*EL REFUGIO HOME FOR THE ELDERLY*

ONE LAST CHANCE FOR RECONCILIATION WITH THE LORD

Years ago Pastor Jesus Mondragon sensed the Lord was calling him to work with the elderly but he postponed it for a while. One day, however, on a trip to visit a church in Sinaloa, he found an old man in a bus station who had been abandoned by his family when he had a stroke on the bus. Pastor Mondragon knew the Lord was asking him "Yes or no?" and he answered, "Yes, I will do it."

– He started to bring abandoned elderly into his house, but the numbers soon grew to 10 and they were more than he could take care of, so he and his wife prayed for a place to establish an institution. God provided a property and once the neighbors knew the purpose of the land they approved and signed a petition for the government to allow Pastor Mondragon to use the land for the old folks home. But the miracle didn't stopped there-- a man that rented out construction machinery helped level the land to build the home for the elderly, and a government official gave the funds for the first dormitory room and kitchen.

*Changes in the grace of God:*

– It the beginning there were only a few rooms and we knew that that was not going to be enough for the task at hand. Just as there are many abandoned children in the streets, the same is true with the elderly so Pastor Mondragon decided to expand the Refugio to rescue and care for them. Thanks to those who sympathize with what we are doing, we now have a bigger kitchen and dining room, the road and patio are paved, we have a roof over part of the patio so the elderly can sit outside their rooms and enjoy either sunshine or shade, more dormitories have been built, we have a laundry room and are adding a multipurpose⁄chapel room. All this, thanks to the grace of God.

Our goal is not to just give them a place to stay, but provide a place where they can have a last chance to meet Jesus Christ as their own Lord and Savior, to have fellowship with others, to show them the love of God, and give them dignity before they go back to our Lord.

Because the Refugio is a faith-based ministry with very limited funding, the people that serve the elderly are volunteers. Pastor Mondragon wants to know that the people that work here do it because they love God and the elderly and they are not here just to receive a paycheck. Part of our work as Team Tijuana is to help raise money for educational needs for the children of the volunteers and also to provide Christmas bonuses and help with medical expenses of the staff.

Thanks to God and the contribution of people like you this place is a reality, a place where the elderly without family or money can come and live their last days in peace in an environment of love and understanding.