Meet Casa Shalom's newest child: Edgar Giovanni (who goes by Giovanni) is ten-years-old and arrived at Casa Shalom this week. He comes from another orphanage, where he stayed only briefly. When Giovanni was a small boy, his sister was murdered in front of him. Soon after, his mother left him with some family friends who were supposed to care for him when she went to work in another country. Instead of caring for him, the family instead used Giovanni for free labor, making him do manual labor and physically abusing him. He was denied the care offered to the family's biological children. When this was discovered a few months ago, he was taken to a local orphanage, but it was decided that Casa Shalom would be a better fit for Giovanni. Giovanni has already started school, and despite his lack of formal education, he can read and write and is a very bright boy. He has been placed in the fourth grade and has jumped right into his classes. He is living with the Rayos house and is fitting in well with his house brothers. We told Giovanni about the sponsorship program, and he is excited about the idea of having a sponsor. If you are interested in sponsoring Giovanni and sharing your life with him through emails, letters and photos, please contact us at TheHansonsinGuatemala@gmail.com
