I’m Gustavo Lezcano. I’m 36 years old, with 4 kids, widowed for 5 years now. I came to the center through a circumstance I’ve never imagined I’d ever be in: one where my wife’s gastric pains had gotten worse in time that, being in terrrible pain, I took her to the doctor. After such long series of studies and analysis, we faced the sad news that I thought would end my life. The results showed HIV positive; simply devastating news. My mind went into a state of panic and depression I have never felt before. Fear had overtaken me and because of ignorance about the topic, I thought that everything was over for her, for my children and me. We did all we could to save her life, which totallly deteriorated two months later, ending in death.

I now am able to understand what people go through when they receive such news. I had to wait eight days to pick up my test results from the doctor’s office. During this time all I could do was ask God to make my children and my results be negative. Friends would say their “good byes” to me, promising to take care of our children. But I kept believing that God was powerful enough to free us from this bad situation. Days were eternal and nights were never-ending until the day had come for me to pick up our test results. God was glorifying Himself through us; the results came back negative. It was as if we have been revived. A partial calmness had returned. After all our studies and Test Elisa results came back negative, I knew God had heard me.

Today I value life in a different way and I realize that life is short; as the Word of God urges us, we have to be prepared to meet our Creator. Today I understand that life is without meaning if we are not willing to serve our fellows. And I thank God for bringing me to Pastor David and Judith Schmidt, directors of High Refuge Ministry, with whom I’ve learned to develop this task Jesus has entrusted me. My desire is that anyone who reads this writing can feel the desire to collaborate with people who suffer AIDS and help everyone be conscious to fight in a positive way this disease that has taken many lives already.  With God’s help, we can win the fight. I encourage you to do so. May God bless you and give you strength to start once and for all. Amen.