Amanda’s past of exploitation began at just eight years old. She was trafficked through various cities and sold on the streets and the internet.
Rescued at 14, she moved from institution to institution, each time leaving and returning to work in the bar because they didn’t send her to school.
Rescued again, she came into our care.
At the Round Home, Amanda began a home study program that would allow her to learn her own pace. At age 17, she began at a fourth grade level. After just one year, she passed exams that allowed her to skip high school and go on to college. During college, we supported Amanda with private tutoring, and in 2011, she finished courses and passed qualifying exams to become a professional caregiver — able to work in hospitals, schools and other facilities with children, adults, and the elderly.
After college, Amanda got married and she and her husband had a son. As she continued to search for a job that utilized her training as a caregiver, as well as her experience, she worked at a department store. As their family became established, Amanda was hired as a Houseparent for the Love146 Round Home, acting as a substitute parent and mentor for the children in our care.
She currently oversees the daily activities of the children, tutors them during the day and serves them dinner at night. She strategizes and creates monthly work plans for the children and is given the authority by Dr. Gundelina Velazco, who leads the Round Home, to lead those plans.
Some of us just came back from a trip to the Philippines and to meet Amanda was to meet a young woman who was absolutely beaming. She’s so proud of where she is today because she’s worked so hard to get here. Dr. Velazco is just as proud, saying:
“As a houseparent, Amanda is strict, perhaps because she knows the motivations of the girls. But she is also sympathetic and understanding. Consequently, she has no problem establishing rapport with the girls as well as commanding their respect.”
Amanda has gone from rescue, to recovery, to providing restorative care to other girls in similar places as she was just a few years ago.
Give monthly and help girls like Amanda continue to experience hope, healing and freedom. Your sustained giving today provides for children tomorrow.
