Staff Blog

It takes a lot of pictures to  satisfy the needs of keeping our friends up on the latest from CSC. Most of our staff members take pictures. We store them on hard drives, on Dropbox and Picasa. We use them in our newsletters, on our web site, on Facebook and in prayer letters. We keep large numbers of pictures of each CSC child for their records, and to share with adoptive families.

We need pictures to accompany child study reports submitted for local and intercountry adoption. Some of these are used to document the height of the children.  

We take pictures of special days at CSC that involve the children in music, dance, sports or school outings.

 

 

 We need pictures of the everyday activities of our children that show our supporters or prospective donors the kinds of facilities, people and programs that constitute this ministry. And we take pictures of highlights in the lives of our kids: graduations, birthdays, or the times when we tell them that they are going to be adopted. These pictures will eventually go with the children when they leave us, and will for an important part of their histories. We never know just how important a picture might be to one of our residents, his adoptive family, or, eventually, her own family. And we never know which picture we shoot might motivate someone to want to get involved in the support of this ministry.

 

 

 

 

When we lived in the Philippines, I was really surprised to find out how much Filipinos love fried chicken.

Fried chicken is EVERYWHERE - at all restaurants and fast food places and even sold by vendors from little carts on the street. CSC is no exception! Fried chicken is a hit with all the kids.

This picture just cracks me up: it's the big plastic bucket where the aunties marinate the chicken. It's labeled "Monday".

After you marinate the chicken, you put it into a pan of hot oil. Auntie Elvira kept the heat really low to cook the chicken long and slow. I was also really interested to find out that they weren't putting any breading on the chicken. The marinating and the crispy skin are enough to flavor the chicken after it's been fried.

Fried Chicken
Recipe from the Cherne house

2 lb. chicken drumsticks
1-2 teaspoon minced garlic
1-2 teaspoon minced onion
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon seasoning mix*
1 egg
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1-2 cups oil for frying

1. Place the raw chicken in a large bowl. Add the garlic, onion, oyster sauce, black pepper, salt, seasoning mix, egg, and cornstarch. Stir until the chicken is evenly coated.
2. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. When the oil is hot, place the chicken in the oil. The oil should cover the chicken pieces almost completely and it will bubble gently as the chicken cooks. Continue to fry the chicken until the skin is golden brown and crispy. The amount of time you’ll need depends on the temperature of the oil. Auntie Elvira keeps the heat low and fries each piece for at least 15 minutes.
3. Remove from the oil and set on paper towels to drain excess oil.

*The seasoning mix that they use is called Magic Sarap and it basically adds a very salty flavor. You could use any kind of seasoning salt you like to give the chicken more flavor.

Cebu City has been our home for more than 34 years. It is the home of our ministry and our families. We have seen tremendous change here in our years as residents. It is a place of great beauty. Tourists flock to the beaches of Mactan Island and other places in droves, coming from Japan, Taiwan, Korea, China, Australia, Europe and North America. Sadly, many of these visitors never cross the bridge to Cebu City, so they do not get an accurate picture of what life is like for the greater percentage of Filipinos living here. They see the beautiful white sand beaches and blue ocean water, but fail to observe the teeming squatter areas, the street children and families, and the desperate poverty that is the way of life for hundreds of thousands here in Cebu City. 

Cebu is a fascinating place to visit. Visitors who make it a point to get the full tour go away with an education in the diverse lifestyles, opportunities and expressions of Philippine culture that make this such an interesting place. It isn't pleasant to view the poverty and difficulties of life, but those things are part of the reality of life here. Often that exposure helps reinforce people's resolve to do something to help those in need, through ministries like CSC.

Although a small part of the city geographically, CSC is a part of the beauty and diversity that makes Cebu such a fascinating place. We have children and adults of all sizes and shapes. We have kids who come from very different situations in life, and who have varied interests and talents. But all are a part of the CSC family, and a part of the city from which many of them came. Visiting CSC has been a blessing for thousands of people over the years, and we have welcomed parties from more than 30 nations to come and see what we are doing. Check out this quick view of Cebu City and CSC.

 

 

Several months ago we met with Gauvin and Delphine Guillaume, a French couple who had just arrived in Cebu. They had formerly worked in China where they started an orphanage called Bethel. They were considering ministry opportunities in Cebu with an eye towards doing something for children with special needs. Eventually, they decided to start a therapy center and their first  program is something called Equine Therapy. Their ministry is known as the SPACE Project, or Special People Accessing Creative Education.

Equine Therapy, also known as Hippotherapy,  is a treatment that uses the multidimensional movement of the horse. Specially trained physical, occupational and speech therapists use this medical treatment for clients who have movement dysfunction.

 Equine Therapy uses activities on the horse that are meaningful to the client. Treatment takes place in a controlled environment where graded sensory input can elicit appropriate adaptive responses from the client. Specific riding skills are not taught (as in therapeutic riding), but rather a foundation is established to improve neurological function and sensory processing. This foundation can then be generalized to a wide range of daily activities.

Friday was our introduction to this innovative program which will be available to some of our children and young adults with special needs. Maria, Michael, Wilmar and Jhaycob met the horse, Kose, for the first time. They helped to feed and groom him, and all but Jhaycob had their first ever ride. It was supposed to just be a "meet and greet" with Kose but they all did so well that the therapist felt it was good for them to ride. Jhaycob was a little tentative but pet the horse and helped give him a bath. All in all it was a great day and we are looking forward to weekly therapy for these, and possibly other kids in the very near future.  

 

 

As I was getting ready to leave the office at the end of the day yesterday, the phone rang. I picked it up to greet the caller. The voice on the other end of the line told me that he was calling because he wanted to give half of everything he owned to CSC in his will. It took a minute for that statement to sink in. Half of everything he owned?
We chatted for a while and he explained that many years ago he traveled to Cebu, where he saw indescribable poverty. He hadn't forgotten. He shared that while he wasn't a rich man by any means, he wanted to do what he could to leave a legacy and to impact the lives of kids in need. 

At CSC we speak often about the hearts of our donors. These hearts are amazing, generous and responsive! As gifts come to CSC to support the care of our kids in Cebu, time and time again we are reminded that it is not the amount of each gift, but rather the heart of the giver. These hearts change lives and bring smiles to adorable faces like this one.