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Most Cebuanos my age grew up with a saying that goes “Bisan saging, basta loving.”  This saying means that even when the family is eating bananas all the time, as long as they love each other, the family is okay.

The passage, Proverbs 15:17, “Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred” reminds me of that old saying.  It also reflects on the situations CSC’s children came from.  Not the whole, but the part about bananas and hatred.  The kids at CSC have come from different situations of poverty, neglect, abuse, and abandonment.  Some of the kids came from loving situations that deteriorated because one parent died suddenly. The one parent left behind could not cope up with trying to earn a living while taking care of the children at the same time.  Some of the kids came from broken families.  Most of them were abused before being cast aside when a parent got involved in a new relationship.

Bisan saging basta loving.  Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred.  Some of these children did not have anything at all, no bananas, no vegetables, no fattened calf, no one to turn to, and most of all, no love, but had an abundance of hatred at times.  

Kindness, understanding, patience, hope, faith, joy, grace, and most of all, love.  This brings to mind that this is what CSC is all about.  It is not because of the beautifully maintained houses, medical building, and school, nor the playground and other things, though all of these have helped.  But, it is the people that made the shelter what it is.  Feelings of warmth and welcome are created by people who are kind, generous, patient, hopeful, understanding, even-tempered, and most of all, loving. Different backgrounds, educated to the less educated, Americans and Filipinos, people who answered God’s call to pray, give generously, volunteer their time during mailings, and serve on the CSC Boards both here in Cebu and in the US.  They came together to serve in a ministry that not only provided a roof over the heads of these children, but the loving-kindness and the grace of God that the children had not experienced before.

At CSC, there is no “bisan saging basta loving,” and  “no better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred.” CSC is a big home, a big family that God has blessed with His love and grace.  Thank you Lord for the people who answered Your call to serve in this ministry.         

40 Years of Fun

May. 15, 2019By: Paul Healy

CSC will be celebrating 40 years of ministry on June 28 and 29 here in Cebu City. Plan to be with us for this exciting and meaningful look at how this ministry has grown and thrived since our inception in 1979. We will be celebrating the goodness of God and the contributions of the many people who have given of themselves to make many good things happen here.  Check out our videos that give a taste of the celebration. 

Video Trailer  40 Years of Performances

40 Years of Great Kids  40 Years of Twins

40 Years of Adoptions   40 Years of Fun

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Math and Science Day at CCHS

Apr. 11, 2019By: Cris Tabra (principal)

What an exciting event last Friday! CCHS hosted our annual Math and Science Day where students individually competed to show their skill and knowledge as well as worked together in small teams. CCHS students had a chance to participate in the following events: Math-Science Scholastic Bowl, Math-Science Dance contest, Games, Science Experiments, and Awarding.

CCHS is very grateful to the teachers who made this activity fun for our students, to the students who gave their best effort in all of the activities, to our judges on the dance contest, and our visitors. We give God the glory and honor for a successful event.

Here are some pictures showing this great event!

Math-Science Dance Contest 

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Math Science Scholastic Bowl – It was a great opportunity for our students to showcase what they have learned in the classroom. The students answered questions from easy to challenging.

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Preschool Counting Activity – Match that Number
Go Preschoolers!

DSC00627Level A Measuring Activity - Jumping Frog
Keep that frog jumping!

IMG_4825Level B Gravity - Cotton Blowing
Blow more! Keep blowing! Don't let it drop!

DSC00648Level C Balancing – Bicycle Racing
The ultimate winner of this event was the contestant who had the longest time consumed to reach the finish line.

DSC00666Volcano: Watch carefully for the volcano's eruption! Don't blink your eyes on this one.

IMG_4831Balloon: Shake, shake, shake until it inflates!

IMG_4835Egg: Wrap the egg well so that it does not break when it falls from a high elevation.

IMG_4840Rubik's Cube: This was the most mind boggling event. We all waited for the first one to finish and hit the bell. Cherry Mae (in the green shirt) solved the cube in 48 seconds!

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The Underground River

   This week, my Level A2 students finished the topic about the natural sceneries of the Philippines. One of the natural sceneries talked about really amazed everyone: the Underground River in Palawan. During the discussion the students asked many great questions.IMG_4817

     Here are some of them:
1.) Is it scary inside?
2.) Are there lights around?
3.) What animals can be found inside?
4.) What if an earthquake happens, will the cave collapse?
5.) Is there a ghost inside?
6.) How did the water enter the cave?
7.) Can we go inside the cave just by swimming?
8.) How many bats are there in the cave?
9.) If the boat we are riding in turns upside down, what will happen?
10.) Is it okay to make noise inside the cave?

     After the questions were answered, I asked them to raise their hand if they wanted to visit the underground river soon. Out of five, four raised their hands and one was undecided. The other students tried to convince her to raise her hand but she didn't. I then asked her why. This was her reply: I'm scared to go in the river!

IMG_4543     The class was then given a culminating activity which was to draw a picture of an underground river. At first I thought the students would find it hard to do but I was wrong. All of them couldn't wait to start drawing their picture!IMG_4545

Green CSC

Mar. 21, 2019By: Paul Healy

DSC06103-62b4dCheck out the changing look of CSC. Solar panels have been installed on the roofs of the Cherne and Eicher Homes and at the school. This will save us thousands of dollars in electric bills every month. It has changed the look of the houses, especilly the Cherne Home. But the savings will  soften the blow a little.  At CSC we want to be good stewards of the money that God has entrusted to us and that comes from friends like you. Money saved here will be available for food, medicine and the education of our children.  

Tools!

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It is really nice to dream about something big. It gives you strength to achieve your desired goals in life. One goal our preschoolers have is to live in a loving home surrounded by their family. But, if you look closely at a home, it takes a lot of work to build, just like our dreams.

20190108_083117During a recent art class in preschool, we introduced the students to different tools we use to build things. It started from reading a story (which they really loved!) to a coloring activity and our last activity for them was to have a first-hand experience on how to use the different tools. We went to the shelter and, through the help of Uncle Cio, the students were able to saw, hammer, and measure. We let our students try each tool one at a time to avoid chaos and to ensure safety. Clearly, their eagerness overflowed as they patiently waited for their turn and the whole activity was filled with so much fun!

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As teachers, our ultimate goal is to help our students build a strong foundation so they can achieve their dreams and aspirations in life. At Cebu Children of Hope School we have a huge supportive team around the world who support the ministry so us teachers can help our students dream dreams of what their lives could look like. We, together, are all building a fantastic future for these kids!

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