Lima Home

Lima, the capital city of Peru, is located on the Pacific Coast. Peru, nearly twice the size of Texas, and is a country of contrasts. The rich and the poor, the beautiful and the ugly, the historic and the modern, the mountains and jungle all add to the the mystique of this Latin nation.

Located in the coastal desert region, Lima receives less than one inch of rainfall per year. Moving 30 to 50 miles inland one encounters the majestic Andes Mountains and highlands, which separate the coast from the vast Amazon jungle. These three distinct geographical regions each have their own culture and people groups, making Peru a fascinating place to visit and live.

The Lima Home was founded by Larry and Betty Bartels in 1993 in a rented facility in the suburbs of Lima with 10 boys who were released from a government home that was closing. The number grew to 16 children in July of 1994 when the site of just over half an acre was purchased. In 1999 an additional parcel of land was purchased about a mile from the first parcel. Mike & Diane Fietje became the Directors of this home in the beginning of 2000 when the Bartels returned to the United States.

The Lima home has experienced God's blessing time and time again in its relatively short history. We are thankful to Him for each physical blessing as well as each of the children to whom we have been able to minister. The present facilities on the main property, besides the essentials (ie - bedrooms for kids, and staff), include a playroom an activity room containing a library, homework and craft area, and missionary apartments. Also on the property are a basketball/soccer court, a huge multi-level jungle gym, a sand box, and a swimming pool that can be used nearly year round. Extensive remodeling and construction, including the addition of a second floor on the main house, has improved the property. Much of the work has been done by service teams. There is one main building on the new property. The older boys live at this location along with their house parents. They enjoy the use of a weight room, trampoline and ping-pong table. There is also a halfway house for the older boys that have graduated from high school and are not yet ready to live on their own.

The home has approximately 40 children. They range in age from pre-school to 18. Dave and Connie Rhodes, as well as a number of talented short term missionaries, assist Mike and Diane Fietje. The Peruvian house parents are mature Christians, dedicated to attaining the goals of the home. These goals include not only providing for the physical, educational and emotional needs of the children, but also meeting their spiritual needs, preparing them for adulthood as Christians and as upstanding citizens in their community. As a result, a lot of emphasis is placed on devotions, discipleship, Bible memorization, and church attendance. The children attend 4 different schools in the area depending on their age and abilities. In the home there us also an emphasis on learning English, which will help them get better jobs in the future. In the summers the children attend camp, go on trips, learn different crafts and life skills. The older kids get jobs or work at Christian camps. Future plans include getting a new large piece of land in order to build apartments for each family group (house parents with their kids). This will enable us to house more children in a more family-type atmosphere while having space to make workshops so that the kids can leave with the knowledge of different trades, such as carpentry, welding and auto mechanics.