Staff Blog
How can people be so heartless?
How can people be so cruel?
Easy to be hard, easy to be cold
How can people have no feelings?
How can they ignore their friends?
Easy to be proud, easy to say no.
Songwriters: Ragni, Gerome / Rado, James / Mac Dermot, Galt
The words of this song from the late 60s were brought to mind recently when a 12 year-old boy was referred to us. His story reveals the heartlessness and cruelty of people, and the ways that some children have to suffer at their hands. We'll call this boy Roberto and his younger brother, Michael.
Roberto and Michael were brought to an orphanage in Cebu City when they were babies. The orphanage, which was connected to a Protestant church, was not a good place. When the boys were older they were abused. Punishment was severe, sometimes cruel. The lady who was in charge of the place was the one dealing out the beatings. Luckily, the place was closed down and the children were parceled out to other child caring institutions. CSC got three girls from that place, but we did not have room for boys at the time, so Roberto and his brother, then nine and 10, went to live at a home for children on a neighboring island. Shortly after there arrival there, one of the boys threatened Roberto. (The home catered to older kids, and their residents included some who had lived on the streets and were used to fighting and intimidation.) On the second night they were there, Roberto decided to run away. Michael was afraid to go out into the dark night, but Roberto was able to find a young boy, just five years old, to go with him. The gate was always left open so they had no trouble getting away.
Roberto only knew one place to go, back to the church where he had lived. He didn't know that it was 18 miles from where they were starting out. And they had to cross a long bridge that led to Cebu island. But he knew he wanted to leave that place, so off they went into the night.
It took two days and nights to get to the church. They slept
along the road, wherever they could find a spot that looked safe. On the second
morning Roberto woke up and discovered that his little companion was gone.
Without a trace. All he could do was keep going. When he finally got to the
church he found that it was closed up. The gate was locked. One of the former
orphanage workers said that he could be their family's houseboy, but that didn't
last for long. One day that family packed up and left, and Roberto had no place
to go.
Out of desperation, he found a big piece of cardboard which
became his bed for the 
next months. He slept just outside the locked gate of
the former church/orphanage. He would look for food wherever
he could find it, in garbage cans or occasional handouts from neighbors. Other
times he would steal food to feed his hungry stomach, which enraged people in
the community. He was often beaten by neighborhood boys. One family took pity
on him and would stop the boys from beating him, and would give him food. Life
was hard for Roberto. No place to live. Nobody to take him in. He missed his
brother and worried about the boy who had disappeared along the way. How can
people be so heartless? How can they be so cruel?
One of the compassionate neighbors knew about CSC and informed us about the situation of Roberto. We get lots of referrals and can not respond immediately to all of them. Eventually our social worker and counselor went to visit Roberto and hear his story. They were overwhelmed by the things that had happened to him. In the next few days we made contact with the place where Michael was staying and arranged a meeting with their social worker. Two of our social workers, Chris and our new Social Worker Director, Klaris, and our counselor, Eldie, made the trip to the neighboring island to discuss the boys' case. Michael was relieved to hear that Roberto was okay. He hadn't heard anything about him for a year and a half. Both boys wanted to be reunited and it was determined that this should happen the next day at CSC.
The reunion was so sweet for the boys. They were more than a
little amazed at the facilities of CSC and the course of events that had
brought them back together. After more counseling and some medical
tests, and a talk with a representative of the place where Michael was living,
our staff made the decision to admit Michael and Roberto. The boys would no
longer be separated and Roberto's days of homelessness would end. It was an
exciting day for all of us. They boys needed to go back to their respective
places, get the few things they owned, and say goodbye before becoming official
CSC kids. But first we brought them to Jollibee, a fast food restaurant near
CSC. It was so much fun to watch the boys eat and laugh. It must have seemed a
little surreal to them to be together at that place with a group of adults who
were concerned about them and wanted them to be together in a nice and safe place.
Roberto was not able to finish his chicken and we were surprised when he asked
if he could have a bag for "take-home."
When they got to the place where Roberto had been staying, he ran to one of the houses near the church, the place where one of the people who had protected him from the cruel boys lived. This was the first person who had shown concern for him, maybe in his whole life. Roberto wanted to give this guy the leftover chicken from Jollibee! It was one of the most touching things that we have known about in our many years of working with kids. A few acts of kindness had made a huge difference in Roberto's life and he wanted to say "thank you" in the only way he knew how.
Later that day the boys were
officially admitted, and spent the night in the infirmary while 
we waited for
their lab results. The next morning they moved into the Cherne Home, where
house parents Tarex and Pureza and the children welcomed them. It was the
biggest day in their lives, so far. And there are many big days ahead. They
will be making a lot of new friends and will soon be enrolled in our Children
of Hope School. They won't be apart. They won't be hungry. If they are sick
they will be provided with the best medical care available in the Philippines.
If they are sad they'll be comforted. And they will get the chance to learn
about a loving Heavenly Father and a friend and Savior who will never abandon
them.
Yes, its easy to be heartless. Easy to be cruel. But its also easy to be kind. Easy to be a needed friend. Kids need a friend. Thanks to all who make it possible for us to say yes to kids like these two and the many others who need the love and care of our Shelter.
Time in Manila
I spent a few days last week in Manila hanging out with some pretty neat kiddos. We spent most of our trip waiting for the next thing to happen. The primary reason was to process some of their paperwork, but for them it was the trip they could never imagine.
The adventure started on a Sunday afternoon as three kids, another social worker, a few houseparents and I left from CSC and journeyed to the airport. We made it through security and check-in just fine, found some seats and proceeded to wait…and wait…and wait some more as our flight was delayed.
I felt really bad for the kiddos as they expressed a great deal of eagerness and enthusiasm to fly on an airplane for the first time, and instead they were met with some sort of cruel form of delay gratification. However, once we were on board and headed up, I was met with some smiles, nervous glances and many questions.
It was really fun to be a part of this journey with them, even though it was a bit challenging to answer some of their questions. We talked about when they needed to wear their seat belts, what causes the plane to shake in the air, how the pilot knew where to go, what landing on the ground would feel like, and many more things. The added challenge to this was that their primary language is Cebuano…mine…not so much. So I had to be a little creative with my answers and think of ways to describe things in basic English for them to understand. I would say I mainly succeeded with this, but felt extremely grateful when on the airplane ride home, a nice Cebuano-speaking woman helped me out.
Anyway, it was pretty memorable to go through this really new thing with this sibling group and to see the airplane ride and the hotel stay through their eyes. It was humbling to think about the privilege I’ve had to travel many places and to not even need to think twice about turbulence, runways, hotel beds, taxi rides or passports. Coming from a life of poverty really doesn’t allow one to think about what a hotel would be like. The kids’ minds were blown when they saw 2 televisions in the one hotel room and all of the pillows on one bed. They really were living the life of luxury. And I think they enjoyed the airplane ride home a little bit more than the ride to Manila as they knew more of what to expect, and as that flight back was in the daylight where they could see the city, and the water surrounding the various islands. We all (yes, I left with 3 children and returned with the same number!) were a bit exhausted on the drive back to CSC, but they have enjoyed telling their friends about the journey and the many things they saw. And I returned grateful for having the opportunity to venture with them…and to have another adult with me!
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Planning, planning
I have been involved in a complete whirlwind of activity this week! For one thing, this week has been very busy because it is the first normal week we have had since the Christmas holidays. I have been working hard on catching up on my reports, and getting back into toddler program (we took a break for the holidays). So far it has all been going well! My reports are all caught up and toddler program has been a blast! It has been fun because we have a lot of younger toddlers moving up into the program. Our group moved from 9 toddlers to about 13 or 14! Needless to say, it has been a bit of a different dynamic!
Another reason I have been busy is that I have been working hard on planning for my music recital. On February 2 at 6pm I will be having a music recital for my 8 voice and piano students. I have been planning everything from program order, to creating a program, creating invites, gathering supplies, preparing the kids, informing staff, houseparents and teachers and much much more! I have pretty much completed the program, and this is what my plans are thus far. The program will exist in two parts. The first half of the program will start with 6 Broadway vocal selections followed by a piano interlude. We will then have a brief intermission so that the kids have the chance to change costumes, and then the second half of the program will include Disney and movie classics.
One thing I have been working on gathering this week is costumes. This has been really fun for me, considering my background in music and theater. Each of the songs is sung by a different character, which means that some children have up to three different costumes! I am proud to say that I have found most of the costumes already, and am now just working on the finishing touches. As you can tell from my writing, I am super excited for this event, and so are the kids! It has been so much fun to see them grow in their musical and theatrical abilities, and to watch some of them come out of their shells as they gain confidence through music.
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We Did It!
Well… O.K. Let’s give credit where credit is due.
God did it.
We went into our final days of 2014 needing $50,000 more in donations. That’s a huge number! I have to admit I was doubtful we would meet budget. However, the gifts that arrived on the last few days of 2014 totaled $54,000, just over the amount we needed!
As we look to 2015, we think about all of the CSC kids who will leave us to join their adoptive families and all the children who will come to us for care. We look forward to continuing to provide food, shelter, medicine, education and love to the children in need in the Philippines. We are so thankful for the amazing supporters that keep this work going. You make such a difference!
Happy New Year!
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This is Christmas!
Christmas is a pretty big deal in the Philippines, yes, you might argue that it is a big deal to many other places as well, but it is only in this country where you start hearing Christmas music in September!! :)
Similarly, Christmas at CSC is a big deal. There are many events and traditions held. It is an important value at CSC that this very significant holiday is celebrated well and that it's true meaning is highlighted, amongst the glitz and glamour of the presents and beautifully lighted Christmas trees.
Of course there is quite a bit of planning that happens even before December, but the break-neck pace of non-stop Christmas parties, dinners, programs, and other such events begins around the middle of the month.
Below you will see pictures taken during the hair/make-up/all other kind of prep done before Cebu Children of Hope School's annual Christmas program. This year, the main feature was a play called Hotel Bethlehem, a modern spin put on the Christmas story. It was a huge success! The children put their hearts into it. And the countless hours invested by the teachers (rehearsing lines, making the set, working on the sound equipment and many other tasks) could be seen in that night's polished production!
A beloved tradition at CSC is the annual Progressive Dinner. The children travel to the homes of the missionary staff to enjoy some food and to hear and see different parts of the Christmas story acted out. After the groups have made it to each home and are quite busog (full) they head back home and the missionary staff follow and everyone enjoys eating cinnamon rolls in the shape of a Christmas tree! It is a great night of fun and food, but the true meaning of Christmas---Jesus' birth is shared in a memorable way as well!
Another really special event during this time of year is called Junel's Box. It is a great opportunity for our kids, who once had nothing, to give to others. Every year, our social workers find a family in the community in need of assistance. We share information about this family to our kids and give them the opportunity to give money from their bank (they receive an allowance each week for completing their chores). That money is then used to buy the things the family needs, such as food, house needs, building equipment, clothes, etc. And their generosity astounds---it happens frequently that a child will give all of the money in their bank, without hesitation. Below you will see pictures from the day we delivered all of those goods. The family was so grateful and our kids were able to help others, to give to others, when so many of them had once been on the other side of need.
People that know about CSC often want to bless our kids around the holidays and this year was no different! Marriott Hotel contacted CSC to say that they wanted to throw a Christmas party for our 7-10 year olds. We were so excited! Marriott came and picked up 28 of our kids and a handful of our adults and treated them to an afternoon of storytelling, Christmas cookie decorating (and eating!), balloon popping, snacks, present opening and eating (I say it so many times because it was a frequent activity!)
And on Christmas Eve night, Santa came to the Philippines! There are many new children at CSC at this time and for them, this was the first Christmas experience they had ever had. Several were a bit wary of Santa, but with gift in hand he seemed to be an okay guy. It was such a blessing to see the ecstatic smiles of those getting their first Christmas gift---but for those not new to CSC---well, they were still extremely excited as well. A Christmas like this is only made possible by those of you who give, so I just want to say a special thank you for your generosity!
Christmas day is not complete at CSC without the formal Christmas dinner. The missionary staff, the house parents and all of the children enjoy a nice meal outside together! The food is good, the tables are decorated beautifully, the children get all dressed up and the meal is finished with Christmas cookies for dessert! This year, after the meal, everyone went to the school to participate in a unique telling of the Christmas story, interspersed with the singing of hymns. After that came a time of prayer. As you will see in the pictures, not all of the little ones made it through the whole event!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all! CSC has been blessed this year and we trust that God will continue to provide for this ministry and these children. Thank you for reading about the many Christmas traditions at CSC. What is your favorite Christmas tradition in your family?
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Caperlaler
Nothing brings a boy more joy than playing with his very own "caperlaler"---i.e. caterpillar! :)
Some of his playmates were a bit hesitant to go near to it at first, for fear that it would bite!
Once she held it and learned it was docile, it was immediately cute and she wanted to hold it again and again! Oh, and pose for pictures again and again!
He is now holding a "pling mantus"--praying mantis! He is a lover of the critters! :)
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