United Hearts With Peru

Joni and Friends has sent over 4,000 wheelchairs with teams of volunteers to Peru since 1999. We partner with a local disability ministry, Corazones Unidos (translated “United Hearts”) that is lead by Elizabeth Takury. Corazones Unidos works year-round to bring disability ministry to the local church. They organize training, outreaches and programs to connect those affected by disability with the church. Our annual Wheels For The World outreaches serve as a catalyst to help energize and mobilize the church. Preparation for a Wheels For The World distribution takes months and it does not stop when we leave. The local church is committed to following up with those receiving the gift of mobility and discipling new believers in Christ.

Team Contact Information

Hotel Carrera (472-8866)
Jr. Leon Velarde 123, Lima 14
Paul Faculjak: (Cell) 9678-2985
Aldo Guido: (Cell) 9857-5433 (Home) 471-3119
Elizabeth Takury: (Office) 265-5329 (Cell) 9562-4748
Joni And Friends: 818-707-5664
US Embassy-Lima: 434-3000 or 434-3032

Outreach Photos

Click HERE to follow the link to our outreach photos.

God loves me

"Because the Peruvians showed me how much they loved me, I finally realized God loves me!" A quote from someone at the outreach.

not expecting

A man came in for a chair. He sat down and a therapist talked to him, measured him, and prayed to God for a chair that would be good for him. After looking for 20 minutes or so, there was just no chairs available for him. After praying once again, a chair seemed to be available. After seating this man, he told the therapist that he was not expecting all this..... He just really came in to look and didn't think or know God would give him the chair. He was so emotional and confident that God really does exist. The news reporters were there that day, and he told his story to all of those watching the news that night in Lima, Peru.

the last days

One of the last people I helped fit for a wheelchair was a young man who had polio. His legs were now not able to support him anymore with crutches. He needed a wheelchair. He was a business man, dressed very nice, and really wanted to continue to work to help support his family. We really only had about 15 chairs left and they were all picked over and had no leg rests. We prayed before going back to look for what we could put together.....
No doubt.....there was a small sports chair. PERFECT for him. AND there were leg rests already attached. Only God could have done this at this time in the outreach. ONLY GOD!!!! He went out to the waiting room and told his testimony to everyone there with a microphone. He was so very happy about the chair, knew we had very limited selection at that time, and gave all the glory to God for getting him the perfect chair so he could carry on the Lord's word to others...

Yeah no breakdowns

Barbara felt strengthened this year. So often in the past she was working without a mechanic. It would get frustrating and difficult at times. This year, she is feeling so much stronger. She even asked for help at the difficult times and felt so pleased with the outcomes!!! We have an awesome and united team!!!

Mon and Tue

In the last 2 days, we have averaged 100 people coming to Christ at the outreach!!!! 100!!!!!

miracles

wow!!!! miracles still do happen!!!! How many times have we prayed earnestly because we KNEW that there were not going to be any appropriate chairs left for a difficult situation? There are 32 of us looking for a chair. Looking and looking. Then we pray and poof.....it completely shows up. Right there where we had just been looking. It was like the chair would just appear. We had MANY difficult situations today, but EVERY SINGLE person got a chair that met every need they had!

mom loves her 16 year old

a mom carried her son to the outreach today. he is 16 years old. she would hold him on her lap and hug and kiss him the entire time. his disability was not a hinderance for her. she loved being able to have her son around. dave made the boy a table for his chair. the boy was so excited. he was given crayons and for the first time was able to sit and try to draw. everyone cried and was so happy for him and his mother. when dave told the woman that he also has a disabled son that has gone through many surgeries, the woman got up and hugged dave. she told him to have faith and trust in God and He would carry him. "did we come here for them or did we come here so they could encourage us?"

devotion

a woman who is about 180 lbs came to the outreach today with her loving husband. he couldn't stop talking about how he loved his wife. anytime she needed to be moved, he would get up and help her. He would take her with him everywhere he went. they did not have a chair, so he would put her in a chair and pull the chair around so that he could be with his wife. such love we saw today.

intention

There was a man who came to the outreach today. He had an amputated foot. He rode a motorcycle. We had joined the church a few years ago just so he could get a wheelchair then he was going to quit the church. He did drugs, alcohol, and lead a troubled life but needed that wheelchair. He got his chair and went through all the other stations. When he got home....he DIDN"T stop going to church.....he quit the drugs, alcohol, and continued to go to church. Today he came back and got a new chair. He also offered to transport s0meone else's chair to their house for them.... (ON HIS MOTORCYCLE). He said, "God is so good to me"

On fire

Kathleen was seating a woman today. The woman had her husband with her. Her husband was still so in love with her and loving to her. They were so on fire about how God lives in their lives. They were actually encouraging US to be as on fire about God. What a great example of a marriage made with God

say cheese

A 78 year old woman recieved a wheel chair today. Her next stop was to the photo station. When Eric printed out her picture and gave it to her, she YELLED!!! She has NEVER seen a picture of herself before. NEVER had a picture taken of herself.....Did you understand that????? NEVER!!!

I'll believe if....

A lady who has been in need of a wheelchair for years, has gone to many appointments, been to the government, and has still not recieved one came to the outreach today. she was so disappointed at the failed attempts. As we talked to the woman, someone asked her if she was a believer. She told them she was not, but if she got a chair today.....she would be. Within 30 minutes, she recieved a wheelchair AND her and her husband accepted Christ as their Lord and savior.

A Glimpse of Heaven



Carlita Salazar - Age 11 (2003)

 It is common to connect with special individuals and families we serve on Wheels For The World outreaches.  Carlita Salazar touched our hearts back in 2003.  She was an eleven year old girl facing a difficult life as a paraplegic in a disability "unfriendly" world.  In fact, her mother carried her to school and returned at recess to change her diapers.  We often wonder how a wheelchair might change a person's life.  We were able to see a glimpse of that when later that outreach we caught up with Carlita and her mother at a Joni outreach.  Carlita was playing with friends and her mother was visiting with other moms.  Already, life was becoming more normal.



Carlita Salazar - Age 18 (2010)



The above photo was a regular to appear in any presentation about Wheels For The World.  We often re-told her story and marveled at how our hearts were touched by this little girl and her mother.  Just lat Sunday, Debbie asked "I wonder what Carlita is doing now?"  We often say farewell to our fast friends with the hope that we will one day see them in heaven, never expecting to experience a worldly reunion. 

Today God blessed us with a precious reunion.  To our surprise, Carlita rolled into the outreach site still using that pink wheelchair she received at age 11..  Tears, shouts of joy and praises to our King - Gloria a Dios.  God reached down and gave us a present.  Today we once again fitted Carlita with a wheelchair, this time a silver sports chair.  Not an ordinary chair - with great patience handles and arm-rests were retrofitted and a seatbelt fastened to make this wheelchair fit perfect for Carlita and her life in the mountains.  We caught up on her and her mother's life and snapped lots of photos.  This precious child reminds us that God has created us all in his image and has a unique plan for each of us.  Carlita and her mother are Christians and we will assuredly reunite in heaven if not earlier. 

Thank you dear Jesus for this precious reunion and for dieing on the cross for the sins of Carlita and us, so that we may one day circle your throne together and sing your praises.

Nursing

Lydia is our wonderful nurse here with us in Lima, Peru. Her and her husband came with us on this awesome trip. She has seen so many people and feels their joy and happiness. But she also feels frustration of not being able to help these people more. Seeing a child having a seizure and the mother asking.....don't you have anything to help him? Rapping up a child's arm that she has bitten so many times that it is completely infected but knowing the rapping will only last a few days. Only having tylonol to give to people who are in so much pain.
But one great God thing that happened today was that she saw a woman with ringworm so bad that it completely covered her entire torso. It was probably the worst case of ringworm Lydia had seen. She did not have any antibacterial cream....only tylonol.... She dug through the bag of tylonol not knowing why because she knew tylonol was NOT going to help this woman......At the very bottom of the bag of tylonol, was ONE tube of antibacterial cream. Enough for this woman to get relief and get rid of the ringworm!!! God is so faithful and good!!!

Paul and Rico's quote

It is wonderful to come for a week and serve. It is another if you come here, serve, and are transformed. And it is even better if you come here, serve, are transformed, and go home and transform others.
We have no idea the ripple effect we have on others.

7 year reunion

Paul and Debbie first came to Lima Peru in 2003. They met a Carlita, a young lady, at that time who had cancer and was now paralized from the waist down. Her mother would go to Carlita's school everyday to brush her teeth, change her, and help her with daily activities that she couldn't take care of herself. The school really didn't want a disabled student there, but the mother promised she would take care of her throughout the day.
They absolutely fell in love with this sweet little girl. That night after recieving her wheelchair, they all went to a get together. There Debbie and Paul saw the mother hanging out with her adult friends with no child in her arms, and they saw Carlita playing with her friends. The first time ever. They took many pictures and to this day, still talk about her and show pictures of them all together.
Debbie was passing by the waiting room today. A place that she does not go to during the work day while here in Lima. She noticed a young lady that looked like Carlita. She let out a little scream. Then asked, "Is that you Carlita?" IT WAS!!!!
They hugged and were so very excited. Debbie immediately went to Paul and told him she had a huge suprise for him. When he was walking torwards Carlita, he too screamed and ran to her.
What a reunion. 7 years later.....this beautiful woman is now 18 years old, a basketball player, coming back to see 2 people that completely changed her life as well as her mother's life. Carlita still had the business card that Debbie and Paul gave her 7 years ago with their picture on it.
This reunion brought so many tears of happiness to so so so many people here in Lima, Peru today!!!

Injured police officer

When the terrorists occupied Peru, a police officer was injured and is now a quadraplegic. He was here today to recieve a chair. He was very angry and upset still about his injury. He did not know God. The translator, Valdo-a pastor who helps us out, talked to him while his therapist and mechanic were preparing his chair. By the time they came back, the police officer had accepted Christ and had a huge smile on his face. He was ready to take on the world and start living again.

LIMO

One lady today was so happy about her wheelchair that she called me over and said, "Look at my Limo!!! It has a seat belt, fancy wheels, a place to rest my feet, and is so shiny!!!" WOW, a LIMO? Boy....what a reality check.

Tuesday

Today I worked with Kathleen in the morning. Our first Peruvian was a 7 year old little boy named Francisco who had Polio. His mother still carried him every where they went due to his disability. She would come to school with him everyday because she needed to carry him. Kathleen stood him up and he seemed to be able to stand and walk a little bit with assistance. We thought that a walker would be good to strengthen his legs and possibly he may be able to walk someday.
There were no peds walkers. Kathy had a harness that could be put on an adult walker to adapt it to a child. We put him in it and a HUGE smile came to his face. He walked by himself (with the help of the walker and supervision). He did not want to stop to come sit in his chair. When he finally did, he was pushing himself all over. What a happy little boy. Now he could hang out with his friends, be more independent, and mom can be relieved as well.

Monday

When we got to the outreach everything was PERFECT!!! Tent was set up, chairs were in order, Peruvians were waiting, receipients were there. We got to work! We ended up seeing 67 peruvians that day. So many stories. So many smiles. So many happy people. Thank you all for praying for us to have everything ready. On Sunday, nothing was ready for our day on Monday....ONCE again, God showed up and made everything run so smoothly. Thank you Lord.
All the new team members just jumped in and started working. Not knowing what to expect...they worked like they had done this for years. There were perfect chairs for every receipient. There were enough translators, mechanics, supplies, therapists, and of course ..... LOVE to go around.
We worked just a little bit after it got dark... we got to use our head flashlights. Every receipient got a picture. Our camera man, Eric did a great job taking pictures and printing one out for every person who recieved a chair. Thank you Rosario (Local Peruvian) for helping him out too!!!
We were all pretty tired. We ate dinner and got some rest.

Here we go

Ep: 6

Well, in about 15 min we will be off to our official first day of distribution of wheelchairs. We all are excited about getting to work for the Lord. Please pray for:
enough chairs
proper chairs
safety arrival of the patients
safety of the team
enough speciality pediatric chairs
good weather
the tent is up
communication is clear
team unity
health
many people come to the Lord
Elizabeth and her team
Paul and Debbie

we expect God to work in ways never expected today. The work of the Lord WILL be done, but not without trials. God will make all things happen in His time and place.

greetings from the peruvians

when we got to the site, we sang, and danced, and hugged and kissed. we will have our outreach at a public park. Lots of people at the part were watching and wondering and asking what this is all about. How exciting to know that so many people will be exposed to the work of God and seeing that God wants us to reach out to the disabled. How many God speak to this year? Let them all come and ask questions about what is going on.....

first stop at the site

we went to the site to help set up. There were about 100 wheelchairs there. We measured each of them and organized them into size groups. So many questions we ask ourselves.....We are not sure how this is all going to look. They were still taking town a stage from a concert the night before. Will our site be ready on Monday? Will we have all the chairs at the site? Will we have enough pediatric chairs? Will our stuff be safe at the park? Where will we get electricity?
But we know that God is in control of EVERYTHING. He is going to do EVERYTHING in His timing. He will show up in ways that we never knew. We have total faith in our faithful Lord! Stay tuned for the answers to all the questions.

Blessing hands

Rico lead us in prayer for the introduction of out outreach. We cleansed our hands in water and had leaders pray over all of us individually. We are so thankful to God for giving us the opportunity to use our hands to help the disabled and to speak the work of the Lord through the work we do for Him.

Saturday Nov. 6th

In the morning, we all met for breakfast. Elizabeth and some of her volunteers came. They sang and danced Peruvian songs. We enjoyed the fellowship together. How wonderful the people are here. They love the Lord so very much. What a great example they are for us to follow.

our first day of work (night)

so last night 8 of us decided to go help elizabeth at 7:00pm at the place where the wheelchairs were housed. Remember, they were just released yesterday. Usually Elizabeth has the chairs 2-3 months ahead of time. We arrive at the military base after the MOST dangerous and exciting 45 minutes of a taxi ride during rush hour. At one point our cars side mirrow hit anothers as we drove next to them. We got on base and viewed a large room with hundreds of chairs piled on top of each other. we were told to move them. As we took out one.....many came tumbling down. It was like playing Jenga with wheelchairs. Not real safe but for sure exciting. We were then told that we were needed somewhere else (whew).

We walked out to the street (NO LIGHTS), opened the doors on the crate that was loaded on a semi truck and there were about 300 wheelchairs PACKED into this crate. We did not have a ramp but of course our inventor Brian Bicket designed something for us to use. 4 guys were in the trailer lifting and sliding the chairs down to the people below who would catch the sliding chairs and somehow manage to move them (the chairs were rapped in cellephane and the wheels did not roll). After organizing 300 wheelchairs and had 4 more crates, we all thought we would collapse. But GOD came along (in the form of a soldier) and said that tomorrow there would be 60 soldiers who would finish the work for us....WHAT??? unload 4 more crates....700 more wheelchairs....organize them in 3 different groups.....THEN put them ALL back on different semitrucks to be taken to the 3 different sites!!! GOD WAS THERE!!!! We got to go to bed!!!

We have arrived!

Well, we (the first 9) have arrived in Lima and are checked into our hotel. The weather is cool and the people....of course are so welcoming! Deysi's pastors from her church in her home town came to meet us. We are excited to be here and are getting to bed so we will be rested to prepare for the rest of our team to come tomorrow.

hanging at the airport

We are hanging out at the airport waiting to get going to Peru! We are so grateful to God for the release of the wheelchairs! Thank you for all your prayers on the chairs. We are so excited to get to Lima and see our Peruvian friends!

Wheelchair Update

Either late today or early tomorrow the final signatures should have been received and the 1,000 wheelchair shipment should be released from customs shortly there after.  Gloria a Dios!  God is awesome and powerful - true to His Word.  His strength shows up best in our weakness.

Tomorrow (Thursday, Nov 4th) part of our team departs for Lima and will make final arrangements for the remaining team members.  Please be in prayer for safe travels.  Please pray for healing and rest as long days and nights of preparation have taken their tole on our bodies.  We are anxious to see what God will do and how He will receive glory.

Thank you all for your prayers.

Paul & Debbie Faculjak (Team Leads)

Leaving in 36 Hours!

Please start praying!! We are leaving in 36 hours!! We are all very excited to get started.