The conditions they come from.
The girls who come to us don’t arrive because of bad luck. They arrive because the systems meant to protect them have failed. We share these realities not to shock — but so you understand the depth of the transformation your support makes possible.
Before the home, there was this.
no running water, no heat, no bed of her own
Peru has some of the highest childhood poverty in South America. In the peri-urban settlements around Arequipa, families live without running water, reliable electricity, or sanitation — in homes of corrugated metal and mud brick, with dirt floors and no heat against freezing Andean nights.
For many of our girls, a bed of their own was something they had never experienced before arriving at RCI.
when a family collapses, the children pay
Many of our girls were abandoned by one or both parents. Some were left with relatives who couldn’t — or wouldn’t — care for them. Others were found living on the streets, fending for themselves at ages as young as four.
Poverty, substance abuse, and migration for work tear families apart — and Peru’s overloaded courts and child protective services can’t keep up with the need for safe beds.
the stories we can’t fully tell
The hardest stories are the ones we can’t share. Many of our girls arrive carrying trauma from physical abuse, emotional neglect, and exploitation. Some were forced to work instead of attending school.
At RCI, every girl receives not just physical safety but professional counseling, emotional support, and the patient, steady love of house mothers committed to her healing.
the cycle that poverty runs on
In rural Peru, many girls never finish primary school. Families who can’t afford tuition, uniforms, or supplies keep daughters home to work or watch younger siblings. Girls who do attend face long walks on dangerous roads and overcrowded classrooms.
At RCI every girl attends school with full tuition covered — plus uniforms, supplies, tutoring, and a quiet place to study. Education is the single most powerful tool for breaking the cycle of poverty.
Girls are disproportionately affected — facing higher rates of abuse, trafficking, and exploitation.
But there is hope.
Every girl who walks through the doors of RCI walks into a new life. The conditions on this page are real — but so is what happens when a child is given safety, love, education, and faith.
Our girls don’t just survive. They thrive. They graduate. They dream. They become the women God created them to be.
This is what the “after” looks like.
Change a girl’s story.
For $35 a month, you can take a girl from the conditions on this page to the life she was meant to live.
501(c)(3) · EIN 26-2265149 · 95% of funds to programs · Tax-deductible to the full extent of the law