PAST NEWSLETTERS
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September 25, 2025
Celebrating Miracles
Two weeks ago, I posted an urgent prayer need on my personal Facebook page concerning our grocery store debt. If you watched the ambassador program video that was linked in the May update, you might remember that Residence of Life doesn't operate on credit and that the grocery store is our only provider that offers a grace period for payment. Our policy, of course, is to cancel the food bill completely at the end of each month, but if there are insufficient funds to make ends meet, the only wiggle room is to delay paying for the groceries. With the help of generous supporters, we had managed to pay the balance down quite a bit back in May, but unfortunately, due to several more months with too little in the accounts to pay the necessities, the debt had rapidly gone back up to almost $12,500. To make matters worse, the store was refusing to take the weekly food order which had never happened before.
In response to this critical situation, over 25 people rushed to help, completely shocking us with your generosity! A matching gift of $5,000 was offered and in just a few days, enough came in to completely eliminate the debt AND pay the groceries for this month and part of next month as well. To those who gave, shared the need or prayed, thank you for allowing yourself to be used by God to lift this heavy burden! At the end of the newsletter, we'll explain our goal to prevent this from happening again. But first, we'd like to share the story of another miracle, this time in the life of one of our graduates as promised in last month's newsletter.
Abi, who is pictured above with a bunch of our little ones, came to live with us in 2018 when she was 17 and "graduated" from Residence of Life the following year on her 18th birthday. Despite not having tight bonds with us due to her short time in the home, she opted to stay in our graduate program. From the time she entered our ministry, her deep pain and anger punished anyone around her and the years that followed were filled with rebellion, lashing out, cutting and a suicide attempt that landed her in the hospital. Even so, each incident was met with grace, love, support and a lot of prayer. In 2024, those prayers were finally answered and Abi decided she wanted to give her life to Jesus! Today, she is a totally different person as evident by the light in her eyes and the joy on her face. In January of this year, she followed the Lord's prompting to return to her home country of El Salvador where she is serving at a local church and with children in need. God's plans are truly far beyond our hopes and dreams! To think that one of the most challenging teens to ever come through our doors would become our first missionary reminds us that no one is ever too far gone for God's grace. If you'd like to read a short article about her transformation written from Abi's point of view and published in The Christian Heart, you can click here!
In closing, we again want to say thank you for being a part of these miracles and our work in Costa Rica. Since the beginning, our motto has been "Changing the World for One Child At A Time" and you are truly helping us do that. We say it every month, but we are deeply grateful for your prayers, support and partnership and do not take it for granted.
During this next month, please join us in praying for more monthly partners to come alongside Residence of Life as a long-term solution to the financial need involved in raising these kids. While we were able to cancel the debt temporarily, the inevitable truth is that the home will fall back into the same hole without an increase in monthly support. As of today, we have around $5,500 in committed monthly donations, where the average need to cover the basic expenses is between $10,000-$11,000. To give you a glimpse into our budget, it costs us $3,000 a month or $5 a day per child just to put food on the table. As you can see, any commitment amount helps us bring stability to the ministry! If, going forward, you'd be interested in sponsoring a day of meals for one child ($5), one house/10 kids ($50), or both homes/20 kids ($100) each month, we've provided a link below.
As always, please keep our kids, staff and board in your prayers. It truly makes a difference!
Blessings,
Erika for Residence of Life
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August 24, 2025
Beauty from Ashes!
This past month, I was able to travel back to Costa Rica to attend the annual board meeting of all the members of our Costa Rican association and spend a couple of weeks visiting with our board of directors, staff, kids, volunteers and graduates. During countless hours of conversation, laughter and visits to the homes, the one phrase that kept coming to mind was "beauty from ashes" from the well-known verse in Isaiah 61:3 "... to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair."
For those of you who have been a part of our journey throughout the years, you remember the turmoil we have walked through as we slowly rebuilt the walls of our ministry after the sudden passing of our founder and president, dealing with a problematic board, intense legal battles, financial crisis and warfare on all sides.
Looking back on those dark years, I can't help but think of several troubled teens who ran away or left the program during that heavy time. Their stories in particular stand out in my heart as "unfinished" chapters, prompting us to continue to pray for them so many years later. One of those girls was a 16 year old who had attempted suicide and almost succeeded back in 2019. Through a miracle, her life was spared but after a six month hospital stay she never returned to Residence of Life.
Imagine my surprise to find her standing behind the front door on the night that I arrived in Costa Rica! Over the next few days, we spent hours drinking coffee, talking and reminiscing. Despite her rough past, she is currently an elementary teacher and is also finishing up her nursing degree! To sit back and listen to her and one of our other graduates engage in a professional, friendly debate over a current social issue put a smile on my face. She shared with me how although she'd been sent to another children's home after her incident, it was Residence of Life that had marked her life and it was us who she always considered to be her family. To hear how well she is now doing and how she desires to give back to the home and serve our current kids all because of the love she experienced here filled my heart with joy. Seeing her again was a gentle reminder of the power of prayer and how God can bring hope even from the bleakest of stories and circumstances!
We've seen so many full-circle, redemption stories in the life of our ministry, but this trip truly reminded me how far God has brought us and how His hand is on Residence of Life in a special way. To witness the unity of the team, the laughter of the kids, a growing church who has embraced the children's home as its' own and sweet reminders that even in the stories that we may have viewed as "failures", God was still working behind the scenes to create something beautiful from the ashes was truly humbling.
In the coming months, we'll highlight two more of our graduates whose stories have been featured in a blog called The Christian Heart and are inspiring others through their testimonies!
As you think of Residence of Life during the month to come, please continue to pray for changed lives and healing for all of our kids and more specifically for these two needs:
Just a few weeks ago, we received a two year old little girl whose baby brother is still in the hospital due to abuse suffered. While our licensing and structure doesn't allow for us to receive a baby so young, the pastor's family has stepped forward as a possible foster placement if the government will so allow. Please pray for favor with child services so we can keep these precious babies together.
We recently shared about a sibling set of 3 that was placed by child services in the home of one of our board members in a foster to adopt situation. The birth family of these children has suddenly appeared after years of no contact and wants their kids back. The judicial system in Costa Rica typically leans towards reunification of families and we have valid concerns over the genuineness of their claims of change. Please pray with us for protection of Jose, Itza and Juana as well as strength for the foster parents as they navigate the fear and uncertainty this process is bringing. Pray for wisdom for the judge and that God leads him or her to the best decision for the kids.
Thank you for your faithful prayers, support and partnership. We are grateful to have you as part of the ROL family and couldn't do this without you!
Blessings,
Erika for Residence of Life
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July 24, 2025
Meet Ariel & Jackie!
This month, we'd like to take the time to introduce you to our Costa Rican board president Ariel, his wife Jackie and their family.If you are at all familiar with international missions, you know that one of the primary goals of a missionary is to work themselves out of the driver's seat and into a supporting role; to disciple and equip the nationals so that they are able to carry and sustain the ministry. In this way, many of the day to day challenges that missionaries face are minimized because the locals are working within their own country, language, and with an inherent cultural understanding. Simply put, they are more quickly and efficiently able to take the ministry and work to the next level.
In mid 2023, I began to sense that we were stable enough to try this necessary transition and started to pray that God would bring someone to Residence of Life who not only shared the Father's heart for our kids, but someone who had a spiritual understanding of trauma. This person would need to possess the leadership capacity to handle a role and responsibility that, at times, can feel so very heavy. Taking into consideration the Costa Rican law that a board president of a non-profit can not receive a salary, this also meant that the designated person would have to be willing to take on this giant feat without compensation.
What seemed like a next to impossible prayer, God answered in a surprising way. That fall, our local church sent their associate pastor, Ariel, to pioneer a church plant on our property and unbeknownst to us, our prayer would soon be answered through him.
Ariel and Jackie both have such humble hearts to serve the Lord and care for His people. As we met together week after week in Sunday services, their entire family's love for our kids very quickly became evident. Over the course of 8 months, we had many conversations about Residence of Life through which it became more and more clear that he was the leader we had been praying for!
Ariel served for over 15 years as the associate pastor at a large church up the mountain where his roles included managing the church's restaurant and farm, plus ministering to young people as the youth pastor. He has a theology degree with pastoral and leadership certifications and also training in business administration. Not only do he and Jackie have a long history of serving young people, but one of their own daughters is adopted, giving them rare first hand experience in raising children of trauma. When we began to pray, we couldn't have imagined the way God had already been preparing the perfect candidate and orchestrating everything behind the scenes to bring him right onto our property!
In July of 2024, Ariel stepped into the presidency of the Costa Rican board and in December, took a staggering leap of faith and decided to walk away from his job and salary to dedicate himself full time to the church plant and children's home. Both he and Jackie have committed themselves to the mission of Residence of Life, doing everything possible to continue leading the ministry on the path God has for us. The children and staff have been blessed by their leadership during this past year, and personally I have been blessed to partner with them in serving our kids. I am in constant communication with the board and admin team and can testify to the impressive work they are accomplishing while protecting the essence that has always made Residence of Life so special.
As Residence of Life comes to mind, please pray with us for the following:
Protection over Ariel and Jackie's family and strength as they balance not only the children's home, but also the church and all of it's responsibilities
Provision of their family's needs, specifically elimination of two small debts they are struggling to pay with no salary. Since January they have had a few people step forward to provide missionary support, but what they currently receive is only around 40% of what he was making.
For our monthly contributions to increase to cover more than the essential needs of the children's home, allowing us to legally send an offering to help support Ariel from our stateside association.
Several important meetings coming up in the month of August and safety in my travels to Costa Rica.
Thank you for your faithful prayers and partnership. We are grateful to have you as part of the team!
Blessings,
Erika for Residence of Life
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June 24, 2025
Back in March, we were privileged to host another high school mission team from Indian Rocks Christian School. This was our third trip with this particular Florida high school and as always, God moved in incredible ways! With every trip we host, our prayer is that the time in Costa Rica is mutually beneficial: that the team not only blesses the home, but that the participants' lives will be touched in a special way during their time serving our kids.
Usually teen groups are hesitant at the start of the trip because they are completely out of their comfort zone: cultural differences, an unfamiliar place, a foreign language and new faces can all be pretty intimidating. For that reason, we usually plan a big cookout on the first day. Play is a universal language and if we can get everyone laughing through barefooted soccer, kickball or basketball, the walls come down and the bonds can start to form. With this team, that happened quickly and throughout the week of landscaping, painting, making jewelry, practicing English and playing, there were many sweet moments.
In our daily devos, we explored the theme of boldness and how being courageous sometimes means doing new things scared: boldness doesn't necessarily mean an absence of fear, but the faith to step out into the unknown despite the fear. Each of the teens left Costa Rica having taken that step of faith, having loved well and having been loved in return. They definitely left their mark. We are so thankful for their sacrifice of time and finances to come serve Residence of Life and for the teachers who traveled with them to invest in their lives. If you'd like to see a quick trip video, here's the link!
During the past few weeks, we've seen further proof that God has answered our previously mentioned prayer. We've had three different IRCS students, from teams dating all the way back to 2020, reach out expressing the desire to come back and help Residence of Life longer term. As a ministry, hearing that these young lives are being changed through the opportunity they had to come and serve is such a blessing. Please join us as we pray about the possibility of reopening an intern program at some point in the future! And, as always, if your church, school or family would be interested in bringing a team down to Costa Rica, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at info@residenceoflife.org.
Increase in Monthly Donations
We are also excited to share that since late April, we've had multiple new monthly donors add to the ROL family, increasing the amount we can send down to Costa Rica by over $1,000 each month. We currently have around $5,000 in committed monthly donations and while we're still a little ways off from our goal of the $9,000 needed to provide the basic operating expenses, we are praising God for His faithful hand on our ministry and for your generosity! Residence of Life has had many miraculous stories of provision over the years and we know that somehow the Lord will continue to multiply what comes in to meet our needs. If you're interested in becoming a monthly partner or an ambassador, you can email info@residenceoflife.org or find more information on our website.
Please continue to pray for our kids and the team on the ground in Costa Rica, especially for our board president, Ariel and his wife Jackie as they lead not only the church plant, but also shepherd the children's home. In next month's newsletter, we'll share more about their family and the deep love they have for our ministry. They have been an absolute gift to Residence of Life and we covet your prayers for them.
Blessings,
Erika Rodriguez
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May 21, 2025
Since we sent out our newsletter last month, we are excited to share that we have been able to hold several "going away" parties for four of our sweet kids! Jomyra, one of our older girls who lived in Casa Timoteo, was adopted by a volunteer family and a sibling set of 3 went to live with our board member Malena and her husband Randall just one day after Juana, our oldest girl, turned 18.
Juana, along with her younger sister and baby brother, came to Residence of Life in May of 2023 and won the hearts of everyone involved in our ministry. Juana, who fiercely cared for Itzayana and Jose, always desired to be a part of a family, but thought that because of her age, adoption would never be a reality for her. While we've known since last year that a family who all of the kids know and love was interested in being a placement for them, we weren't able to share the news with the kids because there was no guarantee if or when the government would approve it.
God's timing is indeed perfect and after months of no news, we received the approval just weeks before Juana was due to leave the home. Her world turned upside down in the best way possible: her dreams came true! Not only is she happily living with her little brother and sister and their new parents, she is now studying software engineering at a private university thanks to generous donors.
Please continue to pray with us that God will bring along families for the rest of our kids: we believe this is only the beginning and hold onto the hope that many of our other children will too experience the miracle of adoption!
Praise Concerning Children's Home Debt
We are grateful to announce that due to your generosity, much of the debt that was shared in the last newsletter has been paid off. Not only was the children's home able to pay the required legal fees to the lawyer and the pending liquidation of several thousand dollars, they were also able to pay off a sizable amount of accumulated food bills at the local grocery store! In addition to that, we even gained a few new monthly supporters. The staff and board down in Costa Rica would like to express their thankfulness to all of our donors in the US. We realize this is a joint effort and we pray God's blessings on each of you and your families!
Ambassador Program
While we are relieved that a significant portion of the debt has been lifted, we still have a ways to go and are concerned about the future sustainability of the program down in Costa Rica. For that reason, we are praying for at least 20 individuals who know and love Residence of Life and would be interested in being part of a team committed to helping ensure that the doors stay open. For a video containing more information on the children's home finances and the ambassador program, click here.
As always, we have much to be thankful for and look forward to all God will do in the months to come. We appreciate your partnership, prayers and your love for our kids! Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions you may have.
Blessings!
Erika for Residence of Life
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April 28, 2025
Greetings from Costa Rica!
The first quarter of 2025 has been busy, with many changes in the air. The theme from the past year seems to be "growth" as God has not only been changing many roles, but bringing about unexpected connections and expanding our team. The new Costa Rican board, led by the pastor of our church plant, has thrown itself into the ministry of the children's home and has quickly become the most unified and involved board we've ever had. I (Erika) am in daily communication with them and in constant amazement at the level of investment each board member has made into the lives of our kids, considering that most of them have families, full time jobs and some even run their own businesses! For those of you who may not know, Naty, one of our graduates who is completing her psychology degree, now serves on the board, lending her invaluable perspective on how we can better minister to our kids.To know that one of our own kids has chosen to give her talents and time back to Residence of Life fills our hearts with joy.
Since January, we've hosted two teams, one a high school group from Florida and the other a Canadian family who have been long time friends and supporters of Residence of Life. I was blessed to share about our work at a missions conference in Tennessee and also held many hours of strategic meetings with potential ministry partners. We are excited to announce that, as a result of these meetings, Residence of Life is now partnering with Represent Missions who will handle all of our donations, taxes and administration stateside, and also help us run future teams. This comes as an answer to several years of prayer and meets a huge need within our ministry.
We are also grateful to share that we have five children ready to be placed in families! One sweet teen who recently came to us has already found a forever home with one of our volunteers, a sibling set of three has been approved for foster to adopt with one of our board members and her husband and a fifth boy who will soon age out of Casa Casey has a family ready to accept him into their home. Praise the Lord! Although statistics say our kids will never be adopted, we've always believed that God could do the impossible and there have been many tears of rejoicing over these miracles that we are witnessing!
While there is much to celebrate, there is also serious need. Due to rising costs of living in Costa Rica and fewer monthly supporters, there are almost $7,000 of unpaid food bills at the local grocery store, spanning several months. There is also an urgent need of $1,000 to pay legal processing fees for a required government program similar to the IRS.
Please join us in praying for provision of these needs and for more people to stand beside our ministry on a monthly basis so that we can meet the daily needs of the home. Our monthly donation needs run anywhere from $10,000-$12,000 and our monthly commitments total at just under $4,000. The deficit can be overwhelming, but we know that God hasn't brought us this far to leave us now. Somehow, some way, He will continue to be faithful to us as He has so many times before. If anyone feels led to stand with us monthly or to make a one-time donation, here is our new donate link through Represent Missions. You can rest assured that 100% of your donation goes directly to the home in Costa Rica to support ministry needs.
If you desire to know more about our ministry or are part or a small group, church or community that would like to learn how you could get involved, please reach out via email at info@residenceoflife.org and we would love to talk with you.
As always, we are thankful for your partnership, support and care for the kids at Residence of Life and we covet your prayers! We continue to stand in awe of all that God has done and know He will continue to use this ministry to change the lives of the forgotten children of Costa Rica.
Blessings,
Erika for Residence of Life
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December 22, 2024
As we wind down 2024, we'd like to take a minute to say thank you for your support, prayers and generosity during this past year! It has been a year full of many challenges, but also of great blessings with the election of a new Costa Rican board, exciting advances in the lives of our graduates, the launching of our own thrift store and several adoptions in the works!
If you'd like to hear more, please click on the following link for a brief video:
We look forward to 2025 and all the Lord has in store for Residence of Life. Thank you for being a part of our family!
Merry Christmas!
Residence of Life Costa Rica
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DMarch 29, 2024
Greetings from Costa Rica!
We are excited to share all that God has been doing here during the past few months. From supply buying visits, the start of our new school year, mission conference and hosting a high school team from Florida, we have stayed busy. Currently, we are in Semana Santa or Holy Week and the kids are off school, giving us time to slow down and rest as we contemplate our Savior's resurrection and the hope that signifies.
One of our biggest highlights during the past quarter was the launching of a church plant here on our property! From mid-week services, Sunday morning services, youth group, worship nights, discipleship classes and counseling, we've been amazed how the Lord not only brought us a pastor with a servant's heart, but an entire church family as well. If you have a little time, click on the link below to hear more in-depth about all that's been taking place here, including a step of faith in hiring a social worker to lay the groundwork for our foster program!
We covet your continued prayers:
for the Holy Spirit to continue His work in the kids and staff's lives
for clear direction for the future of our ministry as we continue to grow
for provision for rent and salaries due next week as our monthly donations have gone way down. We are believing for a miracle!
for special grace and strength for one of our girls "Diana" who is going through unimaginable loss and for the son of one of staff members who has been battling suicidal attempts.
We give praise to God for His faithfulness both now and always and know that He will carry us through these coming months.
If you have a little time and would like to hear more, click on the link below:
First Quarter 2024 Video Newsletter
As always, we are grateful for your prayers and support. Happy Easter to you and your family! He is risen!
The Residence of Life Team
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December 24, 2023
As we end the year and celebrate the birth of our Savior, we want to take a moment to say thank you for your support, prayers and visits during this past year. We are so blessed by our extended family in the United States (and beyond) and wish you all a Merry Christmas and wonderful New Year!
We've uploaded a quick video update for those of you'd who'd like to hear about what the Lord is doing here in Costa Rica.
Blessings,
The Residence of Life Family
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February 27, 2023
As our kids head back to school and we kick off the new year, we want to share a quick update with some praises, but also some needs. Click on the link below to read more:
Blessings to you and your family,
The Residence of Life Team
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December 23, 2022
With Christmas just days away, we wanted to take a moment to wish you and your families a wonderful Christmas as we celebrate our Savior's birth!
While 2022 didn't start as the easiest year, we're amazed at the way we saw God move on our behalf. We are more excited than ever for 2023 and looking forward expectantly to all He will do in the lives of our kids! To read more about this past year, click on the link below.
December 2022 End of Year Update
May God bless you and your families richly this Christmas and into the New Year! We are grateful for each of you.
Merry Christmas,
The Residence of Life Team
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November 30, 2022
As we head into the Christmas season and New Year, we want to share some exciting changes in the direction we are going as a ministry. We look forward to the opportunity to serve our kids in a more beneficial way and help them towards a healthier future! Please read the attached update to hear about what the Lord's been doing here in Costa Rica. We pray that you and your families celebrated a wonderful Thanksgiving as we have so much to be thankful for!
Blessings,
The Residence of Life Team
