Meet Juan Carlos

Meet Casa Shalom's newest child, Juan Carlos. He is 10-years-old and came to Casa Shalom on Thursday. His parents abandoned him and he was living on the street, selling gum and shining shoes in the town of Quiché in order to feed himself. Juan Carlos has never been to school and is illiterate, but he's already receiving quality medical attention and will start school with the rest of Casa Shalom's kids in January of 2012! We are grateful to be able to make a difference in the life of Juan Carlos and we thank the Lord for sending him to us!

Magdalena is home and keeping her house mothers busy! She wants to run and play instead of rest! She has her arm in a sling, which should come off on Sunday. Again, we praise the Lord for His healing mercies and we thank everyone who has joined us in prayer for this precious child.

Thanksgiving!

A very special reason to be thankful today: Magdalena will be coming home from the hospital this afternoon! Her doctors say her finger will be just fine, and that she will have no permanent damage, despite the blood vessels being almost completely severed and the bone being broken in many places. We are so thankful that our God still works miracles! We also thank our brothers and sisters in Christ all around the world who have kept baby Magdalena in their prayers during the past few days. Our God is greater!

God is faithful! As of this morning, Magdalena's doctors have been surprised by her progress. She's able to move her thumb inside the cast, which the doctors say she shouldn't be able to do! They are cautiously optimistic that when the cast is removed tomorrow, they will be able to save her thumb! She's in good spirits and is making her doctors smile by singing at the top of her lungs in her hospital bed. Please continue to pray for more miraculous progress.

Update on Magdalena

Magdalena's hand has been put in a cast. Her doctors are saying that without a miracle, she will most certainly lose her thumb. But we believe our God is able to perform the miracle this precious child needs! She will remain in the hospital for the next 48 hours until the doctor can determine if the finger can be saved - please continue to be in prayer with us that the Lord will miraculously repair the severed blood vessels in Magdalena's fingers.

Pray for Magdalena

An urgent prayer request: a few minutes ago little Magdalena, 2-years-old, shut her thumb in a door and is on her way to the hospital. The last joint of her thumb is barely attached, but we are praying the doctors will be able to repair it and that she won't have long-term damage. Please pray for a special touch from the Lord for Magdalena!

The 2011 school year has come to a close, and Casa Shalom's teenagers are enjoying their vacation! From left: Edwin, Flora, Karen, Alejandro, Spike the dog, Maria and Enma are all smiles.

In case of emergency

Yesterday, local firefighters gave an all-day first aid/emergency preparedness course to Casa Shalom's staff. As we mentioned a few weeks ago, the firefighters will be training the staff for free in exchange for the new ambulance tires the orphanage provided for the firefighters' vehicle. Now, the orphanage staff will be more prepared in in case of broken bones, earthquakes, fires, etc.

Cesar's degree

Cesar, 18, proudly shows off his diploma! He came to Casa Shalom as an 11-year-old with no where else to go, and recently graduated as a certified mechanic with plans to begin studying mechanical engineering next year. The cycle of poverty has been broken in Cesar's life, thanks to a good education, and most importantly, the healing power of Jesus Christ!

Mynor, one and a half years old, didn't play any soccer but he still enjoyed his trip to the soccer fields last week! He was more than content with his snow cone and straw. This special little boy who was found abandoned in a ditch on the day of his birth is growing into a handsome, happy child!

Fun at the soccer fields

Each week, Casa Shalom's kids make a trip to the local town of Barcenas to private soccer fields where they enjoy exclusive use of the fields and enjoy snow cones, all courtesy of the fields' owners who were looking for a unique way to bless Casa Shalom. The kids always have a blast at the fields - in this photo on the left, Juan Carlos, 11, goes for the goal against Juan Jose, 9.

Casa Shalom's Christmas list

Christmas 2011 will be a very special time at Casa Shalom! The children will celebrate Christ's birth at a special Christmas party where they'll open gifts provided by a visiting team from Georgia, and they'll enjoy eating traditional Guatemalan chicken tamales! Apart from the children's gifts, Casa Shalom has created a list of "wishes" for this Christmas season. The items aren't soccer balls and shoes like the children usually request, but are more practical items needed to keep the orphanage running and in it's best shape! A few of the items are a "special request" for Casa Shalom's college students - the 3 young ladies and men who are pursuing higher education degrees need laptop computers to help them prepare their homework and presentations. These young students often leave for school before the sun comes up and don't return to the orphanage until after the sun goes down - so we want to help them maximize their study time! If you are able to make a donation to purchase one Casa Shalom's Christmas wishes from the items listed below, please let us know! Because Guatemala doesn't have a reliable postal system and there's no way to mail items to Guatemala, all items will be purchased here in country. For more information or to donate, please contact us at: TheHansonsinGuatemala@gmail.com

- 3 HP laptop computers at $450 each

- 5 hammers at $25 total

- 2 small crowbars at $14 total

- 2 big crowbars at $22 total

- 1 large pry bar at $30 total

- 5 trowels at $10 total

- 1 socket set at $43 total

- 1 screwdriver set at $24 total

- 1 staple gun at $33 total

- 1 cordless drill at $94 total

- 1 grinder at $107 total

- 1 circular saw at $173 total

- 1 concrete blade for saw at $40 total

- 1 wood blade for saw at $29 total

- 1 palm sander at $74 total total

- 10 discs for grinder at $20 total

- 1 two hundred-meter measuring tape at $27 total

- 2 pickaxes at $28 total

- 1 set of metal drill bits at $23 total

- 1 set of wood drill bits at $15 total

- 1 set of concrete drill Bits at $9 total

Another valedictorian!

Casa Shalom is proud to announce another valedictorian for the 2011 school year! A few days ago, Martin graduated from the 6th grade and was named valedictorian for his grade! He was given the honor of carrying the Guatemalan flag during his graduation ceremony. We are so proud of Martin and all the other Casa Shalom students who made great academic strides this year.