Uploaded January 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
In a Brazilian community overshadowed by poverty and a vast dumping ground, Marcus and Mariana Liotta discover their calling. Inspired by Jesus’s love and Iris Global’s mission, they established “Jardim Gramacho (God’s Garden),” a sanctuary of hope.
This powerful story chronicles a journey from despair to restoration, as broken lives bloom into testimonies of grace, creating a beacon of light for one of the world's darkest corners.
MB01Y5XDF8VXASJ
About Iris Jadrim Gramacho:
Jardim Gramacho is a neighborhood inside the city of Duque de Caxias, about 20 miles outside of Rio de Janeiro. For decades it was the site of the largest garbage dump in Latin America called Lixão de Gramacho.
At the height of its operation, approximately 4,000 people worked day and night collecting recyclable materials amid the daily dumping of 8,000 tons of garbage from Rio de Janeiro and neighboring cities.
Our ministry started here in 2010, in Quatro Rodas, the poorest slum in the neighborhood, where we planted a local church called Igreja Jardim de Deus (Garden of God Church). Years later, Jesus opened another door and we started another missionary front, this time in Remanso, an area where drug dealers are concentrated. There, in addition to a local church that meets at home, a house of prayer was also planted.
Our routine here is basically centered around the activities of our two local churches: Services, prayer rooms, Bible studies, discipleship, home visits, small group meetings, evangelisms, services for the children, church fellowship events, in addition to assist residents in possible needs that arise daily.
We understand that what needs to be done here, only Jesus can do. All that the dear residents of Jardim Gramacho need is the presence of God.
Therefore, our family of full-time missionaries remains focused on radically loving him with all our hearts as we seek revival.
For more information:
irisglobal.org/locations/jardim-gramacho
In a Brazilian community overshadowed by poverty and a vast dumping ground, Marcus and Mariana Liotta discover their calling. Inspired by Jesus’s love and Iris Global’s mission, they established “Jardim Gramacho (God’s Garden),” a sanctuary of hope.
This powerful story chronicles a journey from despair to restoration, as broken lives bloom into testimonies of grace, creating a beacon of light for one of the world's darkest corners.
MB01Y5XDF8VXASJ
About Iris Jadrim Gramacho:
Jardim Gramacho is a neighborhood inside the city of Duque de Caxias, about 20 miles outside of Rio de Janeiro. For decades it was the site of the largest garbage dump in Latin America called Lixão de Gramacho.
At the height of its operation, approximately 4,000 people worked day and night collecting recyclable materials amid the daily dumping of 8,000 tons of garbage from Rio de Janeiro and neighboring cities.
Our ministry started here in 2010, in Quatro Rodas, the poorest slum in the neighborhood, where we planted a local church called Igreja Jardim de Deus (Garden of God Church). Years later, Jesus opened another door and we started another missionary front, this time in Remanso, an area where drug dealers are concentrated. There, in addition to a local church that meets at home, a house of prayer was also planted.
Our routine here is basically centered around the activities of our two local churches: Services, prayer rooms, Bible studies, discipleship, home visits, small group meetings, evangelisms, services for the children, church fellowship events, in addition to assist residents in possible needs that arise daily.
We understand that what needs to be done here, only Jesus can do. All that the dear residents of Jardim Gramacho need is the presence of God.
Therefore, our family of full-time missionaries remains focused on radically loving him with all our hearts as we seek revival.
For more information:
irisglobal.org/locations/jardim-gramacho
