Buckner at the Border: Transforming Lives

I just returned from an incredible trip to the Rio Grande Valley this past Friday. I met with our Colonia Ministry Staff, with our Community Transformation Staff, and with the staff of Rio Grande Children’s Home, one of four Buckner Children’s campuses.

  We toured the Rio Grande Children’s Home, the new Community Transformation Center, and we visited four families to present them with keys to a new home and a new Bible. We capped off the day with a Taquiza, a celebration block party with all four families and their friends for music, fellowship, and fantastic tacos.

These families were identified as part of our Colonia Ministry program. Funds were provided by a local donor and church groups came to build the houses, some in as short as a week and others over a month or two. Some of the church groups were local and some came from other cities in Texas.

The families we presented keys to either did not have a house or they were living in very tight quarters such as a small trailer-camper with no air condition. The conditions are barely livable and the families are in great need. When we think of community development, a home is a basic necessity along with economic opportunity, vocational training, medical services, educational opportunities, social services, and spiritual formation. When a family succeeds, the children succeed and the community is better. This type of work represents the footprints, the fingerprints, and the fragrance of Jesus.

The Urbano family with five children; the De La Rosa family with 2 children; the Gallegos family with one child; and the Sandoval family with one child were blessed with a new home two days before mother’s day. Mrs. De La Rosa said she bought a sign for her house several months ago with the address on it. Her daughter asked if it was for the trailer and she said no, it is for a house. It was the winter, cold and drafty in the family’s trailer. On January 2nd she met one of our Colonia staff and was told that her family would be receiving a new house. She said she acted in faith expecting to have a home some day, maybe years later. She never dreamed it would be so soon. To hear her story and see her tears of joy over the presentation of a new home was a transformational moment for me.

 
Every year we see over 4,000 short-term volunteers travel with Buckner to serve children and families both internationally and domestically. Most of our volunteers head to the border.  In 2009 we saw 89 church groups go the Valley on mission trips; in 2010 we saw 100 church groups travel to the Valley on mission trips to serve families; and in 2011 we expect to see over 100 church groups on mission trips to the Valley. On average we build about 25 houses per year and repair an additional 450 homes, provide Vacation Bible School, and sports clinics in the Valley but we also serve families all along the Border. If you would like to your church group to get engaged on the border simply call Jorge Zapata at 956-583-2041 or email him at jzapata@buckner.org and we will get you connected.

Comments

[Saul Caballero]

Wow! What a wonderful opportunity to serve God’s people. I talked briefly with Pastor Jesse Rincones last night and he mentioned the incredible opportunities that we have to reach out to the people in the Colonia’s. I am confident that we will soon have the privilege to do God’s work and minister through our servant hood. Blessings, Saul Caballero

[Ricardo Brambila]

Thank you Dr. Reyes for your visit to the Valley. Buckner has heard the call to serve the least of these, and has been blessed. These families have been transformed becasue of the touch of the Lord with Love.