Wade Landers
Blackbox International
Executive Director
As I write this letter I am about an hour away from landing in Guatemala City. This is the fifth country for Blackbox International to survey. If it is like the first four countries we have surveyed, the group traveling with me is in for several hard days. Everywhere we have visited we have encountered the trafficking of children for the purposes of sex. The stories have been heartbreaking. The need is great, for both boys and girls. The reality is that not enough is being done on the ground in each of the surveyed countries.
There is a great need for prevention, rescue and especially aftercare. For boys in particular, aftercare is almost non-existent. If you strive to provide what Blackbox hopes to provide, a holistic, Christ-centered facility that addresses the boys spiritual, emotional, physical, educational and psychological needs…with a specifically designed counseling program to address the issues facing boys that have been subjected to this evil, you will find that it just doesn’t exist in most places.
While in Guatemala we will look for information that will help us determine where to launch our first model community. The research from all six survey countries will be processed by the trustees and staff at our October board meeting. We hope to be in the target country by the end of the year to establish the first home.
We need you to consider engaging in this ministry now more than ever. Mainly, we need prayer! Prayer for wisdom, location, the right people to work with in country (we are looking to use nationals in the target country for the work on the ground) and for openness with the government and other workers.
One story that helped me to grasp the need for a ministry like Blackbox came from a man we will call Oliver. He works hard to rescue children out of trafficking. For over an hour he shared how they raid brothels that are suspected of using children. He shared how they work with local law enforcement and government agencies. And then he shared how in each of those places if he finds underage boys he has to leave them there….his mandate is only to rescue the girls. When I asked him why it was like that he stated, “There is no place to take the boys!” If there is not a place to take them after they are rescued, then they have to leave them where they find them. The need is great (understatement of the year)!
Thank for your support to Unearthed and through them to Blackbox. May God move in mighty ways!