Helen Smith

37 years ago, Dennis and Helen Smith wanted to go to the Island of Fuga in the Philippines, to get out of their current situation.  The Lord said no. (Fuga means “escape”).  Later, in 1986 with their two children and two mountain bikes, they arrived in Costa Rica.  Their commission was to work with FEDEMEC (the training agency for Costa Rican missionaries to go to the 10-40 window).  Other endeavors included taking medicines into Cuba for the AIDS patients, working with the Cabecar Indians in Costa Rica, taking financial aid to refugees in Nicaragua, founding a home El Salvador for young women, and in Guatemala, establishing feeding and medical programs to share the gospel. In 1996, a vision to reach abandoned Peruvian children in the Andes resulted in the purchase of land.  Today, Casa del Aguila (House of the Eagle) is a flourishing community providing foster care, education (kindergarten through high school for 340 children), facilities for full medical and dental care, and in development is a self-sustaining project to export avocados. Several church plants in the surrounding mountains welcome the Quechua every week.  In 2010, Helen took the directorship of Hogar de Vida, a Children’s home in Costa Rica, retiring finally after the pandemic.  Dennis graduated to heaven in 2012.  Helen still lives in Costa Rica hosting women’s retreats on her property, teaching women in the local church, teaching English to young people and doing translation work. Her passion now is to embrace her husband’s legacy in Peru. www.casadelaguila.com