Journeying with Jonathan
Mission partner Sharon Wilcox has walked with a young man with learning difficulties for over a decade and seen him go from pity to possibility…
Photo: Earning money, sharing skills and praying for people – Jonathan is showing what people with learning difficulties can do
In Ecuador, many assume that people with learning difficulties are not capable of much and so they are often written off. Jonathan is proving them wrong.
Thanks to mission partner Sharon Wilcox, Jonathan, 22, is reimagining a different future for himself, and starting his first paid job.
Sharon first met Jonathan when he was 11 years old, on her very first day of working for the Life in Abundance Trust (LIAT), founded by former mission partner Jill Ball, to support children with learning difficulties. While he was at LIAT, Jonathan learned new skills and heard about Jesus through Bible teaching.
Inspired by her time at LIAT, and recognising that as children with learning difficulties become adults they could use further support, Sharon founded the Orchid Project to help young adults learn life skills, and to continue learning about Jesus.
Work experience
Jonathan started coming to the Orchid Project in 2019. He learns a range of life skills such as cooking and cleaning, sports, and arts and crafts, as well as having the opportunity for spiritual growth.
With the help of Sharon and the Orchid Project, Jonathan was recently able to get work experience at a nearby hotel.
Initially he and some of the others from the project were just given simple work outside in the gardens, cutting back plants and collecting fruit.
Jonathan reliably kept coming and showed what good work he can do. As a result, the hotel invited him to help in the kitchens and with preparing rooms. He receives breakfast and lunch and is given an allowance for the work he does.
Sharing skills
Jonathan’s new skills aren’t just being used at work – his parents have noticed the impact at home too.
His mum explained to CMS mission manager in Latin America Paul Tester that Jonathan is calm, and enjoys talking and joking with the family. He also does more to help around the house than his siblings!
She said, “He sees the needs around him and then does what’s needed. He saves the money he earns and is generous with it – paying for others. He’s a busy young man now, he likes athletics and has won several medals.”
Paul Tester comments: “When I spoke with Jonathan and asked what he enjoyed at the Orchid Project he talked about talking, playing and joking with his friends there….
Man of prayer
“He mentioned that he started to pay attention to the Bible teaching when Pastor Rodrigo shared with them at LIAT and that spiritual growth has continued at the Orchid Project.
“His mother described how sometimes people ask him to pray at home and when he does it brings tears to people’s eyes.”
The Orchid Project is making a huge difference to whole families in Ecuador – with new projects starting in Cuenca and Quito as well as the original one in Santo Domingo.
Paul reflects, “As I spoke to the mums and dads of the young people, they told me of their surprise at what their children were now achieving.
Challenging preconceptions
“It has challenged preconceptions and enabled young people to do far more than they might have imagined. The word I heard them use most about Sharon was that she was an angel sent by God!”
Jonathan’s learning difficulties have limited what he can do, but through the Orchid Project he has discovered his God-given potential.
Jesus hasn’t written off young people like Jonathan, and nor has Sharon. Jesus never gives up. Neither should we.
