Here are just a few of the success stories that have touched our hearts over the many years...
Success Story of Theodora
Success Story of Eva and Her Children
Eva is a from Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley, in the High Andean mountains of Peru. Eva has six children, three of the younger ones are still living with her.
When Eva’s plight was brought to our attention she was experiencing an exceptionally difficult time since her husband had abandoned her and the six children. They were all living in a little one-room shack in Ollantaytambo town. The room was in shambles with timbers holding the walls so the walls would not collapse.
To earn money, Eva was doing laundry by hand, day in, day out, a back-breaking job with no washing machine nor dryer. To provide immediate assistance, Paskay began feeding her children and paying for school expenses for Lieberdad and her Senyada.
Unfortunately, soon after Paskay started working with the family, Eva’s father died and her sister stole Eva’s entire inheritance. She then proceeded to try to have Eva’s three young children, Senyada, and teen-age daughter Lieberdad taken away from her. The sister reported Eva to the local judge claiming that Eva was much too poor to properly maintain her three little children, plus Seneyda, and Lieberdad. The sister tried to get the law to remove all the children and give them to her. Naturally Eva was devastated and terrified. She was fighting to have all her children with her. The removal would have killed Eva!
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Luckily with Carlos’ and Paskay’s help Eva won in court! Paskay also helped Eva to find a safer home.
Eva and the children Franklin, Diego, and the baby, are a very happy family living together in their new home. Eva was able to open a small food stand near the train station. She is in her element.
When Libertad, who loves interacting with people, finishes high school she would like to study English and become a professional tour guide. Libertad is the best in English in her school. She goes to high school and boards in Urabamba during the week.
Franklin would like to be a doctor, working in the clinic in Ollantaytambo for the poor people.
To help the family become self-sufficient and break the cycle of poverty, Paskay continues to help with the education of her children as well as helping her sell food on the street.
Eva’s dream is to save enough money to buy a piece of land and build her own home. She would also like to rent a place to open a healthy restaurant for local people.
Sister Yudid & Little Anthionella
Sister Yudid, one of Dr. Forrest's children, was working in Lima with prostitutes and destitute street women who were dying of tuberculosis. One of the women in her care conceived a little girl who was born deformed. The mother, who was very sick, unfortunately died a short time later. With her dying words, "Please look after my little girl," she entrusted baby Anthionella to Sister Yudid.
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Sister Yudid was really worried because if this little girl was put in an orphanage she would be abused and neglected. Little Anthionella's legs were grossly deformed, her tongue was stuck to the bottom of her mouth, and she couldn't speak. Sister Yudid tried to adopt the little girl; however, the law said that she had to have a husband. Now, she is a nun - not an easy decision! But the love and compassion for this helpless girl made Sister Yudid leave the sisterhood, find a husband, and adopt her.
The next obstacle was how to pay for the operations on the girl's legs. In beautiful synchronicity and in love, Dr. Forrest was blessed to win the exact amount needed for her operation on a lottery ticket.
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The first operation was a huge success, finally the little girl could stand and walk. The second operation for Little Anthionella's mouth was also successful. Now she is unstoppable, talking and running everywhere. Yudid continues her work with the women who need help the most on the street and in the shelter.
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Christen
Christian's father and mother came from the High Andes. Having struggled themselves with not being able to read or write, and not knowing how to work with modern money, they wanted to move their family to live near Ruimera so that the children could go to school and have a better life. Christen was the second son of six children and, at the young age of eight, started shining shoes, selling ice cream, and entertaining tourists to help provide an income for the family. He was called by his friends "a boy with a thousand trades" and he worked tirelessly by his mother's side to help his siblings.
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When Christen's older brother left the family, Christen was expected to earn more money and left to the city of Lima to find whatever work he could in mines and factories. Exploited as cheap child labor, he slept on the floor, was routinely beaten, and worked long hours. With great difficulty he escaped and made his way back to Ollantaytambo to be with and protect his younger siblings. It was here, supported by Paskay and Andean Children, that Christen was able to begin healing from his difficult childhood, develop his talents in photography and organic gardening, and attend school to complete a degree in tourism.
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Today Christen is a wonderful supporter of Paskay and Andean Children, paying forward the help he received as a child. He supplies and manages a food line, encourages children to go to school and attend university, and leads powerful spiritual journeys to Peru’s most sacred sites.
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In the video below, Christen can be seen in the "Dance of the Condor". During this dance, the spirit of the condor is greatly saddened because of what he see's below happening to Mother Earth and her children. In his grief he dies. Then, as more and more people return to a spiritual path and remember to honor the Mother and her children, he comes back to life. This time in history, according to ancient Andean prophesy, is called “the time of the condor and the eagle". The legend is that when the eagles of the north join the condors of the south it will be the beginning of a new dawn in human consciousness and peace on Earth. The eagle brings infrastructure, money, and intellect, the condor brings love, compassion, the realization that we are all one.
Please enjoy the video below of Christen doing the “Dance of the Condor”.
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