Be part of the Safe Families rescue operation!
When I see Safe Families in action, I’m reminded that it’s more than just a good ministry. It’s a rescue operation powered by God’s love and compassion.
Let me tell you about one rescue operation currently in progress. Last month, Jayla and Ryan Santiago moved in with the Gilchrists, a Safe Family in Chicago’s north suburbs. These grade schoolers have been through a lot in their short lives — they have been separated from their mother for months and years at a time, lied to by aunts and uncles, and neglected by foster parents. In the last year alone, they’ve lived in four different homes and attended three different schools.
Their mother, Tiffany, is trying to make a fresh start in Chicago. She’ll be the first to tell you she’s made mistakes in her life. Perhaps the biggest was staying with Jay, the father of her children, for so long.
She was young when she met Jay, an alcoholic who abused her physically. Soon after Ryan was born, DCFS took custody of the children. The kids lived with Tiffany’s father and in foster homes for three years until Tiffany finally had the courage to leave Jay.
After regaining custody, Tiffany lived with the kids in the Chicago area, then in Virginia. Last spring, Tiffany was laid off. She found a job in Chicago and decided to move back.
Worried about the stress of another transition, Tiffany arranged for her kids to live in Florida with her brother’s family. The plan was for them to join her in Chicago in a few months after Tiffany was settled.
But things went awry almost immediately. Tiffany’s job offer fell through, and she discovered that her brother was verbally abusing Jayla and Ryan. Living in a one-bedroom apartment in Chicago without any heat or income, Tiffany knew the children couldn’t be with her. So the kids moved in with her sister and brother-in-law in Chicago. But within weeks, that arrangement fell apart, too.
Desperate not to involve DCFS, Tiffany called Safe Families. Within a week, we put her in touch with the Gilchrists, who graciously invited the children to stay with them.
“Reaching out to total strangers was an awful feeling,” Tiffany says. “But now, three weeks later, I can see that asking Safe Families for help was the best decision I’ve ever made in my life.”
A lot has happened in those three weeks. Tiffany found another job in Chicago — a good one that could give her family financial security. The kids started at a new school and have already impressed their teachers. More importantly, they are happy in this new, temporary home, where the Gilchrists simply love them and help them look forward to the day that they’ll be reunited with their mother.“
They are doing so well now,” Tiffany says. “I talk to them every night and I can hear genuine happiness in their voice. They have been through so much and, for the first time, they are seeing and learning what a good, close family is about.”
The plan is for Tiffany and her children to be reunited soon after school ends in June. This will give Tiffany time to establish herself professionally and financially and find a place where all three of them can live.
“This has been an amazing experience for us, and I feel so blessed that the Gilchrists are part of our lives now,” Tiffany says. “They are kind and loving—like family to me, more so than my own family. When Jayla and Ryan come home, I want to keep them on the path the Gilchrists have shown us so they can grow up to be happy and loving adults.”
It’s amazing, isn’t it, that Safe Families has such a powerful effect on people. Whether a placement lasts a few days or many months, lives are being changed forever. It’s God’s love in action, and we are so thankful for the opportunity to be part of it.
We also are thankful for the generosity of friends like you, whose financial gifts keep our ministries strong. Safe Families and LYDIA Urban Academy are largely dependent on donations from individuals and foundations.
Simply put, we can only continue to operate these vitally important ministries with your help.
I hope you will consider making a donation to LYDIA today, in the amount of $75, $100, $200, or even more. Your gift will make a significant impact on our ability to serve people throughout Chicago and beyond.
By the way, I saved the best news for last when it comes to Jayla and Ryan.
Just last week, both of these precious children prayed to receive Jesus as their Savior. They were neither coached nor prompted to so — their prayers came from the heart.
Tiffany was amazed when she heard the news, and last Sunday she attended church with her children for the first time in more than a year. God is showing His love to her in so many ways.
Thank you for being part of His work here at LYDIA.
Sincerely,
Dave Anderson, PsyD
Executive Director
