On Wednesday, August 19, the Tapestry of the Desert co-op went on their first field trip of the school year, to Sunshine Acres Children's Home in Mesa. We were expecting to simply take a tour of the facility. But, instead we witnessed first hand the body of Christ working to give homes to the homeless, families to those without stable family lives, and hope to children who otherwise may never hear of God's love for them. I think we were all in awe of the generosity and sacrifice of so many people who help make Sunshine Acres the safe haven that it has been for the past 55 years. We were able to see the barn and stables, skate park, a boys' house and a girls' house and the dining hall. Our tour guide, Marsha, was wonderful. She gave very honest descriptions of the facility, it's residents and workers. And was happy to answer all of our questions--all while giving the kids from the co-op just the right amount of information. Our studies in history touched on a very sad topic this week--the orphan trains. Around the turn of the century, there were many abandoned children living on the streets of New York City. The Orphan Train Movement was created to provide homes for these orphans and for others, by taking them on a train ride throughout the country to meet potential new adoptive families. Our goal in taking the kids to tour Sunshine Acres was to give them a modern day context regarding orphans and disadvantaged children. But, most of all, our hope is that their hearts would be opened to others in need and that they will learn to look outside of themselves to see a hurting world--yet know that there are many ways that they can help.
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