The women of the highlands of Bolivia are the strongest women I have ever met. The women of El Alto, Bolivia walk long distances carrying their babies on their backs and goods to sell in their hands. Their resilience and strength is shown through their determination as they get their kids to school and then work all day selling at the market, nursing their babies and caring for aging parents. These women do so much, and when they come to Casa Esperanza, the Project Suma drop-in center, we hope to offer a peaceful and joyful place for them to rest and learn and ultimately feel loved.

My name is Charissa Johnson and I had the pleasure of interning at Project Suma for the last six months. I worked as a psychology intern in the women’s program. I got to help with workshops, group therapies, birthday parties, and bible studies. I learned a lot from the women that I worked with. One young woman, around my age, came on our annual family hike with her six-month old baby. She carried her baby on her back all the way up the mountain, and she was excited to do so. We were worried that she would not enjoy the hike having a small baby, but she loved taking her child on a new adventure. She had never been on a hike before, but now she could say that she had accomplished something new for the both of them.

The beauty of the work of Project Suma that I observed is that it does more than get women out of sexual exploitation. Our visits to brothels are times to show the gospel through our words and actions. Women come to the center for various reasons—to learn skills, for emergency help, or for their kids. Many of them stay and come back each week because they feel safe and heard. They end up making new friends and rediscovering their goals and passions. We desire that they can find a safe space within the walls of Casa Esperanza.

I did a series of interviews with the women in our advanced program as part of my final project. My focus was to try to understand the women´s relationship with Casa Esperanza and how it could be improved for women in the future. I got to have lovely and insightful conversations with women who have been part of Casa Esperanza for years. They credit Casa Esperanza and God for their healing. And their healing was not just financial, although that is so important and needed as women leave sexual exploitation. Instead, they focused on telling me about their emotional healing and family healing. Only as they were able to learn to trust and love again were they able to begin to dream again and work towards their passions. Their healing was emotional and spiritual and relational first. With this healing, they were able to focus on their families, on their personal financial goals, and grow in their relationship with God because they regained their ability to trust again.

During my time at Project Suma, I learned so much about healing, beauty, and strength through the women of El Alto. I also learned that healing is not a linear process, but rather a hard and complicated and long one. But I am reminded of the years that Jesus spent on earth as he healed and taught and walked alongside others. He saw the beauty and strength in his children and desired more for their lives. He tells the woman who was bleeding for 12 years ¨Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering” (Mark 5:34). This is the example Jesus gives us to love one another. He is already calling his children to himself, as he has already redeemed each one of us through his incarnation, death, and resurrection. Therefore I get the honor to worship my creator and love those whom he has created. Jesus came to bring healing and these women are a beautiful example of the kind of healing that he came to give.

-Charissa Johnson, Project Suma Intern.