By Lia Kamana (KVII)

Saturday, October 20th 2018

PORTALES, N.M. (KVII) — Gary Truex, a house parent with the New Mexico Christian Children’s Home, tells kids in the residential program that there are two types of people in the world, victims and overcomers.

Children in NMCCH’s residential program definitely don’t have a normal upbringing. The program provides housing for kids whose families are unable to or unwilling to take care of them as they would like to.

Three boys in the program who aren’t letting their unconventional upbringing stand in their way are Philip Blidi, Romeo Gbassagee, and Prince Bowah.

“Phil, Romeo and Prince, are all great examples of overcomers,” said Truex.

In the residential home, the boys are three of 12 kids in a cottage. They each arrived at different times and have different stories, but their parents’ reasoning for sending them are the same.

“These are families that are sending their kids here not because their kids are in trouble but because they want to kid them out of the inner city, they want the kids to learn a better way or life, and give them a better opportunity,” said Truex.

Their families came over during the Liberian Civil War with the hope of a better life in America.

“In the families minds, they are making a sacrifice for their kids to send them here, to give them a chance that they wouldn’t otherwise have,” explained Truex.

They grew up moving a lot, mostly to bigger cities. None of them ever thought they’d end up in Portales.

“Single mom, incomes really low naturally. She was always going paycheck to paycheck. She really couldn’t save anything. So she sent me here so I could get a better education and help her out financially because it wasn’t really looking good,” said Bowah.

The unique circumstances has allowed the boys to mature.

“To be honest, I feel like I grew a lot. If I was still at home I’d probably be more of the silent type,” said Gbassagee. “When I came here I became more social and I talked to more people. I wouldn’t be as open as I am.”

Being away from family and culture has forced many of them to adapt.

“They are completely in a brand new environment and they adapt. Like we say, adapt, improvise, and overcome. Make it happen,” said fellow house parent and Gary Truex’s wife, Rachel.

For these boys, making it happen, is exactly what they do. They all play varsity football for Portales High School and their coach, Jaime Ramirez, believes the life challenges they’ve had to overcome make them role models for their teammates.

“Going through their situation, I think because of that they are stronger mentally,” said Ramirez. “Philip’s a great leader, Romeo’s a great leader, and so is Prince. They all lead in different ways, but they are all good leaders.”

They are also good students and leaders in their cottage.

“I just think of the things that I used to go through and I thought dang, if I get this, if I do my best, and go as hard as I can, and just keep trying, and do what I can do to help my situation and make it best, then everything will be okay,” said Blidi.

Original Article