November 2006
Hello, my friends!
About 9 pm last Saturday evening, a group of the kids were at the mission working on school projects on the internet. They were laughing and playing around when suddenly they saw a car pull up to the mission. A group of eight young Latino men dressed in black piled out of the vehicle armed with baseball bats.
"We're looking for Juan, where is he?" The first man shouted.
"We don't know," the kids screamed and ran out the back of the mission.
The gang from Sur 13 then went from room to room looking for Juan. When they couldn't find him one of the guys said, "Hey, here's a laptop!"
"Go ahead and take it!" They unplugged the unit and walked out the door.
The kids saw what happened, but were afraid to do anything about it. Unfortunately, I was in Marietta speaking at a missions conference when this went on. It's probably a good thing, because if I had been there I probably would have tried to take all 8 guys on by myself. If that had happened I would be writing this from the hospital instead of my office!
Even though a computer can be replaced and no one was hurt, I still feel violated. How dare these gangsters come into the mission, into God's house, and steal stuff?! It's just wrong on so many levels. We had the laptop donated to help out one of the young men in the mission that is taking computer courses and really trying to make something of himself. It just doesn't seem fair.
Our mission seems more important than ever now. If all the kids are exposed to is gang life and violence, that's the way they'll start acting. I've seen 5th graders start wearing bandanas and trying to look tough. They learn the different gang signs and wear clothes just like the men they idolize.
I tell them, "You go down that road, you'll wind up dead." They look at me like I don't know what I'm talking about. Over time every one of the kids that has joined a gang has been in jail and beaten up severely beaten by other rival gangs. I just shake my head. Can't they see where they're headed?
Yesterday, I was talking to Jouvens and he told me, "Hey Mr. Tim, I got a letter from Rudy yesterday." Rudy was one of the kids I worked with several years ago. He got involved with gangs and actually killed a rival in front of one of the main markets on Buford Highway. "He said he's not getting beat up and that they respect him in jail, but he sure has seen a lot of bad things."
It's heart breaking to me to think of Rudy. When he was just a little kid he was so pleasant and happy---one of the best of our youth group. But his life took a really bad turn and now he sees life from behind bars.
There is no safety net beneath us. If we don't reach them, the next stop is the cell by Rudy. We must find ways to accelerate what we're doing in the community. There are so many Rudys out there who just need a firm hand to guide them. I was talking with one of my directors yesterday. He told me, "You know Tim when they hear that we're working on Franklin Road they tell me, 'My husband won't let me come to that area.'" These dark places need the Light! Thank you so much for your support. Keep praying for the young men that are led into a life of violence and crime.