Shadow of His Wings Orphanage (SOHWO) is located just outside of Monjas, Jalapa, Guatemala– a small town of about 10,000 people east of Guatemala City. On Halloween, 2015 a team of Agua Viva volunteers will depart Kansas City to complete our fifth installation in the country of Guatemala.
Currently home to approximately 80 girls and 10 boys, SOHWO receives children exclusively through the Guatemalan court system. These children are removed from their homes for a variety of reasons, including: violence, negligence, sexual abuse/trafficking or abandonment. Ages range from 1-year old to early 20’s. Kids live in 1 of 6 homes on the property with full time Guatemalan house parents, or at a transition home in the local town.
AVI was introduced to SOHWO, which is one of three missions run by The James Project of Latin America (JPLA), by our friends at Casa Angelina Orphanage and What Matters Ministries and Missions. In June of 2014, Jim Allen and Mike Springer visited SOHWO and initiated a covenant which was ratified this past fall.
SOHWO has an robust volunteer team schedule which hosts a team from the U.S. almost every week. AVI will be there for the first week on November this year and will bring a volunteer team of approximately 15-18 people to carry out our programs. The AVI volunteers will bunk in a building in town set up specifically to house the constant influx of teams. The dormitory-style arrangements will be a change from what we’ve done previously in Guatemala, but we’re looking forward to the sense of community it will surely enhance.
There is actually a water tower on the property but there is currently no treatment happening on the water. We look forward greatly to this chance to help these children receive clean, purified water to improve their health– as well as the chance to instill a lifetime supply of health and hygiene education which will serve them long after they transition into the world outside.