The Open Arms Foundation was founded in 1991 by
missionaries William and Wanda Perrow in response to the plight of the children living on the streets of Medellin, Colombia.
The Lord birthed the vision for the ministry
during one of the many encounters in which Bill was approached on the street by
children begging for money. God instilled in Bill the belief that just as Christ
had set him free from drug addiction and had changed his life, He could do the
same for these children.
The Perrows had arrived in
Medellin at a very perilous time back in 1989, and due to the situation they
left the city only to return in 1991. Overlooking the possibility of danger,
they began the Open Arms Foundation. With the help of various volunteers and
missionaries, they started by roaming the city looking for street children, boys
and girls, living in poverty, filth and dependent on drugs. Many of them would
be sniffing an Industrial glue called "sacol" that would take away the hunger
pangs so they could live without the mental agony of hunger. In this situation,
the offer from Bill and Wanda to come to the Foundation was inviting. They
offered them a bath, clothing and an opportunity to know Christ as their
personal Savior, the Father to the Fatherless.
The Open Arms Foundation
has grown since it's humble beginnings to become a multi-level facility meeting
the needs of the children, boys and girls, as they reach various stages.
Find out about our
Programs here.
In 1999 the Foundation
began a Sponsorship Program both on a national and
international level. It is based on the need of economic and prayerful support
from the Christian society both here in Colombia and abroad.
In September of
2001, they also began a church called "Comunidad Cristiana Brazos Abiertos", or
Christian Community of the Open Arms. The goal and desire of the church is to
reach out to the families, Fathers and Mothers, of the children the Foundation
is ministering to on a daily basis. Supported by the church in the U.S., around
40 adults and 60 children attend every Sunday.
Although the goal of the
Foundation has always been to work with street children, Bill and Wanda have
also seen a great need to minister to and prevent children in various
neighborhoods from ending up on the street due to conditions out of their
control. Through the collaboration of an organization from the UK, they have
begun a program called "Prevention". It is designed for 100 children and their
families who are refugees or have been displaced due to the war. It is run by a
local church in a particular barrio and is monitored by the OAF.
Also, in June of 2001, the
Foundation began to see the increase of young girls & teens who are confronted
with the being pregnant due to vicarious situations such as sexual abuse from
family members, sex exploitation and drugs. Many of these girls for ways to
abort their babies because they feel abandoned and helpless. The Foundation
established a program to bring these girls who are pregnant, at high-risk and
offer them a restoration through the powerful love of Jesus Christ, author and
maker of their life! In 2003, a beautiful farm was bought in order to attend to
these needy girls!
Learn more about how you
can help these girls by going to reading about,
Sponsorship, the Girl's Farm or how you
can DONATE!
