Casa Aleluya
Casa Para Niños (aka Casa Aleluya)
Founded by the vision of Mike and Dottie Clark in the 1989, Casa Para Niños (aka Casa Aleluya or Casa) is one of the largest children's homes in Guatemala and by far, one of the most successful.
Casa Aleluya is affiliated with many different Christian churches and denominations. It is completely supported by volunteer offerings from churches and individuals around the world. The Guatemalan government does not provide any assistance.
How Casa Came To Be
A man who never had compassion even while pastoring, Mike went to Guatemala on a one week mission trip to get a fellow minister to quit bothering him. This minister had been asking Mike to go to Africa for years which was expensive and time consuming. So when the inexpensive short trip came up, Mike thought it would be a good way to get the minister to quit asking. While in Guatemala, Mike went walking each morning at 4:30 a.m. and everywhere he went, he saw children in need.
Back at the hotel while in the shower, Mike's heart broke and he began to weep. Returning to Louisiana, Dottie asked him how his trip was and again, he began to cry. Although Mike had buried three children, his father and his brother, Dottie had never seen him shed a tear. She knew something both strange and wonderful had happened. "When are we moving to Guatemala?" she asked. Four months later with five adopted children in the back of a pick-up truck, $2,000 to their name, and unable to speak Spanish, they moved to Guatemala.
The Children
Except when it is proven that a child is totally abandoned, children are not eligible for adoption. Casa wants to keep its children in Guatemala. It is their belief that these children will become the future leaders of Guatemala and will make significant improvements to the country by applying the Christian principles they are learning at Casa.
Children are placed there for multiple reasons. The courts assign children if they determine that their home is not safe, if they have been abused, if they can't locate their parents, or if the parents are unable to feed and house them. Sometimes parents request that their children live at Casa until their personal financial situation improves and they are able to provide for them again.
More Than A Children's Ministry
God has done more here than just the children’s ministry. He has allowed Casa to build over fifty churches, pastors' homes, and Sunday school buildings. With help from other ministries and churches, Casa is continually growing and able to serve more people in the name of Jesus.
Casa has a tremendous cross section of denominational support but the most compelling endorsement has come from the Guatemalan government itself. Both the court system and current administration have pleaded with Casa to care for at least 2000 Guatemalan children in need.
Casa Aleluya "Campus" Today
From the beginning with very little property and only a handful of buildings, God has blessed Casa. The “campus” has grown to 17 acres, with housing for over 400 children plus staff, an elementary school, junior high, vocational school, health clinic, computer lab, multipurpose facility, and library. They began construction of a church in 2009.
WEBSITE URL: www.CasaOnTheRock.org