Lionel is a very sweet young teenager. He just turned 14 years old. Lionel gets up early in the morning and helps wash the car, helps with the plants and yard work, helps feed the horses, and chases down the donkeys to feed them too! He is kind and obedient!! He will be in the 9th grade once school starts in Haiti.

Lionel’s story is sad. One day, when Lionel was very, very young, a Haitian policeman found him on the street, all by himself. His hand and fingers had been “severely burned” to the degree that the flesh had fallen off! The police asked him what happened, and he told the police that his father got mad at him and “held his hand down in boiling water!” Lionel’s mother had died a while back and so he was raised by a father who didn’t love him. The Department of Social Services called us and asked us to take him in.

The doctors did the best they could, but there were no professional doctors or hospitals to handle burns and skin grafts, or to do repeated hand exercises. As a result, his fingers meshed together and couldn’t be separated. We are working on getting a special surgeon in the Dominican Republic to operate on Lionel’s fingers. The doctor said he can separate them, but Lionel will need to do a lot of physical exercises with his hand and fingers. This is a good “young man” to add to your daily prayer list.

Lionel loves soccer and he is excellent in math. His dream would be to do mechanic work, but that will only happen if his hand and fingers get the surgery he needs. But, with God, “all things are possible!” We will keep you updated on Lionel! Thank you for your prayers!

Sherry