Lindsay Tarquinio and her husband Gavin founded LUO in the spring of 2007 based on a combined passion to see justice brought to children all over the world. Lindsay graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in Speech Communication and through various trips to Africa has developed a deep desire to show the love of Jesus to His people. Gavin and Lindsay live in Atlanta, GA and enjoy cooking, hosting dinner parties and getting to spend time with their 200 South African and 26 Nicaraguan children!
Plywood People: Can you tell us what LUO means and the significance of what it means in conjunction with what you’re doing?
Lindsay Tarquinio: LUO is a Greek word that means to set free and break barriers, and our mission is to set children free from poverty. There are over 1 billion children living in poverty throughout the world…one billion children with names, faces, personalities…one billion children who have the potential to change the world. Our heart is for those children…for giving them every opportunity to succeed, to grow and to be agents of change in their communities. We believe that the best way to touch these children is to help them rise above their situations and break the bondage of poverty that is holding them back.
Plywood People: You live between several worlds all at once. Can you share some of the difficulties of transitioning between countries and cultures? How do you cope?
Lindsay: I live between several worlds, but also between several places that I call home. I love Atlanta…it’s where I grew up, where my community is, where my church is. I have my favorite parks, favorite grocery stores and markets…Atlanta is home and I miss it when I’m gone…but over the past three years, J’Bay (the town that Ithemba is in) has become my home as well. In J’Bay, I feel like my heart thrives…when I am with the kids at Ithemba I feel like I am right where I need to be; right where my gifts can be used most effectively. Some of my favorite people in the world live in Jeffrey’s Bay: my friends, my community, my church. I have my favorite beaches, grocery stores, and markets. I LOVE the culture, I LOVE the children, and I miss it so much when I’m not there. It is always a transition. Everything is different, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. It is always hard to leave wherever I am, but when I leave one home, I know that in 16 hours, I will be in another.
Plywood People: What is one of your most favorite stories or moments with the children you work with?
Lindsay: The children are incredible…definitely the best part of what we do. Over the past three years, I have gotten to spend time with and fall in love with so many wonderful kids. This past summer, I met Attie and he gave me even more reason to keep fighting for the children. Attie is seven years old and from the outside, he doesn’t appear to have a lot going for him. He contracted HIV at birth and was left in the care of his great-grandmother. When he was three years old, he caught a horrible case of meningitis. He was lucky to survive, but in the process of battling the disease, he lost his hearing. Now, at seven years old, he has HIV, has lost his parents, cannot hear, and does not speak. Although the odds seem stacked against him, I have never met a child so incredibly full of joy and full of life! Seemingly un-phased by these obstacles, his eyes shine, his smile melts your heart, and his gentle spirit warms you when you are near him. Needless to say, I completely fell head-over-heels in love with him and his ability to speak to my heart without saying a word. The hope and joy that I see in Attie has impacted my life in such a deep and real way. I have gotten to spend a lot of time with him since we met in July, and I am so thankful for the new friendship that we have.
Plywood People: Will you tell about the canvases you and the children create?
Lindsay: Through LUO, $250 will provide nutrition, medical care, academic education and a Bible curriculum for one child for one year. $250 can change a child’s life…an individual child with a personality, a name and a lot of creativity! Each time we go to Africa, we load our bags full of canvas and paint supplies. We cut the canvases in to 18×24 pieces, but the children are the artists. We let them pick the colors, paint, and decorate the canvases (with just enough guidance so that they look great!). Once the canvas dries, we have the kids “sign” it with their footprint or handprint. When we get back to the states, we sell the canvases for $250 and send a picture of the child that painted it. The canvas offers a tangible reminder of the life that has been changed, and the picture makes it all the more real. When you stare into the eyes of a four-year-old child with a huge loving smile, you fall in love and you realize the importance of fighting for them!
Plywood People: Monday was International Women’s Day so we’ve been celebrating women in our blog posts this week. I was wondering if you’d share a story of a woman who has been influential in your life?
Lindsay: My grandma, “Mema”, has been the most influential woman in my life. She was loving, compassionate, bold and most importantly ran after God’s heart and never looked back. In 1986, my grandma saw a need in the city of Atlanta. She realized that there were thousands of homeless women and children living on the streets just fighting to survive…fighting for a chance. Many of them had been abused, were unemployed, had no social security number, suffered from mental health issues and had disabilities. Besides the women that were suffering, many of them had children that were suffering in silence beside them. When she saw this need, she took a bold step and decided to start a place of hope, a day shelter that would later be called The Atlanta Day Shelter for Women and Children. It started in the basement of a church, and over the next 20 years slowly grew into a 10,000 square foot facility providing love, aid and hope to over 2,000 women and children every year. A soft spoken woman at only 5 feet tall – Mema faced so many barriers and so much opposition, but she worked in the streets of Atlanta every day armed with nothing but love. The Atlanta Day Shelter was only part of it. Mema had a love for the Lord like nothing I have ever seen. Her absolute trust and faith in His provision and His love influenced me the most. Even in the face of terminal cancer, she sung His praises. She trusted in His love, and she told every person who would listen how GREAT our God is. Mema was not only the most influential person in my life, she was my best friend. She taught me to cook (one of my biggest passions), to love people fully, and to give with my whole heart. She taught me to trust where God is leading me and walk BOLDLY and confidently in that direction. When I went to South Africa, and I saw the need of the children…I knew what God was calling me to do and because I saw Mema trust in God when it looked crazy from the outside, I had the courage to take the next step.
