Dear friends,
 
Alreli has been alone most of her life and has never really known love. She had to move away from her family when she was 14 years old. Her husband never loved her, and he left about nine months ago.  He brings by a little help (mainly beans and rice) on some Fridays. Her parents live in Mexico City and have never seen beautiful Alondra. They never liked her husband and don't really consider her children their grandchildren. Alreli worked in downtown Juarez a few months while she was pregnant with Poncho, which resulted in him being born with multiple major birth defects. There is an old U.S. copper smelter on the border of Mexico that has been closed for many years, but they burn toxic waste on the weekends, drifting toxic clouds into Mexico. About three months ago, they were forced to stop a five year weekend dumping program. Even Rolling Stone magazine recently did a story on the smelter and the dumping and were outraged.  They concluded in their article that not even Satan would live in Juarez, downwind of the smelter.
 
Little Poncho was born with six toes on each foot, his right hand was webbed together, and his right ear is severely deformed and has no opening. Alreli has been praying and dreaming that one day her son would be normal and she could have a decent place to live. Very successful surgery was performed in Juarez on March 16, 2007 on Poncho's hand and feet, including skin grafts. We hope to have his surgical procedure on his ear done before their new home is built. This photo was taken two days after surgery.  His mom kept him in bed to protect him from infection in their pallet house with a dirt floor. Their new home will complete the tremendous blessings for this family at Easter.

Blessings,

All of us at Missions Ministries

Jeff, Jenny, Bill, Casey, Chris, Ed, Carol, Marilynn, Rosa & Deb