My name is Rachel Caparas. I grew up in Subic Bay Children’s Home and want to testify about my experiences there, which I consider my home. I was born on February 21, 1994, to an alcoholic mother and a cruel father who often beat me. My father couldn’t stand to look at me because he believed I wasn’t his daughter. My other siblings didn’t believe I was their sister either, so they were very mean to me and beat me too.
My mother herself brought me to Subic Bay Children’s Home on August 6, 1996. I was only two years old and was severely malnourished and abused at that young age. I also had a bad ear infection, which caused a foul-smelling discharge to flow down my face and neck. However, with constant attention, medication, and prayers, I was healed.
It took a while for me to adjust to a different lifestyle than the one I had with my biological family. Growing up in the Children’s Home, there were times when I felt alone and hopeless.
But I’m grateful to God for using people with big and genuine hearts, like Ptr. Ted, Nanay Ligaya, Ms. Annalisa, and Ptr. Rodrigo. These people nurtured me and gave me the love I thought didn’t exist. In the Children’s Home, they not only fed us physically but also spiritually. I learned to be God-fearing and to love God and others as myself.
At 15, I accepted Jesus as my Lord and personal Savior. My eyes were opened, and it gave me hope that even to the end of this world, He would never leave me nor forsake me. I’m still holding onto His promises. I’ll never forget what the Subic Bay Children’s Home has done for my life. If not for the people God used, I wouldn’t have been able to get past the hurt and pain I felt as a kid. I was so loved and cared for, and I know that.