A Place to Call Home

Project Casa Roman

“You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in their distress, a shelter from the storm, and a shade from the heat.” - Isaiah 25:4a (NIV)

In 2014, a group of students from Fraser Lands Church travelled to Guatemala to serve with an organzation called Educando Para La Vida (Education For Life) in Zaragoza. There the students met a special boy named Roman and his sister, Dorcas. The students felt drawn towards Roman and his family in a way that can be only explained as a leading of the Holy Spirit. The students felt compelled to follow that leading by asking the leaders at Educando Para La Vida about what they could do to bless Roman and his family?

This led to our church into a partnership with Educando Para La Vida to fulfill a dream that the leaders have had for a number of years, to rebuild Casa Roman. Roman's original home consisted of a single room for the family to share, dirt floors, leaky roof, and not even a front door. Stories were told of people coming into their home to steal chickens, the mother's main source of income for the family.

As the students returned home from Guatemala, they began to raise awareness and support from their friends, family, and church family. As all supporters joined together, enough funds were raised to cover the labour and the materials for the rebuilding of the house, and to send a second student team from Fraser Lands Church back to Zaragoza to deliver the funds, and to help build the foundation for the house.

With the completion of Casa Roman, Roman's family now have a safe, secure home to call their own. The neighbourhood now has a shining testimony that our God of refuge meets the needs of those who trust in Him. It's a testimony that our students and our church is blessed to be a part of!