Both Jack and Carolyn grew up in strong Catholic homes and it wasn’t until they were in their thirties that they first heard how Jesus desired a personal relationship with each of them. Their acceptance of that simple invitation marked the beginning of a wonderful and blessed spiritual journey.

For Jack, one early stop along that journey was a short-term mission trip to an elementary school just outside of Santa Cruz, Bolivia. Here Jack experienced a level of poverty and depravation that he had never before experienced. Yet at the same time, he saw an amazing amount of joy in the hearts of the children to whom his team was sent to minister. Realizing that the only possible reason for this joy was the presence of Christ, Jack came away with a newfound love of children’s missions and a desire to make a more meaningful contribution in that area.

It took another seven years before Carolyn, Ryan and Ashley joined Jack for a weeklong trip to Casa Aleluya, but after only a short amount of time with the children, all three of them were talking about staying on permanently. After a period of seeking God’s will, the Ciak’s accepted His calling to Casa Aleluya and as dorm parents for the teenage girls in Esperanza Abajo.