Julio Graduates to a New Family
For Julio there have been many graduations -- milestones that have marked his journey towards God's best for him. Julio's latest graduation arrived. It was what we wanted. And yet it hurt. We were smiling through our tears. Julio is gone.
He won the prize for being at Hogar de Vida the longest -- fifteen and a half years to be exact. Julio came as a baby. He was broken but not beaten -- not by a long shot. Even though he couldn't hold his head up and even though he'd have to be taught the most basic skills, his determination became a living proof that God cares, and how He helps us to overcome, even as an abused baby.
For Hogar de Vida, Julio's whole life has been a learning curve and a lesson for everyone involved in his daily care. No single person has impacted us more than Julio. He's a remarkable example of how to be quietly positive and how to make progress daily, literally one step at a time towards a miracle.
Dena and Noemy taught him to hold his head up, to sit up, and to crawl. With training, he graduated with help to a walker. Now Julio was mobile. In 2010 Julio learned to walk with forearm crutches which he uses to this very day. He can climb stairs, get into vehicles, walk into trouble and walk out of it.
In the early days when he went to his special-needs school 45 minutes from here, Dena would pack her twins in the car and homeschool them in the local park while waiting for Julio. She was on the road sometimes 5 days a week. Tim could draw Julio out and taught him not to be so serious all the time.
Julio always tried. Julio was always positive. And Julio learned how to laugh. He laughed at calamity. One time, outside his school building, while trying to get in the van, he fell in the busy street. His crutches went flying. The cars swerved around him. He just lay there laughing. He was helped to his feet by a couple of teenagers who were going by on their bikes.
Until recently, the target population at Hogar was from zero to around 8 years old. Julio's 8th birthday came and went, but he stayed. There were not many attractive alternatives for Julio and no one wanted to see him go to a home for severely handicapped children. Not OUR Julio. The birthdays came and went, but Julio stayed, until now. Julio turned 18 on October 3rd and his file was moved to another Costa Rican Government agency that provides oversight of him.
Julio has had a few graduations. In elementary school in Costa Rica they celebrate the end of 6th grade. That was his first. How proud he was. How proud we were. Then came his graduation from Special School -- another huge accomplishment. Again, we were proud of him. Then Julio was off to High School. He was going to be with his best friend, a girl who couldn't speak but they communicated with smiles. But this special friend died just two days after graduation. Julio attended her burial.
His next school graduation will come after 5 years of High School. In Costa Rica a test is given to determine if a person has cognitive skills or technical ones. Julio will be trained to use his abilities in creating things with his hands.
Julio's most celebrated graduation of all came this October. He graduated from Hogar de Vida and now has a real Dad, a real Mom and brothers and sisters. Dena's prayer for the last 4 years or more was for a family to adopt him. God answered in a marvelous way and Julio has found his home with a Costa Rican family in the nearby town of Grecia. His new family will continue to see that Julio continues to grow and be all that he can be. What a historical day for Hogar de Vida -- an investment of years of service "to the least of these", of love and dedication.
Julio has been a remarkable example of how to be quietly positive, to be patient, and how to never give up. For someone who might never have walked, let alone talk, this young man has written his own text book. I guarantee there's a photo of Julio in every one of our team's personal photo albums. All of you that were touched by Julio and the many that made life-changing decisions because of him, we ask that you do not forget Julio. Please shoot him a prayer when you can! He's promised to come back and visit for Christmas. We are counting the days...
Dena and Helen
