About Us
A Community Built on Hope, Healing, and Faith.
A faith-centered community dedicated to restoring lives, rebuilding families, and creating sustainable futures for vulnerable children and young mothers in El Salvador.a

Our Story
Where Hope Finds a Home
House of Life traces its roots back to 1982, when founder Bob McDonell first visited El Salvador and felt called by God to serve vulnerable children. Moved by the hardships he witnessed during the war, he founded Mi Casa in 1989 to provide orphaned and abandoned children with the love, stability, and family they deserved.
Today, that same calling lives on through House of Life a faith-centered community dedicated to restoring lives, rebuilding families, and creating sustainable futures for children, young mothers, and future generations.
At the heart of everything we do is a simple belief: every life has value, and every person deserves the opportunity to heal, belong, and thrive.
1982 - Calling to serve in El Salvador
1989 - Mi Casa Kids was founded
2003 - Boys and Girls homes donated to Mi Casa Kids
2023 - House of Life was established and homes donated to House of Life
Today - Restoring lives and building futures
Mission, Vision & Values
The Foundation of Everything We Do

Mission
To restore lives, rebuild families, and create sustainable futures through faith, love, education, occupational training and long term support.

Vision
A world where every person has the opportunity to heal, belong, and thrive within a supportive community.

Values
Faith, compassion, restoration, and purpose guide everything we do.
Why Donors Trust Us
What makes our approach different and why it creates lasting impact.
Trauma Informed Care
Every program at House of Life is built on a trauma-informed model of care. We recognize the deep emotional impact of abuse, abandonment, and neglect, and create environments that prioritize emotional safety, healthy attachment, mental health support, and long-term healing.
Long-Term Commitment
We believe transformation takes time. Rather than operating with strict age limits or temporary solutions, we provide ongoing opportunities, guidance, and community as individuals grow into adulthood. Our goal is not only to meet immediate needs, but to help build stable and sustainable futures.
Guided by Expertise
Our work is strengthened by experienced professionals who help shape the care we provide. With guidance from experts such as
Dr. Alex Harrison, a Harvard-trained psychiatrist, we continue to develop programs that support healing, child development, and long-term restoration.
Financial Transparency
We are committed to stewarding every donation responsibly and ensuring resources are directed where they create meaningful impact. By maintaining low administrative costs, we maximize the support provided to children, young mothers, and families.
Under 10% overhead
Maximum impact.
How Donations Are Used
The Team
The People Behind the Mission
Behind every life restored is a dedicated team committed to serving with compassion, professionalism, and faith.
Your Involvement Can Change a Life. Have questions, want to donate, or looking to get involved? We’d love to hear from you.
Change a Life Today:
Change a Life Today:
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I donate?
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How can I donate?
You can give a one-time gift or become a monthly partner through our secure online giving page, or by PayPal, Venmo, Cash App, or Bitcoin, all linked from our Donate page. However you choose to give, you're helping fund a safe place for a child or a future for a teen mom in El Salvador.
Can I visit House of Life?
Yes — many of our most faithful supporters have visited in person, and we'd love to welcome you. Visits are arranged in advance and coordinated with our team so we can protect the routines and privacy of the children and teen moms in our care. Email houseoflife@micasakids.org to talk about timing.
How are donations used?
Your gift goes directly into daily life in our homes: meals, medical and prenatal care, counseling, schooling, and the caregivers who care for our children and teen moms around the clock. As a guide, $25 covers a week of meals and essentials for a child, $100 helps fund a month of healthcare and emotional care, and $250 helps sustain safe housing and long-term care.
How can I volunteer?
We welcome volunteers for both short visits and ongoing support, from childcare and educational activities to administrative help and light construction. Every volunteer completes an orientation on our safety and conduct guidelines before serving, because protecting our children and teen moms always comes first. Email houseoflife@micasakids.org or call +503 2556 0300 to start the conversation.
What percentage goes to administrative costs?
We keep overhead low, under 10%, so more than 90 cents of every dollar you give goes directly to the children and mothers in our care, not to overhead. If you'd ever like more detail on how funds are used, just reach out to houseoflife@micasakids.org — we're glad to share it.
What does a mission trip involve, and how do I sign up?
Mission teams serve alongside our staff on projects like construction, children's activities, teaching, and facility improvements, a chance to experience the mission firsthand. Every trip is scheduled directly with our team so we can match your group's skills and dates to what the homes need most. Contact us at houseoflife@micasakids.org to talk through options and current openings.
Is my donation tax-deductible?
Yes. House of Life operates under Mi Casa International, a registered U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit, so gifts given through our website are tax-deductible to the full extent allowed by law. You'll receive a donation receipt for your records after every gift.
Do you accept groups, churches, or company partnerships?
Absolutely. Churches, businesses, and civic groups partner with us in a lot of ways: sponsoring a specific project, hosting a fundraiser, organizing a giving drive, serving on-site as a team, or building an ongoing partnership. Tell us about your group and what you're hoping to do, and we'll help shape something that fits.
Can I sponsor a specific child or teen mom?
Rather than pairing you with one named child, your monthly gift supports the whole home a child or teen mom lives in, their meals, their caregivers, their schooling, their counseling. We do this on purpose: it protects the privacy of the children and young mothers in our care, and it means your support keeps a home running even as the specific children in it grow and move on. If you'd like a closer, more personal connection to your impact, tell us, we're glad to share updates from a specific home or program.
Why don't you share the children's names or photos more openly?
Every child and teen mom in our care has a story that belongs to them, not to a caption. We don't publish names, identifying photos, or personal histories without explicit permission, in keeping with the same child-safeguarding standards we hold our own staff and volunteers to. You'll still see the heart of what happens here, daily life, milestones, transformation, just told in a way that protects the people living it.





