An Orphan's Story

It was in the summer of 2006, on a mission trip to the Mosquito Coast in Honduras, on one of my annual trips to visit the orphans of Mama Tara Miskito Orphanage, that I finally found out some of the details behind the deaths of the parents of the child I sponsor. Little Biborly, had been brought to the orphanage in February of 2003, by her grandfather, along with 2 other siblings, a brother named Max and a sister named Yonly, soon after the death of her their mother. I had become her Madrina,( sponsor, or guardian) a few months after my first visit to the orphanage, in June of '03. She captivated me with her spunky little mannerisms. I loved everything about her; her beautiful almond shaped, dark brown eyes, her captivating smile, and her zest for life. I could tell she was a "leader in the making", and was probably a "handful" for all of the grownups, but I was drawn to her from the very beginning. Little did I know of some of the drama she had been exposed to at such an early age.

It was the orphan's tutor, Ebety, that filled us in on details about Biborly, and her siblings, that I had never known before. One typically, warm, balmy evening at the restaurant by the lagoon, which is similar to a tropical Tiki hut, with a thatched roof, Ebety began to tell us all of some interesting bits of information she had come across in her search for the children's birth certificates. We had already eaten and some of us were so tired, that we were about to call it a night, when Ebety began telling us stories about the children. Gustavo, our guide, interpreted everything she said, as she speaks Miskito, and Spanish, but not English. Of course, when she began telling us about Biborly, I perked up and listened eagerly to each piece of news as if I was searching for a pearl in a mound of oysters. The language barrier has been so frustrating to me, because it keeps me from truly communicating with this little child that has become so dear to my heart, but of whom I know so little.

The story, if I heard it correctly, goes something like this: it seems that Biborly, Max and Yonly were living at home in the village of Benk. Most of their siblings were much older and married. Biborly, age 6, was the youngest child in the family. Her mother, at the time of her death was about 8 months pregnant. Apparently, there was another family member staying with them, who was said to have been jealous of all of them and was secretly putting poison in the parent's food. The mother began to get very ill and was eventually brought to a hospital, where after a short period of time she and the unborn baby died. How tragic! That happened in January of 2003. The father, being ill himself, couldn't care for his children. He wanted his parents to take care of them, but they were old and were unable to do so, so he had no choice but to find an orphanage for the children to live. To make matters worse, in the fall of the very same year, Biborly, Max and Yonly's father died. These kids were orphans in the true sense of the word. Most of the children in the orphanage may have at least one parent alive, and some have 2 parents who are still alive, but because of abuse, neglect, or sheer poverty and sickness, are unable to raise their children.

My heart was broken for this poor little family, that would still be together, if it had not been torn apart by the criminal act of a jealous person. What a selfish and hateful act to commit! There is no way to know if the person has been brought to justice, but even so, nothing can repair the damage done to the family.

Can you imagine the devastation this violent crime had on these three children, first losing their mother and an unborn sibling, and then, after having been carted off, by boat to a village some distance away from all that they'd ever known, they are then dropped off to an orphanage, only to have to live with complete strangers? I can't fathom what that must have been like for them, waking up those first few months in a totally new and strange environment. They had no one or nothing familiar around them, and had to get used to new faces, and new rules. Who could they trust, who could they feel safe with, who would love them like a parent? I'm certain that they felt hopeless, scared, and very alone. Thankfully they still had each other.

Ebety went on to say that she was speaking to Biborly one day and asked her why didn't she go back to her village and live with some of her older siblings, or aunts and uncles? I'll never forget the feeling I had as I listened to Ebety relaying Biborly's answer, as I was totally blessed by what was being told to me. Biborly said that she really loved Mama Tara and liked living at the orphanage. She said that she was happy there and loved the other orphans. Anyway, she went on to say, if she left the orphanage and went back to Benk, she would never see her Madrina again. All of a sudden, the words she said hit me so deeply. At last, I felt a closeness to this child, that I had never felt before, as I had no idea that she really gave me a second thought. I was truly shocked by the child's answer. I started to realize that perhaps I was making an impact on this little girl, more than I had dreamed. I seemed to be making a difference to her. Up 'til then, I wasn't really sure about that. I began to weep bittersweet tears. I was happy for myself, that apparently Biborly had learned to love me,and wanted me in her life, but tears of sorrow, for the loss of her parents and the break up of her family. That was one night that I will never forget. I was overflowing with joy, at the news that Biborly indeed loved me, and I was so grateful to the Lord for allowing me to finally have some insight into the life of this little orphan, named Biborly.

Who Is Mama Tara?

Who is this lady called Mama Tara? The name, ”Mama Tara” actually means Big Mama in the Miskito Indian language. I don’t know how she got the name, but in my opinion, it is because she has a big heart. She has such a heart of compassion for children, who have been abandoned, or abused, and especially the orphan. When she was around 14 years of age, her mother died, and it was this traumatic experience, that caused her to tell the Lord that one day she would help orphans, feeling very much like an orphan herself.

This wonderful lady’s real name is Florinda Flores Blas. She lives in Puerto Lempira, located on the Mosquito Coast of Honduras. Mama Tara just celebrated her 80^th birthday in April of 2009. She is the person responsible for beginning the Mama Tara Miskito Orphanage, a few years before I even met her, which was in June of 2003. At that time, the orphanage was still located in an old dilapidated, camp-like structure that was built out over a lagoon. This lagoon, is by no means a small body of water. It looks more like a lake to me.

The situation, at the time of our arrival on the scene was desperate. Our missionary team, which consisted of around 15 people from the U.S. was appalled and shocked at the living conditions of the little orphanage, which looked like at any moment it would collapse in a heap of splintered and rotting pieces of wood into the polluted water below. All 15 of us piled into the building, with a hint of fear in our hearts as we knew the building was stressed with all the added weight. As it was, there were about anywhere from 30 – 40 women and children, of various ages, all crammed into this old condemned building.

Inside the building was a very large room, with many people scattered about. The children scurried around, as they knew we were coming and they were so excited. Apparently they had gotten all dressed up for company and they had prepared a song for the Gringo Missionaries, called ”Bienvenidos”. I had seen photos of the children before we got there, but in person, they looked so different. None the less, I fell in love with them those first few days. Amazingly enough, they seemed very happy. I would notice later, after being there a few days, the children at the orphanage seemed brighter and happier in their countenance then many of the other children that we saw as we walked through the town.

As I glanced around the room I noticed many young mothers holding their babies, while sitting on the floor. They would cluster together in little groups. They smiled sheepishly at us, or some pretended not to notice us. All of these sights and smells were overwhelming to me, but what seemed to be the most alarming problem that needed immediate attention were the gaping holes in the floor, where parts of the floor boards were missing, large enough for a child or animal to fall through. It was very dangerous to walk around from room to room, because you had to constantly watch your step.

As all of us were trying to take everything in when Mama Tara walked into the room. She, too, was dressed in a nice blue dress, something that she might wear to church. Of course she greeted those on the team she had met on prior occasions. Tracy Houpt, our faithful leader, had met Mama Tara on a mission team that went down the year before. The Lord impressed on him a desire to help Mama Tara from the moment he met her and that is how the U.S. ministry of Mama Tara Miskito Orphanage, Inc. began.

The mission team members were introduced to Mama Tara one at a time. I felt honored to be in her presence. She embraced each of us warmly, and made us feel so welcomed. I felt her love, when she hugged me. I knew there was something special about her. She reminded me of a Hispanic version of Mother Teresa.

Mama Tara was so grateful for us being there. She had been praying for years that the Lord would send her some help to build a new orphanage. A few acres of land had been donated to her for her use to build an orphanage, but she did not have any money or resources to begin the building process. The American mission team, headed by Tracy Houpt, was a sign of hope for her dream to come true, on behalf of the orphaned children.

Mama Tara doesn’t just help children, her heart is so big, she will feed anyone who is hungry, who comes to her in need. She sometimes houses women with babies, who’s husbands have left them, and so they have to try and fend for themselves. She takes in the elderly women who have no place to live. And then there are the animals. Mama Tara takes in strays. She nurses them back to health, so needless to say there are always many dogs and cats hanging around. Her policy is, if a person or animal comes to her in need, she will not turn them away. She believes the Lord will bless her for looking out for the helpless. I think she is on to something here! To me actions speak louder than words. Words don’t put food in someone’s mouth, words don’t put a roof over your head nor provide clothing when you are cold and naked.

Yes, Mama Tara had a dream, that someday, somehow, God was going to send her the help she needed to build a new orphanage. She had the dream, she had the heart, she had the land, she even had the orphans, but she needed people to help her, people who had skills, and resources who could come along side this noble woman to help with her vision. Thankfully, the Mama Tara Miskito Orphanage, Inc. was formed and has been helping make these dreams of Mama Tara’s a reality ever since. In April of 2004, the children and Mama Tara moved into the first phase of the new orphanage building project. It was only the beginning, but, it was a huge improvement to the unsafe building in which they had been living.

" Are You Serious?"

After having spent a week in Puerto Lempira, a small city on the Mosquito Coast in Honduras,
our mission team landed safely in the capital city, Tegucigalpa. All 15 of us were tired and were looking forward to getting back up the mountain to the mission camp where we had stayed for 2 nights at the beginning of our trip. At least there we would have electricity available both night and day, and they had hot water. I was longing for a hot shower. Even though it was still early in the day, a nap was in the forecast, I was quite sure.
We stuffed ourselves like sardines, into a few vehicles. I was hoping and praying that they had gotten the brakes repaired on the van, as traveling up a mountain a few miles, with a vehicle that was over-burdened with people and suitcases could be a bit precarious!
After making it successfully, yet one more time, up the mountain, all of us dispersed to tend to our various duties. In due time, one by one, we came outside to walk around the well groomed grounds of the dormitory building, which was used by many mission teams as they come in and out of the country. Diana, one of the young Hondurans, who came on our trip as an interpreter, came up to me and we both began to chat. It's then that she asked me a question, that I thought was really one of the strangest questions to ask me, in light of the trip we had just been on together. She asked, " So, Cathy, do you think that you will ever come back on another mission trip to our country again?" I looked at her like she had two heads and she stared at me, innocently waiting for my reponse. She was even smiling, as if she thought that I would be answering her enthusiastically
with a "yes",absolutely!"...but no! Instead I responded by saying," Are you serious?"
"Yes, will you?"
I stammered in unbelief and in a half second, I was having so many flashbacks of that first, memorable trip. Yes, the country is beautiful. I enjoyed the warm balmy breezes, multiple varieties of palm trees and all the tropical plants in all their splendor carpeting the mountainsides. I loved the sights, the sounds, the architecture, the history, and the food. The people are so warm and friendly. Yes, yes, I loved all that, but right then and there all I could think about was the black, fuzzy, tarantula in the bathroom on the second morning of the trip. (We were told that the mountainside was crawling with them.) Wasn't Diana there to see how afraid I was of that spider and the multitude of bugs that invaded our bedrooms, day and night, but mostly in the night?
I remember she was with me the day that my heart broke for the little orphans when I sat with my friend Gale as we recorded the history of each child for the case files. My eyes were filling up with tears, not just from the smoke coming from the rigged up stove they had inside the orphanage, but because I saw the tears in the eyes of the children when we asked questions that made them remember why they were there. Mama Tara, at that time in her 70's, who is the lady that started the orphanage and takes care of all the kids, saw me wiping my eyes, she thought I was getting overwhelmed by the smoke. Finally, I could take the pain no longer. I excused myself and stumbled out the door, and ran back to the hotel, crying all the way. How could Diana have forgotten my pain so quickly? Why would I want to come back to witness such anguish in the eyes of little, helpless, children? Why would I want to subject myself to battling the heat, the lack of electricity, the bugs, the language barrier, the health issues that I have struggled with, not to mention my fear of flying. Oh, I thought, how brave of me to do this for one time, but surely you jest, to think that I would do this again. I wanted to ask Diana, "Are you crazy?" Finally, I realized the girl was completely and innocently sincere, and expected a simple answer. I simply said, "No, that was a one time trip. Now I can say I've been on a missionary trip to a foreign country and have seen how others live, but I will not be coming back."
A few days later, back in the states, I had gotten my photos developed. I had only taken about 50 photos. Why had I not taken more? I began to ask the others who had gone on the trip to send me some of their photos. I found that I kept thinking more and more about Mama Tara, the kids, the horrible, run down building that they were living in, which was on pilings over the water of a lagoon,
and really needed to be condemned. It was a few months later that I realized that , that trip changed my life and that I was never going to be the same. I knew that I was going to go back. Yes, I was still afraid of flying, I still had a few health issues, which made it difficult to sleep and even eat some of the food, I was still hating the bug situation, but when I would look into the faces of the children that nobody wanted, I knew I was going to do all that I could to help them. This was the beginning of my journey of getting involved with "Mama Tara Miskito Orphanage, Inc." . That was in June of 2003.
I have been back once a year since then and I now sit on the Board of Directors of the organization as a Director of the Sponsorship Program. Oh, what a blessed adventure this has been and oh,
what I might have missed had I let my fears and creature comforts influence my decisions!