Christmas With 22

There is a lot of joy and laughter in the Vieira home during the Christmas season. The energy and excitement level is definitely elevated this time of year. It’s hard to avoid with 22 kids in the house.

Christi and husband Mario Vieira are houseparents with TurnAround Ministries, a nonprofit that takes in children who have been abandoned or neglected. The biological parents sign over parental rights so their children can be cared for while the parents pursue healing and restorative steps necessary to come together again as a healthy family.   

Christmas is special for the children, not so much for the gifts as the sense of love.

“It’s not just the Christmas presents,” Christi said. “It’s that they belong and they feel that. They realize they have a family and are having dinner together. They’re just as excited about our big meal as they are opening presents.”        

Christi and her mom Cheryl Anderson are directors of the ministry. Mario and Christi have one biological child, a 2-year-old daughter, and they’ve adopted five of the children living with them. Christi said their hope is the other children will eventually end up back home with their families.

Their Woodstock home is the central gathering place for dinner and daily activities, but the ministry has two other homes, and the children are separated into the three houses for sleeping. Cheryl’s hope is that one day the ministry will own enough land to accommodate multiple homes in one location.

TurnAround operates solely on donations from churches and individuals. One person has been hired to help with baths and bedtime three nights a week. Everyone else works on a volunteer basis.

The needs for a family this size are unique. Christmas gifts are covered because sponsors have been arranged for each child. The gifts most welcome at this point are necessities for driving the children around and maintaining each of the three homes owned by the ministry.

Items on the wish list include a vacuum cleaner, a vehicle that will hold everyone (at least 22 passengers), new carpet in the main house and a large electric roasting pan.

“The Lord is our provider,” said Cheryl, who prepares all the meals for the children.

Food comes from spoils picked up once a week from Trader Joe’s.

“That’s one area that I’m very creative in,” Cheryl said. “We get our toilet paper from a business complex that throws away half rolls. With scraps here and there, we have been able to survive on donations.”

The children are taught proper hygiene, nutrition, communication skills and respect for authority. Spiritual guidance comes from daily devotions and prayers.

And the emphasis at Christmas is a celebration of the gift of life.

“We are teaching them the real reason of Christmas, that it’s all about Jesus and remembering his sacrifice for us,” Mario said. “We celebrate together the gift of Jesus’s life.”

Editor's note: A version of this story previously appeared in the December edition of The Cherokee Vine, a monthly newsletter that highlights news and events from churches, ministries and charitable organizations in Cherokee County.

FAST FACTS

For more information on TurnAround Ministries, contact Cheryl Anderson at turnaround4399@bellsouth.net or visit www.turnaroundkids.com