I was at Hope Mountain the other week. As always it was fun to see Jardelio and Natalia. Both are Hope Graduates, and came back to work for us as house parents in both Vitoria and then Campinas.

 In June, Pr. Derli asked Jardelio to return to Vitoria as Residential Coordinator, hiring and overseeing all the house parents.  We were badly in need of experienced leadership there, as we had lost most of our senior house parents when forced to cut back to only 20 children last year (from whom remained, our existing coordinator left for a prestigious job heading up the Children’s Council in his native city; Jardelio moved to Campinas at his wife’s request, and our final experienced house parent had  moved to the graduate transition home).    

Jardelio was a transformational addition to the program.  Besides his tough-love discipline, he arranges all kinds of fun activities for the boys on the weekends, and involves them in theater and music. (Having been a student at the City of Youth for 7 years, he knows what to do!)

Last week when I visited, he and Natalia put on a skit for Wednesday chapel.  In the photo, Jardelio portrays a lost individual seeking pleasure with partying, alcohol, drugs, and loose women (as portrayed by Natalia).  In reality, Natalia is much less loose and heads up Hope Mountain’s discipleship program, filling the role of chaplain.   

Jardelio and Natalia, together with Hope graduate Alex and his wife, make for a formidable team up on that mountain top!