“Will you be our daughter?” This couple opened their hearts to a teenage orphan on the other side of the world: Salt&Light

Unlike her peers, Rosalinda Camitan was terrified as her 18th birthday approached.

The Filipina, whose father was murdered when she was seven and her mother died in a car accident five years later, knew that as an adult she would have to leave her orphanage and move forward on her own.

Like Rosalinda, many children in the Philippines have been orphaned, abandoned or neglected due to widespread poverty, lack of primary education, natural disasters and teenage pregnancies.

Statistics from Philippines Without Orphans show that up to seven million children – a staggering 1 in 6 – in the country are currently without the care of their families.

The plan was for Rosalinda to live independently in a student house. The teen was worried about how she would make it all alone.

In tears one night, she pleaded, “Lord, I need a family.”

The parents she had prayed for

That Christmas she received a text: “Will you be our daughter?”

It belonged to Lito and Marisol Salva, an American couple who had adopted two Filipino children, Angielyn and Ethan, from her orphanage. Rosalinda had met the couple during their visits and kept in touch with them over the years.

“I cried and told them it had been my silent prayer,” she said Salt&Light.

Lito and Marisol flew to the Philippines to celebrate all of Rosalinda’s milestones, including her wedding.

Because Rosalinda was already an adult, the Salvas did not legally adopt her. But they stepped up to play the role of her parents, despite living on the other side of the world.

They checked on her every day through phone calls and text messages. They listened to her struggles and held space for her tears. They celebrated her joys and successes.

They prayed for her and encouraged her with God’s Word. They affirmed her gifts, beauty and worth. They let her know that they would be with and for her no matter what.

When Rosalinda was going through a particularly difficult season in college, they flew from the United States to be with her. And they were there for every milestone: her graduation, her wedding, the birth of her child.

“They are my constants,” says Rosalinda, who calls them ‘mom’ and ‘dad’.

Today, at age 36 and with a family of her own, she still relies on them for parenting wisdom and advice.

“They are my rock and the comfort and grace that God has given me.”

“I didn’t have a father growing up, but my (adoptive) father treated me like a princess. Every time we saw each other he treated me so well. Now my expectations of men are too high!” said Rosalinda, laughing. She is pictured here with Lito at her wedding.

The Salvas, who are Christians, told it Salt&Light via email from Florida: “The reason we ‘adopted’ Rosalinda was the same reason we adopted Angielyn and Ethan – a commitment to our Lord to care for His children and give them a new chance in life to be included to belong and be loved by a family.

“You will never go wrong in caring for His children!”

All children need a place where they belong

The impact of the couple’s love influenced not only Rosalinda’s life, but also the lives of the orphans she serves today.

Rosalinda is a staff member at an orphanage in the Philippines for children under the age of four and is also on the board of the orphanage where she grew up.

Because she has experienced the love and support of her parents, she strongly advocates placing children in a family as early as possible through reunification, adoption or foster care.

“It’s really hard to grow up independently without a family, a place where you belong, with permanence and stability,” she said. “It was by the grace of God that I had my parents at the age of 18, but without them it would have been a different story.”

In her work, she has seen the heartbreaking ways some babies are abandoned.

“There was one child who was left in a cemetery as a newborn. “Another child was like Moses: he was dropped off in the river and left to die, but someone saved him,” she said somberly.

“But these stories remind me of my purpose: to find these children and place them in families where people will love and care for them,” she added.

Even adults need their parents: Lito, Marisol, Rosalinda and Dess spend time together during trips to the US and the Philippines.

Rosalinda encouraged families to consider adopting or fostering a child, or even just supporting a child in an orphanage.

Reflecting on her own journey in the orphanage and that of her adoptive family, she said: “Like me, one life has been changed thanks to the contributions of many people.”

And she is one who puts her money where her mouth is: she and her husband recently adopted a two-year-old girl, Esther Hope, into their family.

“Heavenly Father has truly blessed us with a precious gift. We will cherish her forever,” said Rosalinda.

Rosalinda with her adopted daughter, Esther Hope.

When asked how they feel about seeing Rosalinda where she is today, the Salvas said it has been a blessing to see her grow “from a teenager in an orphanage to an instrument of God’s hand helping and assisting children to reach their full potential.” to develop potential in the love of God. ”.

They added: “We are blessed to be called ‘father and mother’ by Rosalinda, (her husband) Dess, our ‘grandson’ Enoch and ‘granddaughter’ Esther.

“Our God has placed a special love in our hearts for all Filipino children, and our prayer for the future is that God will open doors so that we can be closer to all our Filipino ‘grandchildren’!

“What a family reunion that would be!”

To learn more about how you can help end the orphan crisis in the Philippines, visit Generations–Home.

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