Staff Blog

This week, Heather and I had a Skype meeting with two missionaries from Menomonie, WI. We had never met before, so we took the time get to know one another, talk about our respective ministries, and pray for each other. Before praying, they asked me, "what are some of your needs that we can be praying for at this time?"

It's not an uncommon question, and it certainly wasn't unexpected, but it's been rattling around in my heart ever since.

There are a lot of visible needs at the Shelter during this pandemic. There's the need for health and safety. The need for hand sanitizer and personal protective equipment. There's the need for food, clean water, school curriculum, clothing, and medicine. For those of us going around town, there's the need for documentation and preparation to ensure safe passage through checkpoints. By the grace of God, through the generosity of our supporters, all these things have been provided. The children can play games, enjoy full meals, and receive all the love, support, and care that we can muster.

Then there are those needs that aren't as visible. There's the need for strength and calm; for endurance, patience, diligence, and faithfulness. There's the need for friendships and encouragement. There's the need for prayer and time spent with the One who ultimately provides for all our needs. Thank you for praying with us. I can tell you firsthand that they are being felt as we navigate this pandemic together.

There is a need I fear may go unnoticed, forgotten, or neglected by the world at large ...

But the one need that's been rattling around in my heart is one that I fear may go unnoticed, forgotten, or neglected by the world at large. This pandemic has strained governments and the systems that we have in place to help the vulnerable; to help the widow and the orphan—to help the least of these (Matt 25:40). Since the start of this pandemic, we have not had any children placed with adoptive families, and only a handful of our children have been presented for regional, national, or international matching (that is to say, the processes that governments use to match children with prospective adoptive families, both locally and internationally, has been severely hindered due to the coronavirus pandemic). What makes this reality even more difficult to face is the fact that quite a few of our children will be aging out of adoption in the coming months; meaning, they will reach an age where adoption is no longer allowed.

This is a video of an extremely long line that formed in Guadalupe, Cebu City when the local government announced it would be disbursing aid to impoverished families during the quarantine. The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), which we work with for referrals and placements, is also tasked with handing out this aid.

We knew this day could potentially come for our older children, and we've been doing our best to prepare all our kids for whatever life has in store for them, including independent adult life in the Philippines. We will prayerfully continue to do so, hoping to launch our older children into a healthy and beautiful adulthood.

But I would like to ask all of you to please take some extra time to pray. Pray for these kids who will be aging out in the coming months. Pray that they will be able to cope emotionally, and pray that all of us at CSC are able to provide them with the love and support that they need to be launched into a beautiful future without an adoptive family.

And pray for a miracle. Some of our kids have less than a few months before aging out. Pray that domestic and international government agencies will be able to process the needed paperwork, and that the right families will be searching at just the right time. Thank you for praying with us.

I had breakfast with a CSC donor today. He and his wife have been very generous to CSC over the years. He had previously owned a business in the Twin Cities and he mentioned how glad he was the he didn't have to be trying to run a business during this pandemic. I think we all have things in our past that we are glad we don't have to deal with during this challenging and difficult time. Although I miss being on the Leadership teams in Cebu so much, I don't really miss some of the difficult discussions and hard decisions that need to be made almost on a daily basis. The thing that makes them hard is that they affect lives, and we don't have a grand blueprint for success in navigating this pandemic. None of us has ever seen anything like this so we have no data base of proven methods to bank on .

I am so glad that our new Field Director, Roberto Atienza, is so talented and enthusiastic to embrace the challenges of leading CSC in Cebu during this time. I'm sure he would rather be leading under different circumstances but he has stepped up and taken on the challenges with vigor and tireless effort. His term of leadership began when the pandemic was already upon the Philippines. While still learning some of the basics about the ministry, getting to know our leaders and deciding on a management style he was suddenly leading meetings about quarantines, supply chains, manpower crises, lockdowns, mobility limitations,  and the financial, social work, educational, medical, HR and spiritual issues that this crisis presents to CSC. And these have  been oom meetings, not face to face sessions where it is easier to share feelings and interpret ideas and reactions. I am thankful that he is not wishing he was someplace else or focusing on the negative parts of ministry in a pandemic. His faith in God is strong, contagious and encouraging to the people whose pictures are on the Zoom screen and who rely on him for direction, support and spiritual leadership.

Am I glad that I am not having to lead CSC at this time? Well, that is a complicated question. We left Cebu in part because of concerns because of our age and health issues, and we don't second guess that. I miss the interactions with our great Leadership Team, watching them rise to the occasion every single day. I miss consultations with Roberto on a wide range of issues and watching the child care workers and other lock-in staff doing an exceptional job. But I don't miss some of the pressure packed meetings that are necessary, of having to come up with fresh ideas when I don't feel like I have any more, and facing the sobering realities every day of a deadly disease lurking just outside our CSC campus that it is our job to keep out. I know that at 66 years of age I don't have the same stamina I used to have. 

I am glad that God worked out a transition of leadership in Cebu and that Roberto is clearly His man for the job. Stepping aside and letting him lead was a seamless transition for me because of who  he is as a man of God and a leader. I know that Stateside is where we are supposed to be, even if we miss the kids and workers so much it hurts sometimes.  In that respect I'm glad to be where I am. 

Please keep Roberto and the Leadership Team in your prayers during these tough days.  I can say from experience that they feel your prayers, your love and encouragement and need it very much. Thanks! 

A few months ago we were planning our trip back to Minnesota  to start our retirement. Because of the pandemic our flights were canceled and we were put on "enhanced community quarantine." Basically , we have had to stay inour home for the past 100 days, unable to go to the shelter or the office or the Children of Hope School to see the kids and workers. Needless to say it has been a challenging time for everyone at CSC. During our extended quarantine we have been checking to see if there are any flights out of the Philippines, preferably Cebu. We were happy to be here, helping out Roberto and the Leadership team in helping assure that our children are receiving the best care possible during the lockdown in Banawa. We have attended regular Zoom meetings, discussing manpower and financial issues, keeping our US office appraised of the situation here and dealing with logistical issues of moving people and goods around during times of strict measures that limit mobility.

Just the other day we heard of a flight to the U.S. via Korean Airlines and Delta. In order to make this flight we needed to secure a Travel Pass to get to the airport, health certificates andbarangay and immigration clearances. Jill from our US office helped a lot as did our Administrative Assistant, Vanjing and Jerry Salgo, the person who has coordinated all the security and transportation matters for CSC thr0ughout this crisis.

So we are leaving Cebu on July 4! Its Wait and Hurry Up. We are trying to organize our possessions, the accumulation of 41 years of living in Cebu, in just a few days. Some things were are selling, some we are shipping to MN and most we are giving away. But arranging all of our emotions has been more challenging. The thoughts of walking away from the ministry that has been our life for 41 years had been on the back burner for a long time as we weren't sure how the pandemic was going to play out. We had been emotionally prepared to be here in Cebu until Christmas if necessary.

So now we are scurrying to get ready to leave. So many CSC and other people are helping us. One of the nicest gifts to us was an amazing farewell party at the Shelter this morning. Although we weren't able to actually hug or be near the children or workers, we did go inside the CSC compound. We sat on the area outside the conference room of the Gleddie Building and heard the kids sing, give tributes and give us a ton of love and appreciation. It was the first time we had seen them in more than 100 days. Lots of tears were shed. It wasn't the party we had imagined months ago when we were preparing for retirement, but it was a wonderful party and we are so thankful to the Leadership Group for planning it. We were humbled. It made leaving Cebu, although still difficult, seem somehow more manageable because we were able to see and hear the kids we love so much.

In the book of Esther in the Bible, Haman wanted to bring destruction to the Jewish people. The account was able to outline his motives and plans to harm them.

Her thoughts must have been racing, considering each option of salvation for her people and consequences of each one. I imagine that she looked back at her experiences to find insight and answers that could be useful. Esther saw where she hit dead ends and made mistakes; and yet, she also saw how she was able to overcome her challenges and thrive by using her God-given gifts, skills, and abilities. Esther was able to see situations where she was celebrated and favored by both God and man.

From being a humble commoner, she had risen to become a queen. I can imagine Esther struggling with the knowledge that this evil was attempting to annihilate her tribe from the face of the earth. "Lord, thank You for Your love. Please give me clarity of purpose for this season," she must have prayed. "How do I use what You have placed in my hands?" All of these life events and God, her HOPE, prepared her for such a time as this (Esther 4:14) to advocate for salvation even at the cost of losing her life.

In the same way, this pandemic, the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), threatens our families, relationships, peace of mind, way of living--our very existence. Some of us are called to be at the frontlines. Others of us are asked to cooperate by staying at home. Either way, we can take this time to worship Him and ask for clarity of purpose for this season. I believe that God has given to each of us gifts, skills, and abilities that were created for His glory for us to steward for such a time as this.

This blog post is dedicated to all the frontliners here in the Philippines who work for vulnerable children and families. Thank you for your courage and embracing your purpose today, working for our benefit and welfare. You are a blessing. Thank you for the good work you are doing.

Lord, into your hands we commit the frontliners. Please keep them safe and provide supernatural strength and wisdom for them to carry out their tasks. I also pray for their household that You bless and hold them in Your hands. Amen.

When you care for 80 residents, from infants to young adults, you want to make sure you are prepared as a global pandemic creeps closer and closer to your front door. Though CSC (and most of the world) is maneuvering through uncharted waters, I am proud of the way Roberto, Paul, and the CSC leadership team have been proactive and creative in their response.

One of the top priorities before COVID-19 became prevalent in Cebu was to make sure we would have the manpower and supplies needed to continue to provide fantastic care for our kids. As we were working to stock up on medicine, food, diapers, and other daily necessities, God was working in the hearts of many CSC employees who volunteered to be "locked in" at the Shelter. These people (pictured below) were an answer to prayer as the best way we could keep our kids safe from the virus was to do a total lockdown.

We are now in week 3 of lockdown at CSC and God is continuing to show His goodness. I am so thankful for our team of dedicated CSC employees and the ways they are using this time at the Shelter to create fun memories for our kids and enable them to continue progressing academically. Teacher Cris, our CCHS principal, signed up to be locked in at the Shelter and is helping lead the kids in academic activities every morning. Everyone from house parents to aunties to social workers to nurses have stepped up to do what is needed for the ministry at this time. God's presence is so visible at CSC!

As a leadership team God has been helping us be creative with how we can support our "locked in" coworkers. Prayer has been our main vehicle. Every night at 9:30pm we pray for the kids at CSC as well as our coworkers who are living and working at the Shelter. We also divided up all the locked in employees among the leadership team so each of us have 3 or 4 specific people we are more intentionally praying for every day. During Holy Week we set up Facebook Live events so both the employees locked in and those locked out could worship together and encourage one another. The Saturday before Holy Week the locked in employees had requested a special worship time that would just be for the adults, a time when they could focus their worship without having to divide their attention with monitoring kids and helping them worship. Roberto and Paul arranged a time after the kids went to bed to gather all the adults. The employees were so thankful for that time of refreshing! As a leadership team we are meeting together online 2-4 times a week to be proactive and planned as the COVID situation constantly changes in Cebu. Pictured below is one of the many checkpoints around the city.

The immediate outlook in Cebu is not promising. A couple of days ago they set up road barricades around our part of town (pictured below) as we have growing numbers of COVID cases. Now, today, there are rumors that the road that the Shelter is on will have its own barricade, prohibiting anyone from coming in or going out. Many questions like how we'll get food deliveries to the Shelter are on our minds. But, just as God has been faithful and present continually over the past 40 years, He will show Himself able and good in the midst of increasing restrictions.

Thank you for your continued prayers! We at CSC know that there are many, many places in the world that need your prayers and financial support. We are extremely grateful for your continued commitment to our amazing kids!