We are overjoyed to introduce you to our 4th Annual “Child of the Year”!
Lismar is a radiant 16-year-old Venezuelan refugee whose courage, love for her sisters, and quiet determination have captured all of our hearts in Cúcuta, Colombia.
Wait, Colombia? Yes! After five years of prayer, relationship-building, and several visits, we officially launched our new partnership in Colombia this past January— one of our two newest programs in South America. Lismar is already beautiful proof of the fruit your gifts are producing!
Lismar’s early life was marked by unimaginable hardship. One of ten siblings, she was separated from her brothers and sisters when her mother was imprisoned. Raised by different relatives, Lismar never once stepped foot in a classroom.
In 2020, after her mother was released, they fled Venezuela’s collapse and ended up in a makeshift tent camp along the border in Cúcuta, Colombia. That’s where our dear partner Isabelina first met “La Beba” (as she affectionately calls Lismar), and a beautiful bond was born.
When Lismar arrived at Casa Vida, she was 11 years old and completely illiterate. Today, at 16, she is proudly completing 5th grade at Linaje de Campeones (“Lineage of Champions”), the small private school your gifts help operate for refugee children who are too old for their grade level in the public system.
Her four younger sisters and a nephew now attend the same school— many of them experiencing classroom learning for the very first time.
Lismar’s Journey of Transformation:
- Education – From never holding a pencil to reading, writing, and excelling in her studies. She now helps tutor some of the younger children.
- Daily Nutrition – Thanks to Casa Vida, the community center your support makes possible (offering tutoring, mentorship, medical care, skill training, and protection for at-risk teen girls), Lismar and her sisters receive a hot, nourishing lunch every weekday— often the only full meal they would have.
- Skills & Dignity – Lismar has completed multiple sewing courses and can now design and sew elegant dresses. After her own unforgettable quinceañera (made possible by your donations), she insisted on making beautiful gowns and even dress shoes for her younger sisters so they could feel just as special.
- Protection & Purpose – Twice Lismar was drawn to another large city by promises of work, but both times the situations turned unsafe. Isabelina kept a bus ticket and a place in school ready, welcomed her home, and now pays her a modest wage to stay and teach sewing to other teen girls— keeping her safe from exploitation and giving her responsibility she wears with pride.
- Family – Lismar has become the steady big sister, waking her little ones each morning, braiding their hair, and walking them to school. In her words: “Now I take care of my sisters the way I always wished someone had taken care of me.”
Here’s what Lismar shared with Isabelina last week:
I never thought I would go to school or learn to sew pretty things. I feel happy when my sisters wear the dresses I made and when the little girls at Casa Vida say ‘Thank you, teacher.’ I want to keep studying so one day I can have a shop and help my family the way you all help us.
Your generosity wrote every line of this story.
Because of you:
- A girl who had never been to school is now dreaming of owning her own business.
- Five siblings eat a solid meal every day.
- A teenage girl at extreme risk of trafficking is instead teaching other girls a trade and becoming the protector of her own family.
This year, as we close out 2025, we are believing for even greater things.
We’re thrilled to announce that, starting today, a group of faithful board members and friends have put up a $100,000 year-end matching challenge!
Every dollar you give between now and December 31 will be matched 1:1, instantly doubling your impact for the children and women in our programs.
Thank you for being the reason Lismar’s story, and hundreds like hers, ends with hope instead of heartbreak.
We praise God from whom all blessings flow; thank you for letting Him use your open hands to pour out heaven’s love on Lismar and so many others.
GIVE HOPE: Double your impact for the children and women in our programs by giving here.