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One Child at a Time

John and Michelle Eggen aren’t alone when it comes to their work with street children in Bolivia. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans members in the Nebraska Region already have raised more than $50,000 to support their work.

The work continues as members at Bethany Lutheran Church in Elkhorn, Nebraska—Michelle’s home church—are working to raise $90,000 to build a permanent group home and help with at least a year of operating costs. The group has even gone on short-term mission trips to help.

The Bolivian Street Children Project helps school-aged boys living on the streets of La Paz, Bolivia. The project strives to provide the boys with a home environment and therefore limits each home to 10 boys.

“While one might consider that we could house 50 or 60 in a home, what these children really need and deserve are families,” John says. “We are committed to keeping our limit at 10 children per home to provide the love and attention that each of these children deserves.”

The project started in 1997 when Dr. Chi Huang came to La Paz to provide medical care on the streets and in a couple of homes. While volunteering, he saw the incredible plight of the street children and sought to provide them with a safe, loving home. In 2001, the Barnabas House was opened.

While Barnabas House has been in a rental property, a recent grant has allowed the ministry to purchase a large plot of land and construct a permanent home. The rental home is now a transition home. The group has plans to build up to six homes on the land as well as a library, school building and workshops.

“The cost to build a home is $60,000, and the operating budget is $30,000 per year,” John says. “This is such a small investment to make for the lives of 10 children.”

The project also recently started a transition program for adolescents.

“We work with other homes to provide an experience where they can start to adjust to having a schedule, learn some crafts and learn more about God through devotions and teaching times,” says John. “After a couple months, they have the opportunity to move into a small apartment rent-free and start working. We also provide a small grant to help them purchase basic necessities such as clothes and kitchen supplies. It has been amazing to see God work in the lives of people who have spent more than half of their lives on the streets, to help them transform their lives.”

“These children are not the delinquents society often calls them,” John says. “They are God’s children and our mission is to treat them as our own.”

While financial support is critical to the ministry, prayer is another much appreciated effort.

“We have so many people praying for us,” says Michelle. “I pray for Him to guide my feet, so I can find the kids I'm looking for and guide my mind and my heart with the wisdom to say and do the things that will really impact these children.”

To find out how you can help, visit www.bolivianstreetchildren.org.

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