ESTHERS Children

From 2007 through 2010 ESTHERS Children had a substitute family home, Esther's House, that housed 16 girls. Through this project we were able to remove these girls from extremely high-risk home environments where they had no access to running water, adequate food, drinking water, a good education or any health care. At ESTHERS House they learned how to live in a loving and accepting environment, learned the value of their life, were restored physically, emotionally, mentally, socially, academically and spiritually. During this time we also worked with their families through our Family Intervention Program to prepare the families for a potential reintegration of their children back into the family home. Due to changes in the Brazilian laws which would no longer permit a full-time residential program for more than 6 months, ESTHERS Children began a reintigration process for the children to go back home in September 2010.

In July 2011 we opened the Quiet Strength Community Center. At the community center we are working with the 10 girls that were still at ESTHERS House when we had to close our doors with plans to expand the center to serve 50 girls between the ages of 4 and 18 by July 2012. Each child will spend half of the day at school and the other half of the day at the Community Center where they will receive 2 meals, christian education, christian counseling, academic tutoring, and participate in daily enrichment classes in the arts, music and cooking. Through these enrichment classes the children will begin to learn different skills and trades. With the products they make at these classes, we will eventually help them to set up a small store where they can sell the goods and products they make to help them learn about work ethic, the value of hard work and the value of money. 50% of the money made will go back to buy new supplies and the remaining 50% will be given back to the girls to put in a savings account.

As part of the Community Center, we will continue our Family Intervention through job training, parenting classes and micro-enterprising (when eligible) with the parents of each child at the Quiet Strength Community Center. Finally, we will host monthly community outreach events at the center that will be open to all children in the community.