In the heart of the Amazon, where the rivers wind like veins through remote jungle villages, I witnessed something I will never forget. On a remote and hidden island, children dressed only in their swimming suits played by a lagoon. One little girl running to play with them caught my eye—maybe seven years old, with wild hair and piercing green eyes full of innocence and wonder. Then, a yacht appeared. A man—older, foreign, wearing a speedo and holding a drink—stepped out. He began calling to the little girls.
This wasn’t just something I had heard about; it was real. It was playing out right in front of me and my team. We ran toward the girls. The man saw us, and the yacht pulled away. But the danger was real—the threats of exploitation are what these children face daily.
This is why Life Impact is in the Amazon!
In this region of Brazil—largely unpatrolled, deeply impoverished, and often overlooked—child exploitation is not only rampant; it’s an expectation. There are no resources. There are no safety nets. And often, no one is willing or able to act.
During one village outreach, we walked into a room filled with ten to 12-year-old girls holding babies—not their siblings but their own children. This is an area known for exploiting young girls, including their own mothers, who have handed their children over to men on a boat in exchange for money. An area where the cries of the children are heard along the rivers, and no one comes. Even the military has told us they can’t do anything. “It’s not our assignment,” they say. And so these children—their pain, their cries, their trauma—are forgotten.
Not anymore. Now, these children are known.
On January 30th, because of your support and prayers, we officially opened the first safe home in the interior of the Amazon. The very first of its kind. A home where those who were once targeted, trafficked, and silenced are now seen, protected, and loved.
We’ve already rescued our first two children as God fulfills His promise to restore what was nearly lost and answers the cries others have chosen to ignore.
This safe home is not just a building; it’s a declaration. It declares to the region, the country, and the world that these children matter. They are seen, known, and loved, and someone will come and rescue them.
