Needs for our Cusco boys

I want to thank so many of you for your continued emails and messages asking how you can support the recovery efforts for our boys in Cusco. As I have mentioned before, we are very thankful for one large donation from an individual that is going to cover all of the reconstruction expenses. We hope to find a new piece of land near Urubamba to begin reconstruction as soon as possible.

Apart from the construction, though, there are many other needs that we have for these boys. Unfortunately, when our home collapsed, many things were destroyed or carried away by the flood. Sadly, there was also some looting that took place. We were able get a lot of furniture out of the house before it collapsed, but because most of our furniture is wood much of it was badly water damaged. We have now come up with a list of needs for our 42 abandoned boys in Cusco. In response to so many of you who have asked, here it is:

Our most immediate needs are the following:

• We have decided to move the boys back to Cusco's Sacred Valley as soon as possible (within the next week or two). In order to do so, we will be renting a building in Urubamba as a provisional place where they can live while their new home is being built. We do not yet know what the final monthly rent will be. It will most likely be somewhere between $350 and $530 per month. We anticipate needing the building for 12 months.
• We need approximately $250 to cover the cost of an emergency trip to Cusco that Hector, the house father, had to make.
• The boys come back from summer vacation and begin school in March. They all need shoes and uniforms before they return to their classes. The uniforms cost approximately $70 per boy (including shoes). In addition to that, we would ideally also be able to supply the kids with backpacks and basic school supplies (approximately $45 per boy).

Other needs include the following:

• In the kitchen/dining room virtually everything was lost. We need a new refrigerator and a new blender. We also need new plates, bowls, cups, mugs, forks, spoons, knives, and kitchen utensils.
• Basically all of our electronic equipment was also lost or stolen. We need a new TV, DVD player, computer, stereo, and large speakers.
• Tables, desks, and chairs for the dining room and study room.
• The boys left most of their belongings at the home, and virtually everything has been lost. They lost all of their clothing except the small amount that they traveled with (sizes 7 to 16). Many of the mattresses were destroyed. We need new bunk beds, sheets, blankets, and towels. We also need new dressers for the boys' clothes.
• We have also lost most of the boys' school supplies--backpacks, books, dictionaries, etc.
• Hector and Maritza, our house parents in Cusco, have also lost virtually everything. They lost the couches in their living room, their refrigerator, beds and mattresses, stove, wardrobe, hand tools, etc.

If you are interested in helping support our home in Cusco, then please send me an email (bgreenman@latinamericamission.org), or give be a phone call (248.677.5252). We anticipate other unforseen costs and needs as we work through this difficult situation, but we know that God will continue to provide for these children. I still find myself in awe to think about how he protected them from being at the home during the time of the flooding.

As always, even more important than any monetary donation are your prayers. Pray that the boys would see how God is always protecting them and watching over them. Pray that they would be able to make the adjustment from their old home, to their provisional accommodations, and then to their newly constructed home. Lastly, please pray for the house parents and all of the Scripture Union staff in Cusco. Pray that God would comfort them as they deal with the loss of their belongings, and pray that God would give them strength and wisdom as they provide moral support for the boys at the home.

Thank you all for all of your prayers and support!