We are Living Hope International
Our Mission
To rescue children, train leaders, and reach the nations with the Gospel.
We envision a world where every person has the opportunity to experience joy and reach their God-given potential, regardless of their location or circumstance, through the power of hope found only in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Our Founders & Directors
Esperanza Viva was born in the hearts of Jerry and Susy McNally, with the vision to rescue and raise at-risk children and youth.
Jerry and Susy McNally, originally from Minnesota, lived in Oaxaca, Mexico for seven years, sharing the gospel while planting churches and developing leadership in remote, indigenous villages before moving to Puebla, Mexico in 1994.
An encounter with a boy living on the streets changed the course of their ministry as they felt God challenging their hearts and their faith. This led them to open Esperanza Viva Youth Home in Puebla, in 1994, a ministry dedicated to rescuing and restoring abandoned children.
Esperanza Viva expanded to open its second youth home in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico, in 2006. This campus consolidated in 2020, bringing the children and staff to Puebla, due to the Covid pandemic.
In addition to Esperanza Viva Youth Home, Jerry also founded Nations Church, which opened its doors in 2003. The church focuses on raising up leaders who will serve the city of Puebla, and fulfilling the Great Commission by going into all the world with the gospel of Jesus.
In 2003, the McNallys founded Nations Ministry Institute, formerly known as La Viña, to train young people who have a desire to serve the Lord.
Jerry and Susy have a vision to expand the work of Living Hope to underprivileged areas of Mexico and other countries. Their desire is to develop a complete, effective ministry, by sending teams to open new mission bases that will serve to rescue children and reach remote communities with the gospel.
The McNallys have a hands-on approach to their lifelong calling of providing opportunities “to the least of these.” They have spent more than 35 years on the mission field, and they continue serving as directors and global ministry pastors on-site in Puebla, Mexico.
Ministries of Living Hope International
Nations School
The vision of Nations School is to provide a well-rounded educational experience in which students are encouraged to discover and develop all the gifts that God has given them. We believe that integrating academic learning and vocational training teaches life skills and prepares children for the future. Through the educational program at Nations School, the students receive hope and vision empowering them to move beyond their past and develop the confidence to achieve higher goals and dreams.
Esperanza Viva Youth Home
Esperanza Viva Youth Home rescues, trains, nurtures, and rehabilitates underprivileged, orphaned, and abandoned street children and youth whose families are unable or unwilling to provide for them. Our youth home meets the needs of the children:
- Physically through provision of a safe place to live, nutritious meals, clothing, an on-site medical/dental clinic, instruction in good personal hygiene, and opportunities to play and exercise.
- Mentally through on-site, Christian schooling at the Integral Education Center, counseling services and opportunities for post-secondary education.
- Spiritually through personal discipleship, daily devotions, Bible study courses, Sunday school, youth group, and other church activities.
Esperanza Viva Clinic
Through the work of Living Hope International, what started as a medical supply closet has grown into a well-equipped and staffed medical clinic responsible for the daily health and wellness of more than 300 people.
We believe God has positioned us to help demonstrate love and the value of others by providing practical healthcare services to those in need. It is our mission to reach out in love to others and play a pivotal role in the journey of restoration and wellness of children and rural communities without access to healthcare.
Nations Ministry Institute
Nations Ministry Institute is a 24/7 immersion into a life of hands-on training and experience preparing youth for ministry to bring the light and hope of Christ to the world by giving them a firm foundation and new eyes to see a world hungry for the gospel. The ministry course includes one semester of classes, Bible study, physical training and practical service, focusing on four key principles.
Nations Ministry Institute Principles
- Intimacy with God
- Biblical Teaching
- Missions
- Character
Nations Church
At Nations Church it is our desire to see people grow in an intimate, personal relationship with God and impact the city of Puebla, Mexico, with the radical love of God.
Nations Church offers Sunday school classes, youth programs, training courses, and conferences to the community of Puebla, including the children and youth from Esperanza Viva Youth Home. Our hope is that the future generations learn values that will enable them to live a life of victory and joy, even in the face of difficult circumstances.
Jerry & Susy McNally
President
Hugo, MN
Kent & Wynne Loehrke
Vice-President | Board Member
Lannon, WI
Michael & Wendy Jones
Treasurer | Board Member
Dousman, WI
Kim & David Hotchkiss
Secretary
Oconomowoc, WI
Chip & Patti Holmes
Board Member
West Bend, WI
Josh & Ivonne McNally
Board Member
Hugo, MN
Dennis & Fran McGrane
Board Member
Little Canada, MN
Emery & Maureen Green
Board Member
Dunedin, FL
Jenny Azuara
Board Member
Puebla, Mexico
Jess & Andy Nuñez
Board Member
Puebla, Mexico
- We believe the Bible to be the inspired and infallible Word of God.
- We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
- We believe in the deity and humanity of Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, in His present rule as Head of the Church and in His personal return in power and glory.
- We believe that salvation of the lost and sinful comes through faith in Jesus Christ, and that renewal by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential to the believer.
- We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life. God commands believers to give and minister to the poor and needy as an expression of God’s heart for the downtrodden.
- We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost, they that are saved unto the resurrection of life and they that are lost unto eternal separation from God.
- We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in our Lord Jesus Christ with equality across racial, gender, and class differences.