Angela y Amigas
It was February 14th, a day that stands out in my mind. It is not the diamond bracelet that my husband gave me that I think about. That was the day my husband finally agreed that we could visit El Sauzal while we were on our Disneyland vacation.
At the time I didn't know why I was so drawn to El Sauzal, little did I know that by taking that trip it would be me who would be blessed. God's love was shining all around that place!
I will never forget the precious smiles on the children's faces and the loving welcome we received from everyone we met. Our trip was quick but one that I will never forget.
On our way back to Orange county I remember thinking, these children may not have parents that care for them, and this orphanage might not have a lot of money but they have the most precious gift that anyone could have, God's love shines through them!
The children are so blessed to have the Espinoza family caring for them. All of their loving sacrifices have not gone unnoticed. I would like to thank them for all they are doing, I can't think of a more important job in the world.
I would also like to thank Roy Ketring for encouraging us to visit the orphanage and sharing such a special place with us. El Sauzal will always have a piece of my heart.
Angela was touched by the children especially little Agustin, 4 years old, who has a
club foot. He walks and tries to run on the side of his left foot. Through her family, she found a reference to a local doctor and I wrote to
him about Agustin. I received a wonderful reply from Dr. Marc A. Benard co director
of The Baja Project for Crippled Children.
On May 15th., Josue Espinoza, Director of the Orphanage, took little Agustin
to Mexicali to meet Dr. Benard. The following is an excerpt from a subsequent letter that I received from Dr. Benard, "We found that Agustin has a dislocatable hip, which is due to an abnormally shaped hip socket. As we are podiatrists and operate on the foot and ankle only, we referred Agustin to Shriner's Hospital for further care, which would likely require reconstructive surgery on the hip. The paperwork has been completed by Mr. Espinoza for the referral."
December 15, 1999 Update on Agustin With God’s help, Tom Snyder, finally found someone in the Shriner’s organization who found Agustin’s record. On December 15th. Josue Espinoza and his wife Lily accompanied Agustin to the Shriners Hospital in Los Angeles, CA.. The doctors examined Agustin for over three hours and are of the opinion they can help him walk normally. They think he may have had polio early in his life. He scheduled for surgery on March 2, 2000. Josue wrote in part: "I would like to thank all of you for your prayers and support for Agustin and especially for Tom Snyder who arranged for the appointment and worked hard to set up all of the paperwork for Agustin to enter the United States. I would like to ask you to keep praying for Agustin and for all of our children here at El Sauzal." April 22, 2000 Update on Agustin Please continue to pray for Agustin. The surgery was postponed because Agustin was sick with the flu. Then subsequently, the Mexican Government changed the authority for Orphanage Director's eliminating Josue's authority as guardian to sign the medical forms required by the Shriner's hospital. Josue sought help from an attorney to begin the process to legally name himself as Agustin's guardian, however, the Attorney told Josue that it would take several months to process this request through the Mexican Court System.
The Attorney suggested that DIF ( Mexican Social Service) has the authority to sign on behalf of Agustin.
I understand this to mean that we would have to encourage someone from DIF to accompany Josue and the child to Los Angeles with notarized papers evidencing that this person can sign for the surgery.
Josue is exploring this with DIF to see if it would be possible for a representative from this organization to sign for the child.
January 20, 2001 Update on Agustin Praise the Lord! Agustin’s grandmother has been located and she has agreed to accompany Josue Espinoza and the child to Los Angeles to sign for his surgery. The Shriner’s Hospital has accepted Agustin’s grandmother as his guardian and will permit her to sign for his surgery. Agustin has an appointment with his surgeon on March 21st. and is scheduled to be operated on March 22nd. Please continue pray that the US Immigration will approve Agustin and his grandmother’s entry into the USA on March 20, 2001, that the surgery will be successful and he can live a normal life. We are anticipating Agustin will require subsequent surgeries, however, the extent of his additional treatment will not be known until he has been operated on. . June 4, 2001 Update on Agustin Agustin's surgery was a success. The Doctors at Los Angeles Shriners Hospital, who performed the surgery, have told us that he will not require any additional operations. His cast was removed on May 15, 2001. He has a walker that he has quickly learned how to use. His next appointment in on June 12th.
I told him he would soon be running with the boys playing soccer. His ear to ear smile acknowledged this is what he wants to be able to do. The muscles in his little legs need rebuilding. He pushes his walker forward and then lifts both legs forward.. He has not started to actually walk yet. However, he gets around very well with the walker and I believe will be walking with his walker very soon." Please continue to uphold little Agustin in your prayers that he will be running soon, which would have been impossible without the surgery." See Agustin with his new walker in a photo below.
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Revised November 11, 2004