The word vovó means grandma in Portuguese. Vovó Laura is a gentle widow woman in her sixties whom we met while shuttling church members around our community during a feed-the-hungry initiative. She lives alone, abandoned and uncared for after the death of her husband because her extended family accuses her of using an evil curse to kill him.

When we entered her fenced-in yard, we immediately noticed how clean and organized it was. There was a tidy pile of sticks next to her firepit. An axe was stuck in a stump next to the vegetable garden. The sandy yard had been swept clear of leaves. Vovó Laura’s home is comprised of two rooms built of woven coconut fronds on either side of a mango tree. She sleeps in one room and cooks in the other. We are amazed that she can maintain all this while being completely blind.

Vovó Laura told us that before she lost her eyesight, she memorized her yard and street. Now she remembers the number of steps she needs to walk between her house and everywhere else she needs to go. She planted and maintains a large garden across the street, its rows evenly spaced. The government gives her a monthly check that might buy a single meal at a nice restaurant. She struggles with hunger, buying clothes, acquiring firewood and hauling water.

We regularly bring food, money, firewood, and other necessities to Vovó Laura. Each visit, we pray with her and encourage her with Bible promises. One of the young men from our church, an orphan since age five, has adopted her as his mom.

Please pray that God will bless Vovó Laura and draw her heart into a loving relationship with Him.

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