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The purpose of the Prince of Peace Ministries is to provide
for the whole development (physical, spiritual, emotional,
educational, and vocational) of orphaned, abandoned, and
abused Guatemalan girls in a Christian home environment so
that they, in turn, can serve the Lord and their own nation
as godly women of good character and training.
“Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the
least of these…
ye have done it unto Me.”
Matthew 25:40 |
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The History of
POP - Behind the Story
1984
In 1984, Al Sanchez (then at
Christian Service Corps in
Maryland
with his wife Marie in training to
become missionaries) came to
Guatemala
to investigate what the
Lord might want him to do there. The word “
Guatemala
” had been coming to his
mind day and night for some time. What captured Al’s attention more
than anything else in
Guatemala
were the children—hungry, dirty, sick,
begging, many living in cardboard boxes on the streets.
In December of 1984, Immanuel’s
Church
of Silver Spring
, Maryland
, commissioned Al and Marie to
establish a Home for Girls in
Guatemala
. God had impressed on Al
that the Home was to be only for girls because girls were the most
abused and vulnerable children in
Guatemala
. At that time there was
just one home for girls there, but many for boys.
Al and Marie went to
Guatemala
from January to April of
1985 to study Spanish and serve as interns at Lily of the Valley
Home for Girls in San Lucas. During this time they arranged
verbally to rent a large house in the Panorama section of
Antigua
for a Children’s Home starting in
January of 1986. That house, which had eight bedrooms and seven
bathrooms, was already being used as a Children’s Home by another
missionary who planned to vacate it in December of 1985.
1985
Al
and Marie returned to the
U.S.
in April of 1985 in order
to gather supplies and furnishings needed for the Home and to raise
the necessary funds to begin. While visiting family in the
U.S.
, they were considering
possible names for the Home. Marie asked Al what he thought of
“Prince of Peace Home for Girls.” Al’s response was, “What a
beautiful name! What better name could there be for a Home for
orphaned, abandoned, and abused girls who so much needed Jesus, the
Prince of Peace, to restore their broken lives.”
Al and Marie left the
U.S.
for
Guatemala
in August, 1985 to
continue studying Spanish more and prepare to open the Home. After
driving over 5,000 miles, Marie was killed instantly in a tragic
automobile accident about one mile from where the home was to be
located. Their van and trailer were demolished and their belongings
scattered along the highway. Al, overwhelmed with shock, grief, and
his own personal injuries, felt that the vision the Lord had given
him was over. About one week later, Al returned to the States,
thinking he would never return. A pastor friend told him that if he
had been in God’s will, this never would have happened. While Al
was struggling with this, the Lord asked him if he believed God had
called him to
Guatemala
. Al replied, “Lord, You
know I did. I never would have gone if I hadn’t believed it.” Then
the Lord showed him that he had to go back and complete to call
since “the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable” (Romans
11:29
). Al asked the Lord how he, as a
man, could possibly start a Home for Girls in
Guatemala
by himself. The Lord
promised that He would send the necessary help.
Although Immanuel’s Church was
concerned about Al’s returning so soon, they agreed that he should
make an exploratory trip to see if he could withstand the pain and
stress of returning to
Guatemala
. They also urged him to
receive counsel from a missionary pastor recommended by Pat
Robertson. After the exploratory trip, the pastor concurred that Al
should very definitely return and continue the work as soon as
possible.
The Original
Vision
-
Five houses with 20 girls in
each for a total of 100 girls on own land
-
One of the five houses to be a
Baby House (infants to 5 years old)
-
Houseparents for each home
-
Central kitchen and laundry
-
Multipurpose building with
large salon
-
Office/Administrative building
with conference room
-
Medical and dental clinic for
the Home and surrounding community
-
Prayer tower for quiet
reflection
-
Workshop
1986
When Al returned to
Guatemala
in February of 1986, he
found that the large Panorama house had been rented to another
ministry since the owner felt that Al would not return. Al’s van
was placed in Customs until the legal papers to bring it into the
country could be arranged. He rented a room in
Antigua
and rode the bus (an experience!)
almost every day for three months into
Guatemala
to try to speed up that
process with his limited Spanish. He also began the necessary legal
paperwork with the Guatemalan Government in order to start the Home
and obtained temporary permission to begin while the papers were
being finalized.
In the spring of 1986 Cindy Miller
from Immanuel’s Church joined a team coming from
Maryland
to
Guatemala
. While there, she helped
Al find a small house in Jocotenango near
Antigua
which seemed suitable to start the
Home. Cindy prayerfully considered the possibility during the trip
that God might want her to come to
Guatemala
to help, but she returned
to the
U.S.
with no confirmation from the Lord about
this.
In June of 1986 Cindy took the
early retirement from her job and began to work full time for
Immanuel’s Church, as planned for some time. The morning of her
first day on the job, her devotional book seemed to scream at her
with neon lights flashing: “Arise and depart, for this is not your
rest.” This was followed many times by this and other Scriptures
and readings. She became convinced that God was definitely about to
send her off somewhere—probably to the mission field—but not
necessarily Prince of Peace. She continued to seek the Lord
prayerfully, and argue with Him, for several months concerning
this. She explained to the Lord all the reasons why she shouldn’t
go to work at Prince of Peace, and He systematically did away with
each argument. She finally let go of all the details and asked the
Lord to just tell her whether to go to Prince of Peace or not. The
struggle was over when a Christian brother came up to her and said,
“I don’t know if this will mean anything to you, but the Lord has
given me one word to pass on to you, and you will have to decide
what it might mean to you. That word is: “GO!” So in September of
1986 Cindy arrived in
Guatemala
, committing herself to
stay for three months to help Al. The three months, however,
somehow turned into 17 years!
Meanwhile, in July of 1986, Al had
received the first girl for the Home through the Guatemalan Juvenile
Courts. When the officials who brought the girl asked for his
signature confirming that he would receive the girl, he asked
himself, “Do I really want to commit to caring for her—and all the
others who will follow?” After hesitating about five minutes to
seriously consider the question, he signed it, hired a woman to
work, and the Home was begun.
By the time Cindy arrived, there
were three girls—Sarah, Janet, and Ana. Shortly afterwards, Violeta
and Elvia came, followed by Rosa Linda.
1987
As the need increased, it became
obvious that the Jocotenango house was not large enough. In January
of 1987, Al was offered the Panorama house to rent as it had become
available again. A 5-year contract was signed—from
February 1, 1987
to January 31, 1991
. During this period of time, the
Home grew to over 20 girls, and again more space was needed.
Although the house was beautiful, it did not allow for future
expansion and the fulfillment of Al’s vision. A search therefore
began for a suitable property to purchase that could accommodate it
all.
1988
A beautiful 8-acre tract of land
was found in
San Cristobal
, just outside of
Guatemala City
, where most of the Home’s business
was conducted. The land, however, had no water, sewer, or
electricity, which made the real estate agent think would make it
undesirable for us. On the contrary, it was perfect because it was
inexpensive, and we preferred to install these utilities ourselves.
One of Al’s friends told him prophetically that in nine months he
would have the funds to buy the land, and the owner agreed verbally
to sell it once a deposit could be paid. Later that year, on the
very same day that a $5000 deposit was given to the Home, a prophecy
was given in Immanuel’s Church that the Lord had given the land to
the Home. The person giving the prophecy knew nothing about the
deposit money being given. But when Al tried to draw up a contract
with the $5000 deposit, the owner said he had changed in his mind
about selling it.
1989
Al wondered how this could be, but
early in 1989 he made an appointment with the owner to explain his
purpose in desiring this particular piece of land and asking if he
would reconsider selling it. The owner reconsidered, changed his
mind again, and sold it to the Home. The balance of the price was
provided anonymously, and the dedication of the land was held on
July 23, 1989
—a wonderful present for Al’s 60th
birthday. One hundred balloons were released into the air,
symbolizing the one hundred girls who would one day call this land
home.
Even before the closing on the
land, Engineering Ministries International, sent a team of seven
different kinds of engineers to consult with Al and Cindy and draw
up plans for the best use of the land to accomplish the Home’s
purposes. They also provided plans for the girls’ homes.
The land had
only one small, very simple guardian’s house on it. A guardian was
hired, a workshop was built to safely store the supplies, and
building materials were purchased.
In 1989 we rented a house in San
Lucas to be used as an independent living house for the older girls
who could travel by bus to their school in
Guatemala City
and learn more of the skills of
responsibility and independence.
Meanwhile, Al had a stroke,
requiring him to be in the hospital in
Guatemala
for some time and then in
the States for three months. By the time he returned near the end
of the year, the Home at last had obtained its final legal papers
signed by the President of Guatemala on his last day in office. Had
it been one day later, the whole process would have had to be
started all over again!
1990
A 3-bedroom apartment was
constructed on top of the workshop, and drainage ditches were
installed. As the time for the move from
Antigua
drew hear, a house was rented near
the land to provide office space with telephone service (which was
not yet available on the land) and space for work teams to stay.
Vilma, who
now works full time for Prince of Peace as a Social Worker while
pursuing a Law degree, arrived at the Home. She quickly began to
thrive and blossom as did many of the other girls who lived at
Prince of Peace Home.
Work was begun on the first girls’
house, with work teams coming regularly. The move to the land was
anticipated for January, 1991.
1991
The Home moved to
San Cristobal
in January so that the girls could
begin their new school semester in time, even though their house was
not yet completed. The apartment and workshop were re-arranged
slightly so the girls and Vicki, our first housemother (who still
works with the Home) could live there. The number of girls had been
allowed to drop to about twelve so that the move would be simpler.
There was no running water on the land so water had to be purchased
and stored in the tank built for that purpose. Electricity was
provided only at night by a small generator to produce necessary
light in the evenings and enough power to pump the water from the
storage tank to the apartment. Cindy moved into the house rented as
an office, and Al rented an apartment in
San Cristobal
.
1992
As usual, construction of the
beautiful big house for the girls took longer than anticipated, but
the girls and staff finally moved in and Cindy also moved into the
house. The dedication of Casa Agape was held on August 15.
When a cook
was needed, Vicki recommended her sister Desi, who promptly joined
our staff (and still continues with us).
1993
When a new guardian/chauffeur was
needed, Vicki and Desi recommended their sister Romelia’s husband,
Edgar. Edgar soon demonstrated that he had many other talents, and
he began doing the Home’s accounting, and eventually became
Assistant to the Directors.
This was also
the year when a 600-foot deep artesian well was installed, producing
a more than adequate supply of water. When the water was pumped
into a second, larger storage tank, it provided tremendous water
pressure as it flowed down by gravity from the top of a high hill.
1994
Edgar and
Rome
along with their two children (later
three) moved into the renovated guardian’s house at Prince of
Peace. The wall dividing Prince of Peace from the neighborhood was
started, an entrance gate was put into place, the
Prayer
Tower
was built over the water tank, and
construction of the
Multi-Purpose
Building
was begun. Ground was also broken
to provide a larger home for Edgar and his family. The old
guardian’s house was then used temporarily for a school.
1995
Construction continued at Prince of
Peace. A separate school building was built near the
Multi-Purpose
Building
, and the septic system was
expanded to accommodate the additional population and use of the
property. Many teams and individuals came to help with all these
projects.
1996
With 23 girls
at the Home and the need for space growing each day, Al felt
impressed that it was time to start the second house and the land
was leveled—a tremendous job. However, the special sand that was
dug out was sold to the contractor who then charged the Home about
$35 for approximately two weeks of very hard work!
1997
The team house, a styrofoam
structure, was donated and built as an experiment by an engineer
from Delaware who wanted to see if it could be done in Guatemala.
It was a challenge, but it worked and It continues to serve us well.
There were
also new additions to the wall that surrounds the grounds, and the
dirt road was paved. The groundbreaking for Casa Bethel, the second
house, took place in late summer.
1998
Casa Bethel was finished, enabling
the Home to be able to receive many more children. Additional
school rooms and an office of the school were added inside the
Multi-Purpose
Building
..
1999
It became
obvious that some additional living space was needed to house staff,
guests, short term missionaries, etc. so a building with three
apartments was started.
2000
Having so
many girls and staff required that we build a central kitchen and
laundry. In addition, concrete was added to various sections of the
road to make driving a little smoother. Shortly afterwards,
Immanuel’s Church provided the funds to design and begin
construction of a beautiful office building.
2001
Construction continued on the
apartments as well as the office. An ongoing search for people to
carry on the ministry became more concentrated.
2002
For health reasons, Al and Cindy
felt the need to intensify their efforts to find a replacement to
continue the Home. After talking with many candidates, Paul and
Lana Sanders were found. With 17 years of experience in directing a
Home in the
U.S.
, 10 years of pastoral
counseling, and coming to
Guatemala
to learn Spanish so they could become
missionaries, they seemed like the perfect answer for assuming
leadership of the Home. The Sanders began praying about the
possibility, and eventually said they felt the Lord leading them to
do so. Their vision for a Children’s Home was incredibly similar to
that of Prince of Peace.
2003
Al and Cindy moved back to the
United States
after many years of
faithful service at Prince of Peace Home for Girls in
Guatemala
. Paul and Lana picked up
the vision that God had placed in Al’s heart and continued the work
of Prince of Peace. Edgar and his wife
Rome
, with
their many years of working with the Home, were invaluable assets to
the Sanders and the smooth continuation of the ministry. With a
competent staff in place; the Guatemalan Foundation with its General
Assembly and Board of Directors; and the U.S. Non-Profit 501(c)3
Corporation with its Board of Directors established, Al and Cindy
were assured that the Home was in very good hands.
Late in 2003, with help from
Hope
Community
Church
the
construction of the Medical and Dental Clinic was well underway.
2004
The work on the Hope Medical and
Dental Clinic was continued as teams came from
Florida
,
Kentucky
, and
Missouri
to work on it. A new roof was put
on Casa A and Casa B was painted outside.
2005
The
dedication of Hope Medical and Dental Clinic took place on March
19th and was a day that many will never forget. The wedding of Vilma
took place on March 20th at the Home.
After the
restoration of the original guardian’s house on the land was
complete, the Independent Living Program came into existence on the
grounds, a continuation of a similar program begun in 1989.
A second
level was also added onto Edgar’s house.
2006
Because of
the need for additional housing in the Independent Living Program, a
second house was constructed.
The 20th Anniversary of
the Home was celebrated at the Home in grand fashion with Al and
Cindy present, and some of the girls who had grown up in the Home
2007
We were approved by the Guatemalan government as a licensed adoption
agency and we began the process of adoption for one of our girls.
After five years as Directors, Paul and Lana Sanders resigned to
return to the states. In the fall, Edgar Ramos was named Director by
the General Assembly. The team house was remodeled and a
church was built in Magdalena by teams. Eight girls were in
private high schools and we received a $15,000 grant from the Helen
Bader Foundation in Wisconsin.
2008
With Edgar Ramos being director for his first year it was decided to
bring in very few teams to allow him time to get adjusted. One
church came and did massive concrete work between Casa A and Casa B.
2009
This has been a banner year for teams from the US. We have had ten
teams from January to August, seven from Kentucky, one from Florida,
two from Texas. They have worked on our new building, a 3-complex
two-story apartment, painted many of the houses, inside and out,
taught a VBS, built a dollhouse for Casa B, worked on computers,
brought and distributed hundreds of clothing items, and much more.
This year we adopted seven families from the mountains behind the
home. We have assigned two of our older girls to each family. As
teams have come we have taken food and clothing to the families as
well as worked on some of the houses. This has been a wonderful way
for our girls to give back to the community.
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