Healthy Family Bunk Bed Ministry

When we think about communities living in poverty, there are a lot of visible signs that we think about, including living conditions and other things on the surface. But there are a lot of damaging effects of poverty that are underneath the surface. Incest is on of the greatest example of such. Many families in Sumpango live in a small house with only one bed, and entire families share a single bed. Breaking Cycles (the ministry we are partnering with in Sumango) have found that providing adequate spaces to sleep reduces the all too real possibility of sexual abuse that has become alarmingly severe in Sumango. 

Breaking Cycles has created a program to not only provide beds, but also teach families how to have safe and healthy living environments and family relations.  Families must work to receive their beds. Their work is taking part in a four session training on the importance of health- physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. Through this program, families receive teachings on nutrition, alcoholism, sexual abuse, and the overwhelming love of God. By requiring families to attend all four sessions, they become invested in the bunk beds they receive. Since the beginning of this program, they have provided over 120 children in Sumpango with a safe place to sleep. There are still over 300 families on a waiting list for beds.

One of our ministry teams (Bergen, Domonique, Grace, Ella S. and Ben) had the privilege of helping to pray over families and their new beds and load them into vehicles for them to take home. Our students got to witness first hand the ways God is working through this ministry as 5 families received bunk beds after being on a waiting list for 3 years. Grace said the highlight for her was experiencing the joy on two teenage girls’ faces as they received their very first bed.

In the following weeks, our two other ministry teams will have the opportunity to serve with the Healthy Families Bunk Bed Ministry on Friday evenings as they distribute more beds. 

Check out this video of our ministry partner Betty as she talks about her heart behind the Healthy Family Bunk Bed Ministry.