Rosita Leaves Prison Behind

Rosita wasn’t your typical kindergartner. She had no dolls to cherish. No friends to play with. Her childhood dreams were more like nightmares. At 5 years old, she had never experienced even a single moment of freedom.

The only life Rosita had ever known was filled with hopelessness and fear.

Conceived in the common area of a Bolivian prison where male and female prisoners were allowed to socialize, Rosita’s very first cries echoed off thick concrete walls. She shared a dirty, rat-infested cell with her mother and two younger siblings. Most days she had little, if anything, to eat.

Rosita’s Only Hope

There was just one chance for Rosita. Now that she was old enough, she could leave the prison to attend school—if someone could be found to take her. There was no one, so Rosita remained behind bars. She had never committed a crime, but she’d spent her whole life in prison. And if nothing changed, she wouldn’t have much of a future, either.

Thankfully, God never took His eyes off little Rosita. He sent someone to work with the prisoners in the prison where she lived—a godly woman named Maria, who was a volunteer with Prison Fellowship. When Maria learned about Rosita’s situation, she offered to take Rosita to school, and to stay with her until she got used to the new environment.

That was the start of a whole new life. And going to school was just the beginning.

One day, Maria noticed bruises on Rosita’s skin and asked her what had happened. She wouldn’t say a word at first, but the tears in her eyes gave her away. Thanks to our partners and volunteers, Prison Fellowship was able to intervene, arranging in-prison counseling and parenting classes for Rosita’s mom. She even began participating in a support group that meets every week to pray.

And Rosita? She began to thrive.

A Chance to Leave Prison Bars Behind

Because Prison Fellowship brought God’s healing love into her life, Rosita’s relationship with her mom was restored, and she became much happier. She also received counseling, tutoring, and care each day after school at the Angel Tree Centre, a Prison Fellowship day shelter for prisoners’ school-age children. Rosita’s grades got better and better. And while the road ahead will not be without its challenges, she has a great chance to leave prison bars behind her once and for all.

But most importantly, because God used Prison Fellowship and the Angel Tree Centre in Bolivia to reach out to her, Rosita heard the Good News that Jesus loves her, and experienced His life-changing power.

Will you help share Jesus’ love with innocent children who are serving time for crimes they never committed? It’s a worldwide problem, but with your help, the chains that bind these children to their parents’ misdeeds can be broken. Prison Fellowship is working with boys and girls in more than 125 countries around the globe, providing food, medicine, access to an education—and most importantly—sharing the Good News with them.