Faith and Child Sponsorships Have An Impact in Colombia

Leaders at Fundacion Formavida in Bogotá, Colombia are seeing the long-lasting impact their program and child sponsorships are having on the young adults they once served. Formavida provides a daily hot meal, homework help and daily teachings about God to children and adolescents. The organization has seen numerous examples of young adults who developed a relationship with God at a young age serving Him today wherever they go.

Danny Rojas had a desire to work at the Foundacion after watching his sister Amanda’s attitude change while she was going through the program. Rojas himself had strayed from his relationship with the Lord. He worked many jobs, but he prayed for something that would give him more purpose. His prayers were answered when the founder, Lucy Lancheros, gave him a job. 

“When I got back to a relationship with God, I felt the change. Every time I go in, I know I’m spending my life helping one kid,” Rojas says.  

When Rojas was 8 years old, he was sponsored by a family in Australia. The relationship meant a lot to him, knowing someone from another country cared about him. He watches the children get excited when they get letters and videos from their Mission Life sponsors and when the organization brings teams to visit.

“Mission Life has impacted the boys a lot. They always ask when they will come to Colombia. If the godparents (sponsors) send letters or photos, it shows them they are appreciated and it makes them feel they are important,” Rojas says. 

When the mission trip groups come to Formavida, the children enjoy the devotionals and the time the group spends playing with them.

Most of the teachers at the Foundacion went through the program when they were children.  Danny’s sister Amanda also teaches there.

Rojas says, “What I like the most in the Fundacion is to share the word of God with the kids and see, little by little, how they put their trust in God.”

It is a family affair. Formavida also provides resources to the children’s families. Parents see the positive impact on their children and they feel confident sharing their own challenges and getting counseling on how to improve their own situations at home.

God’s calling to Lucy Lancheros to build Fundacion Formavida to change the landscape of this neighborhood is coming to fruition, one life at a time.