By Helen Griffin
As civil war raged in El Salvador in the 1980s, the Lord laid upon my heart the need for a home for Salvadoran children, who were suffering terribly there. In 1989, I visited El Salvador, and Jack Saword (Missionary Prayer Handbook Day 15) and his late wife, Ellen, welcomed me into their home for three months. During my stay, as bombs fell outside, the Lord gave me a verse as my promise from Him: “Do all that is in thine heart; for God is with thee.” (1 Chronicles 17:2, KJV) It has been my rock ever since.
In 1991, Highway Gospel Hall, in Westbank, British Columbia, Canada, commended me to the work among El Salvador’s children. In August 1991, I returned to El Salvador and, again, lived with the Sawords for three months. I didn’t know much Spanish, so learning the language was my first objective when I arrived.
The start of something
Several missionaries helped me learn Spanish: Vernon and Ilda Markle (now home with the Lord) and Hazel Brownlie (New Zealand). Hazel ran a Christian academy, and she invited me to teach in English while I learned the language. A local medical doctor named Sylvia also helped me; she had a vision for missionaries to learn Spanish so they could bring the good news to her people. I am grateful to all of them. Almost every night, I attended gospel meetings conducted in Spanish, which accustomed my ear to the language.
Then, I began working to establish a children’s home. Since no children’s home in El Salvador was connected to the assemblies, I needed to do all the legal paperwork—and lots of it—to start one. In 1993, I sent the paperwork to the government, and they assured me that I could take in children from the assemblies or from the country’s child welfare program, the Protection of Minors, while I waited to receive official authorization on paper. As it turned out, official authorization wouldn’t materialize until 1996.
I had rented a home for the children and prepared it, and I was ready to welcome them, even though my Spanish was still shaky. Whom did the Lord send? Teenagers. Whom did I think I wanted? Small children. But God is so wise: through the older children, I learned more Spanish, which wouldn’t have happened if I had received younger ones first.
Pain and possibilities
Yet these teens brought much “baggage” with them. My first teen, Ana Marina, was from a rural area. Her father was threatening to kill her, so her grandmother, who attended my assembly, appealed to Jack Saword for help. Ana Marina had never seen a bathroom as we know it; she had rarely worn shoes; she had never lived by a clock; and she had not finished first grade. You can imagine the frustrations we both faced.
I would tell her she had five minutes to be ready for school, and five minutes later, she would be in the same position, having done nothing. Alongside her, I learned how to make her understand her new world. A small, nearby school accepted her into second grade, and finally, she learned to read and write. In 2020, Ana Marina celebrated her 40th birthday; we keep in contact and see each other a few times per year.
Then, I received three more teens: two brothers and a sister from the assemblies. Their mother died a few years prior, and Jack was responsible for the family. He kept these three youngest siblings together, but they rotated through the homes of different Christians. The situation wasn’t working, so they joined my children’s home.
Another girl, Iris Yessenia, came, and she had several health issues. She had one kidney, and it was functioning at 30 percent. Her small feet were crooked, as was her spine. She had so many doctor appointments that we came to know Hospital Rosales like the back of our hands. Over the years, the children’s home had several workers who helped cook, clean, and care for the children, and while talking to one of them, Doña Paula, Iris trusted the Lord. In 1997, she was hospitalized, and from there, she left her body of suffering and went home to be with her Lord—joy amid much sorrow.
That year, one boy, David, returned to his biological mother, and two weeks later, a girl, Yvonne, was “legally kidnapped.” All this happened while I had hepatitis. It was a hard year for me. Then, the Protection of Minors sent me more children and teens, who came for different periods of time and left for different reasons. After a few years, God sent young children who came in groups of three or one by one until I had 15 little ones
God's love
The 60 children the home received over the past 30 years came from diverse backgrounds. Some were abandoned or orphaned; others mistreated and abused. Some came from families who were involved in alcoholism and witchcraft; others suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome and schizophrenia. Some were malnourished with swollen stomachs; others had severe allergies. But one thing is sure: they all had lacked love in their lives, especially the love of God.
They all have their own stories, and one day I would love to tell each one—how God brought them to me, helped me heal their bodies and troubled souls, and gave them peace amid their stormy lives. It was an honor and a privilege to care for them and to tell them about Jesus and His great love for them.
An unexpected family
In 1997, the 10 children whom I would adopt by 2019 started coming to me. Two of them, Angela and Samuel, are deaf, so I learned American Sign Language to communicate with them. The majority of the children stayed with me through elementary and high school. During their teen years, they accepted the Lord as their Savior and were baptized, and almost all of them came into assembly fellowship. Then, when they reached age 18, we wondered where they would go. They could not return to their former gang-run communities.
Once I had teenagers over the age of 18 living at the home, I was legally unable to take in younger children. I could either send the teens away and take in younger children or continue caring for the teens. At this point, my health was poor, and I knew I could no longer manage night duty with children. I considered my options carefully, as caring for young adults was not my original vision for the children’s home. Still, many years ago, Vernon Markle, the missionary who helped me learn Spanish, had given me two important pieces of advice for serving on the mission field: keep your own soul sweet, and be flexible. I wondered, Could it be that my work is changing?
So the home’s workers and I continued helping the 10 young adults through university—if that was their goal—or to find employment. After much prayer and time and talking to different people, I sensed the Lord was leading me to adopt the 10 young adults and moved forward, submitting applications to the courts in the last months of 2017. The first adoption wasn’t finalized until November 2018. Each adoption case had its own judge, and the judges had different criteria. Most of the teenagers were treated like minors and had to have a social worker and psychologist interview us, test us, and inspect the home.
With God’s help, on December 9, 2019, I finally adopted the 10 young people. Karla, Angela, Iris, Arely, Ana, Tania, Jhony, David, Rudy, Samuel, and I were officially a family. Unfortunately, the paperwork from the courts for the last adoption, Iris’s, did not come through until late February 2020. This delay held up her new identity papers, which were in process at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, we had submitted papers for Canadian citizenship for eight of my children and will do so for Iris and David soon.
The gift of hope
Nine of my children are in the home with me now, along with two of my grandchildren. Iris lives in her home with her husband and two children. One day, unless the Lord comes first, we would love to move to Canada and live away from the gangs, corruption, and violence that dominate this society.
Often, I’m reminded of Romans 5:3–5. If the Holy Ghost had not poured out the love of God in my heart, I would never have wanted or been able to love these children as they needed to be loved (v. 5). Having a children’s home is hard work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. But we “glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint.” (vv. 3–4) These 30 years have not been easy, but I have hope. And, with the love of God, I gave hope to all the children who passed through the home. God is steadfast and faithful.
Please pray for my children. Pray for their spiritual lives and the choices they make so that they may be able to share with others God’s goodness, which they have experienced. Pray that their Canadian citizenship will be approved and that God will guide us as to what He would have us to do and where He would have us to go. We have been so blessed. ■
Helen Griffin is commended from Highway Gospel Hall in Westbank, British Columbia.
