Nicole, now called Emilie
For years, I ministered at Hogar de Niños de la Providencia de San Vicente de Paul (foster care home) of Limache, Chile. This home welcomes girls and boys who, for various reasons, cannot live with their families and whose legal custody lies in the hands of the Chilean State.
As Sisters of Providence, we watch over them by ensuring the proper administration of resources in all sectors (health, food, clothing, education, legal rights, etc.). We try to cover in the best way possible their rightful needs, which have often not been met in the past.
It is understood by all the Sisters of Providence who ministered at this mentioned work that our ministry extended well beyond being solely administrators. Each of us became a “mommy” to these children, whose greatest need is precisely to receive the warmth, tenderness and love a mother usually gives. Sadly, for most of them, this figure was only represented by the caregivers and the religious of the foster home.
It is in this context that I want to share with you excerpts from the letter Nicole sent. I met her while she was a little two-year old toddler when her grandmother became resigned to place her in foster care. Her family lived in poverty; moreover, the care demands of Nicole’s uncles, who suffered from mental illness, made it impossible for the grandmother to take care of the little girl. Here is Nicole’s account of her arrival at the home:
I was born on July 1st, 1997 in Quillota, Chile. I was placed in foster care when two-month old; I changed orphanages three times. The third orphanage was Hogar de Niños de la Providencia de San Vicente de Paul, where I stayed for three years. I met the Director, Sister Jaquelina, who was always there for me. My biological family came to see me from time to time.
When I was five-years old, the David family came to adopt me. We stayed for a month in Chile, and then together we returned to France. All the children at the orphanage and Sister Jaquelina came to the airport to say goodbye…
We had forged bonds of affection that still last. Providence wanted Nicole to have the opportunity to live in a family. So, when I said goodbye to Nicole 15 years ago, I was sad, but happy for her. She remains in my heart with the other children who have lived at Hogar San Vicente de Paul.
Thanks to the internet, Nicole, who is now called Emilie, contacted me last year to tell me that her family and she were coming to Chile and that they wanted to meet me. What a gift it was to see how happy she is now and so full of life! Also, what a gift that she wanted to get back in touch with her biological family in my company! Here is her version of this reconnection:
On December 4, 2016, my family and I flew to Chile. During our trip, we went to see Sister Jaquelina. It made me very happy to see her again after all these years. On December 9, we went to Limache so I could see the orphanage and some memories came back to me. After the visit, the translator, Sister Jaquelina and a friend of hers, as well as I and my family, went to El Melón so I could meet my biological family.
This was the best gift that life has given me. Now, I know that during all these years my family never forgot me. I hope that all adopted children can find their biological parents.
I give thanks with all my heart for the life of Nicole, for her adoptive and birth families, who expressed in gestures and words their deep gratitude. The adoption meant an opportunity for this daughter, sister, niece and granddaughter, whom her biological family members continued to love and who now fills them with pride.
I ask God, our Provident Father, that there be more justice, commitment, affection and care so that no child lives without knowing what a family is. Meanwhile, I pray that there be people with compassionate hands reaching out in solidarity to those who feel abandoned and that they bear witness to the love of Mary, Our Mother of Sorrows.
Jaquelina Juárez, SP
