Staff Blog
I recently came across this letter that I wrote 16 years ago. I was amazed how much it applies to our current situation. I made a few small changes to "bring it up to date," but mostly it can stand alone, reflecting the similarity of our situations both then and now.
Dear Friends,
A few years ago my brother Dave sent me an advertisement from the St. Paul paper announcing a B.J. Thomas concert coming to a casino in Minnesota. It was meant as a joke, but it brought back a flood of memories, some of them pretty grim ones.
In 1978 a small group of us were trying to raise money to start a ministry in the Philippines. We were concerned about the needs of homeless and hungry Filipino children. But none of us had experience in fund raising! We tried everything, from donut and candy sales to supermarket collection cans and marathons. Finally, after having raised almost nothing for our efforts, we got the idea to have a benefit concert. We decided to have B.J. Thomas come to the Minneapolis Auditorium, and one of our group members put up the money to book him and his group and to pay for the initial promotion of the concert.
The concert was a disaster. The auditorium held about 10,000 people;
less than 3,000 showed up. I'll never forget the feeling of standing in the lobby waiting for the crowds that never came. We couldn't pay the orchestra, the ticket office, the printer, the radio stations or the newspapers. There we were, a group of youngsters with a desire for a ministry in Cebu, surrounded by angry, threatening creditors. It seemed like our organization and our dream for an orphanage were dead. But for some reason we didn't give up. We still felt called to the Philippines and a ministry to homeless children. Somehow we managed to placate the creditors, make small but consistent payments, and pull ourselves out of the hole that the B.J. Thomas concert had put us in. Within a few short weeks we received a donation of $40,000 from a Bethel College student and we were on our way to Cebu to begin the ministry. All our plans and efforts to raise funds had netted us a pile of debts and a load of frustration. But God's miraculous work in the heart of a young man resulted in enough money to purchase property in Cebu and begin the work.
That has been a lesson we have learned so many times over the years. God reminds us that this is his ministry and that He will provide the resources. He is continually touching the hearts of people, who respond with gifts of prayer, money and time. We know that it is not just the words that we write or the quality of our visual presentations that bring in the funds. It is how God uses those efforts to bring people into the CSC family. Our efforts are inadequate, even pathetic at times. But God takes our faith and commitment (although sometimes found lacking) and makes something great out of them, in the work of the ministry in Cebu and in the promotional efforts in Minnesota.
This fact has kept us going through difficult times over the past 37 years. In recent weeks we have been discouraged over the behavior of some of our children. Some have been unruly, others disrespectful. Some have been unloading some of the emotional baggage that they brought with them to CSC. And, at the same time, we have been concerned with the financial situation of CSC as we approach the year-end needing a miracle to meet our income goals for 2016. But our discouragement is tempered by the knowledge that God directs this work, that He gives compassion and perseverance, not only on that night in 1978 when we limped home from the Minneapolis Auditorium, but every day since.
Thank you for your part in helping us with this ministry for the past 37 years. When the raindrops were falling on our heads, you were there to put up an umbrella of love and solidarity. We need your prayers and your gifts to be able to move ahead with this God-inspired ministry.
Sincerely,
Paul Healy
Cebu City
Who is the teacher?
Teacher Kristen is new to the CCHS team and we are so glad she is with us. Read on to find out what lesson she learned in her first few weeks on the job.
This is my first year ever teaching and I am so glad to be at Cebu Children of Hope School! The things they taught me in college have prepared me for the classroom, but only to a certain point. I've been struggling a bit with new routines and new students. I have tried many of the strategies I learned in college to help students focus in class but they haven't helped much.
I remember when I was a student like them. School was tiring for me as I had to sit most of the day and just listen to the teacher. Not very fun. When I started teaching this year I realized I was doing the same thing my past teachers did, things that made me, as a student, bored. In the first few weeks of school my students at CCHS taught me that I was too idealistic when it came to teaching. They taught me that I needed to cool down and start embracing their unique qualities.
Once I realized this I made some changes in my classroom. I started to really listen to them and smile more. Very quickly I saw changes in their behavior. Now I am having fun teaching them and I love how they respond in class- showing excitement to learn!
Teachers are supposed to be the ones to teach kids. At CCHS I have learned that often kids can be great teachers.
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Preschoolers and Plants
The preschoolers have been learning about the difference between living things and nonliving things. One example of a living thing, which we have been studying a lot about, is a plant. Every time I review with the children they say, "Sige ug balik" (It's a repeat). By the end of the unit the preschoolers were able to identify a plant, tree, shrub, vegetable, and grass. They also learned the parts of the plant (stem, flower, fruit, and roots) and where plants live (in desserts, farms, forests, and gardens).
One of my favorite parts of the unit was taking the preschoolers outside for a mini field trip. Our school is surrounded by many different kinds of plants. On our "living things walk" we saw many banana trees, mango trees, and even an avocado tree. The preschoolers loved searching for living things and telling us what they found.
What a joy it was teaching the preschoolers about plants. We had a fun time learning together!
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Creative Minds
Having conversations with my students helps them learn to interact with their peers and teachers. It has a great impact on their learning and ability to listen as well.
I started this year with just three kids in my classroom. Three kids who love conversation and enjoy sharing their thoughts. One afternoon, during Civics class, one of my students shared with me about one of the CSC aunties (child care workers).
Student 1: Teacher, our auntie just had a baby! (saying it excitedly)
Me: Wow, that's great! Do you know if the baby is a boy or a girl?
Student 1: I don't know.
Student 2: Teacher, I know where the baby comes out.
Me: Where?
Student 2: Here! (referring to his bottom)
Student 1: No Teacher! I heard that a baby comes out from your belly button.
Student 3: Teacher, I know where babies come out of, here in our back.
Student 1: (reacting with a shocked face) No, the baby can't come out of there!
Me: Why?
Student 1: Because our back has a lot of bones. The baby will get hurt!
I love teaching at Cebu Children of Hope School for many reasons. One of them is the creative minds these little children have. You never know what ideas they will share.
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Goodbye Up There!
Child welfare types refer to children who become very close while in care at a place like CSC as "institutional siblings." They are not siblings by blood but by affinity. Many of our children experience that kind of relationship while living at CSC. For the younger ones, they don't understand the difference. Such was the case with little Jacob. He had four very good buddies in the Eicher Home nursery. They spent lots of time together eating and playing. They looked out for each other, fought like true siblings and were known to tattle on each other on occasion.
Recently, Jacob was adopted by a great family from Europe. Shortly before Jacob's family came to get him, two of his pals got
sick and had to be in isolation. Their ailment was very contagious. We worried that Jake, too, would get sick when he was supposed to travel but, thankfully, that didn't happen. But we felt bad that Jake wouldn't be able to say goodbye to his buddies. So Marlys came up with a plan. The infirmary caregivers brought the sick children outside to the bridge and Jake was able to look up, see them and say goodbye. The overhead kids shouted "bye-bye" and it was very touching. Certainly they didn't understand that he was going far away and they might never see him again. But they knew something big was up.
There is lots of love at CSC. Jacob experienced that from house parents, child care workers, staff and the other children. Now he will be feeling the love of a family. And a new sibling that will be his forever.
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Science Can Be Funny
The official school year has begun at CSC! Teacher Lyrah, one of our dedicated and gifted teachers, shared about a science lesson she taught the other day:
Everyone was ready and calm as I stepped into the classroom. The students seemed very excited for the afternoon's discussion entitled "The Scientist and the Science tools."
I asked my students about the science tools and the brainstorming happened like this:
TEACHER: Can you still remember some of the science tools that you learned about last year in your class?
STUDENTS: Yes, Teacher Lyrah!
TEACHER: Tell me about one of those science tools.
STUDENT 1: Teacher, a hand lens.
STUDENT 2: How about a balance?
STUDENT 3: A measuring cup.
STUDENT 4: Thermometer!
TEACHER: WOW! You are really thinking about these tools. What are some others?
I called on one student who hadn't answered yet.
TEACHER: Okay, what is it?
He was very hesitant about his tool and just smiled again.
STUDENT 5: Teacher, how about a telecopter?
He was laughing so hard because he mentioned the tool in a different way. Everyone in the class was puzzled about his answer.
STUDENT 1: What do you mean a telecopter?
Student 5 laughed so hard and kept on saying the word telecopter.
STUDENT 5: (laughing) Teacher, what I mean is a telescope not a telecopter!
TEACHER: A telecopter? That word is a combination of a telescope and a helicopter. Isn't it?
He laughed and said: " Yes, teacher because we use a telescope to see the stars and other flying objects like helicopters."
Then I remembered the time last year when I showed them a telescope and we talked about how it worked.
Everyone in the classroom was amazed with his great new word invention!
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