose of the event was to provide a space for foster parents to receive training and support, foster kids to be able to play and have fun, and people who are interested in foster care or adoption to be able to find out more information. The keynote speaker was going to be Bishop Blake, which was going to be the fulfillment of a dream that Ximena had for the past 3 years. Sadly, just 2 weeks before the event, we received the call that Bishop Blake was diagnosed with cancer and was immediately starting chemotherapy. Thankfully, Richard was planning this with an incredible group of people who are used to having to pivot and they were able to find another keynote speaker just in time.
All for the One was so incredible!!! It was amazing to see around 20 organizations who came out to support those who are doing foster care, sharing with the foster parents the resources that are available for their families. We had a ton of childcare volunteers who came to play with the foster kids, doing crafts, activities, and even inflatables! There were break out sessions on trauma-informed care, a panel of those impacted by foster care, and hands-on training in how to love on the foster kids in our care. It was both incredibly exhausting and utterly beautiful at the end of the event! One of the foster parents shared that it was so valuable the ability of “Connecting with others and hearing their journey…It has brought me to an awareness and perspective that I am not alone.” It was such a blessing to be able to do this in Memphis!
The week after All for the One, we still had to kick it into high gear, as it was the Department of Children’s Services annual All Staff Meeting. Basically, it is where all of the employees from DCS, which is over 300 people, including case workers, advocacy center workers, children protection services employees, and all the other staff, get together to celebrate what has been happening. This year, Isaiah 117 House was able to be the main sponsor at the event, which fell squarely on Richard’s shoulders, since he heads up the DCS Appreciation each month. We were so incredibly blessed to have Biggby Coffee, Shipleys Donuts, and Chick-fil-A agree to donate breakfast and lunch during the event! And we were able to share everything that is happening with Isaiah 117 here in Memphis. It was really beautiful when one of the DCS workers, Corlista, shared how much it has impacted her that Richard shows up on the 17th of every month to love on the DCS workers and so many others agreed. It is so rewarding to know that our ministry truly does touch the lives of others.
A few years back, the pastor at our church, Sam Shaw, used to do an International Lunch a few times a year at the church or at his home. It was a beautiful time of community, good food, and getting to share what it is like living in the foreign country of the US compared to the different home countries of origin. Whenever Pastor Sam retired, the international lunch didn’t continue until this year! Ximena felt a strong call to restart the get-togethers and brought it before the leadership at our church. She was able to start planning it with Amilka, a friend from Puerto Rico who goes to our church as well. We were able to invite those who attend our church, as well as friends from different countries, and it was so fun to hear where they are from and the things that they miss from their countries. It is so nice being around others who get what it is like to greatly miss family, friends, and familiar culture. It was also beautiful to see (the video below) kids born in 4 different places (Puerto Rico, Russia, Venezuela, and the US), playing together and having fun!
We’ve shared about Austin in the past. He is a young man who lives at a group home near our house, who Richard has been able to mentor for the past two years. He is 16 now and is starting to prepare for what life after living at an orphanage looks like, although he still dreams about adoption and finding a permanent placement. Each month, Richard and Austin go out for a long “date” and do something fun around Memphis. In May, Austin had been wanting to go to an outdoor rap concert called RiverBeat, especially because Killer Mike was going to be there. Yeah…not Richard's usual music choice, but it was a fun time to be close to the Mississippi River and hear different people sing their hearts out. So many of their lyrics spoke to the difficult events that happened in their lives and the people closest to them that they have lost. After the concert, Austin opened up more about his family and why he is still at the group home, even though he has his mom, an uncle, and sister who could take him in. He also has his new video done through TN Kid's Belong that you can check out! Please join me in praying for a family who would be a perfect fit for his needs and also how we can continue to walk alongside him over these next few years.
As all of you know, Ximena has a heart of gold! Whenever she found out that the husband of our kid’s Sunday school teacher had passed away, she immediately felt such compassion and wanted to see how we could help. Ms. Joan is so incredibly sweet and has such an incredibly positive outlook on life, even though she has had so many difficult circumstances thrown her way, including her husband dealing with early-onset dementia. Ms. Joan is a person who is always helping and serving others, so it was difficult for her at first to be open to us serving her. But thankfully, we were able to take out a flower bed that is difficult for her to tend to from her wheelchair and move some stones and bricks. We are going to be going back to lay some sod down over the next few weeks. She shared some more of her story with us while we were there, explaining how a botched epidural during childbirth is what caused her personal paralysis. God truly continued to minister to us through her words and we are so incredibly blessed by our friendship with her. Please pray that she will continue to be open to us loving on her and that God will give us wisdom in how we can help.
We wanted to do a quick cameo for Erick, who is our 25 year old now! It’s still crazy to think how fast time goes by. Erick graduated with his associates degree in electrical engineering a few years back and has a really good job at a tuna canning plant called Isabel. For many guys his age, that means you have pretty much reached the top! We were so encouraged whenever we heard that he was planning on moving forward to get his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. What that means for him is that he goes to work at 5pm and usually doesn’t get home until 3am. He sleeps for a few hours and then wakes up to go to the university Monday-Friday from 8am-1pm. He gets home, eats, does home work, and sleeps for a few hours until he gets up for work again. For most people, this would be impossible! But we keep encouraging him that it is just for a season and once he is able to get his degree, it will open up so many doors. We are so proud of the steps that he is taking, but please pray that he is able to keep up with his studies and work. (If you are interested in helping financially support his university expenses, you can donate to the link below under "Ministry Expenses")
At the end of our last update, we asked for prayer in a few areas. One of those was for the visa authorizations for our adult kids to come on our family trip to Asia. We heard from Gustavo early on that he wasn’t going to be able to get his passport renewed because of a document that wasn’t available until the summer, but we were still hopeful for Mayumi, Erick, and Adrian to be able to make it. They needed to have a Mexican transit visa for the flight through Mexico City, but there were a limited number of visa appointments given 4 times a year. They logged into the system on the day that it opened, but were unable to get an appointment. We were all crushed, but we just decided that we would have to plan something in 2025. A few weeks later, our Ecuadorian president ordered the arrest of a previous vice president who was seeking asylum in the Mexican Embassy in Quito, which caused Mexico to break ties with Ecuador and to close down the Mexican Embassy. If the kid would have booked their visa appointments, we would have purchased their flights, only to have found out a few weeks later that all travel to Mexico was cancelled. Even though it was painful, it was just confirmation that this trip just be for our current family of 5 and for the bigger family reunion to be planned for next year.
Prayer/Praise Requests:
Richard went back to West Cancer Clinic for his 1 year CT scan, chest x-ray, and bloodwork. Everything came back normal! He has now been in full remission for a full year!!! We are so grateful for all of the prayers and support for his health. Please continue to pray for him as he works to gain his muscle strength back and for the neuropathy in his feet and hands.
Ximena is being stretched in her role at Orphanos! She has been doing all of the money-in for years (check deposits, dealing with donors, etc.), but now she has been asked to learn a new system to be about to do the money-out (sending money, international wire transfers, dealing with our Orphanos missionaries, etc.). Please pray for her as she is really far outside of her comfort zone that her mind would be open to learning the new system and she wouldn't be too hard on herself whenever she makes a mistake.
Please pray for wisdom for both of us as we continue to parent teens and young adults. It has really been a beautiful season to be able to love on our "babies" and spend time with them. We realize that we only have a few years left with them and want to cherish every moment!
Blessings!!!
Richard and Ximena
P.S. Thank you for reading out update! We are always needing new supporters, so if God places it on your heart, here are the links:
Family Support: CLICK HERE!
Ministry Expenses Support: CLICK HERE!
