“Rachel” is 10 years old and joined CCM Homes in September 2022. In this article we share a little snapshot of her situation that led her to be living in the care of CCM. (To protect her identity her name has been changed and she is not present in the image above).
Rachel was born and spent her early childhood in a province some hours from the CCM Homes with her parents and two siblings. At the age of 8, she travelled to Manila with her parents. Her siblings stayed behind.
At the peak of the pandemic in 2020, her parents separated and she was left in the custody of her father. They had nowhere to stay and were forced to sleep on the streets. The pain of separation and absence of work caused her father to become dependent on… PTO alcohol. Rachel was left to rely on survival instincts and turned to begging from passers by. The money was used to buy food and alcohol for her father.
Rachel had always had a good relationship with her father. He had been caring, mindful and loving towards her but he was now neglecting the needs of his daughter. There was an instance where Rachel went missing on the streets and was rescued by the Social Services but eventually reunited with her father.
In 2020 the Philippine National Police became aware of Rachel and her father’s situation. He was drunk and not able to answer questions, whilst Rachel was sleeping on the street. They were reported to the Social Services and Rachel was taken into care of the government Social Services.
In September 2022, Rachel was referred to CCM. She was able to adjust to her new situation, being friendly towards the other children and respectful towards the staff. Her experience of surviving on so little to eat, caused her to ask for food continuously.
She is a curious girl, asking questions about anything and everything. Most of the time she asked about her family—her papa, her mama’s whereabouts. When is she going to talk to them, when they are going to visit her, what her siblings are doing… Her questions indicated a longing to have contact with her family again.
In November 2022, we were informed from her previous social worker that sadly her father had passed away, due to health complications cause by his addiction to alcohol. The good news was that the social workers had been able to make contact with her mother.
When told about the death of her father, Rachel was heartbroken. Her mind was filled with many questions and she was full of sadness that she would never see him again.
After 3 years of having no communication with her mother, finally in December 2022, Rachel was able to talk to her mother on video call. Rachel was unbelievably excited to see her mother and it was evident in the conversation that she yearns to be with her. She was able to ask her mother many questions.
Thankfully, 7 months after her admission to the Homes, her Social Worker was able to visit Rachel’s mother. It was a challenge for the Social Worker to find the exact location but eventually she found her mother who welcomed them with open arms. She was happy with the thought that her daughter was safe.
Rachel’s life has been a life of sadness. She was separated from her family at such an early age. Due to wrong decisions of her parents, her life was put in danger and she has experienced hardship and situations that no child should have to face. Please pray for wisdom for Social workers and staff in determining the long term plan for Rachel. We are glad that contact has finally been made with her mother.
Thankfully God has been good to Rachel and has not forsaken her. In His Sovereign plan, she has come to CCM. She can experience the love and care of the staff and most importantly she can hear the good news about Jesus.
