One evening at the Seminary, before lessons had begun, she told John about her family.
Her involvement with the church started when she was about eight, but her parents did not approve. Soon after, her father died and her mother still opposed her going to church. When she was nine, her mother told her it was either the church or living at home. She said, "I choose Jesus". So her mother packed a few things for her and told her to leave. Families in the church took her in and she was able to finish her schooling with their help.
Two years ago she married Ricardo, a young Christian man. One of the Seminary students decorated the church, others helped her to rent a wedding dress, and the ladies provided a meal for the guests and, of course, a lovely wedding cake.
Not long after, one of her uncles got in touch with her and although he, too, wasn't happy that she went to an evangelical church, felt her mother had treated her badly. He offered to pay for her to go to Rio de Janeiro (where most of her family now live), and also to sort out her financial situation. Apparently, her father had left her and her mother a small pension. But her mother had told the authorities that Leonise was dead and took the entire pension herself.
Leonise now has a regular income from her father's pension and is waiting to see if she can get the money that was due to her since her father's death.
"Never once, when she was telling me her story," said John, "was she sad or angry by the way she had been treated, but rather praised God for the way he had looked after her and provided for her."