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
Sportsfest is Coming!
A week from today Cebu Children of Hope School will be having their annual Sportsfest. The kids have signed up for their events and are anxiously awaiting. They are excited to participate in track and field events. The teacher are busy preparing the ribbons and getting the equipment ready for the big event. The Kids along with the teachers are preparing a banner and cheer for each team. Everyone is excited!
Here are some photo of the teachers getting ready. Check back next Friday to see pictures of the kids in their events and to hear more about Sportsfest 2016! 
The Teacher's of CCHS are very busy making awards!
The venue is ready for the Sportsfest
Uncle Edwin is preparing the hurdles. 
| Show Comments | | | Leave a Comment | | | Category: | School News |
The "business" of CSC
CSC is in the "business" of loving kids. Of course our ministry has a much longer mission statement, and any of our business-type documents would describe what we do in a more complex manner. However, when it comes down to what CSC does, it really and truly is, plain and simple: we love our kids.
And because we love them, we want what is best for them. And what is best for them usually means leaving CSC and becoming part of their own forever family.
In the last few weeks of 2015 and in the first several days of 2016, CSC has welcomed a handful of loving adoptive families, and said goodbye to many precious children. This is the nature of our work and every goodbye is an answered prayer. Though the tears may fall as we wave at departing vehicles, we are all truly happy to witness God's handiwork.
It is such a pleasure to meet and get to know adoptive families. How they arrive to the shelter so excited and already in love with a child that they have usually only seen in pictures and read about in a few reports amazes me every time. I love when they share their stories of how God gave them this particular child or how He let them know they needed to adopt those siblings. And how understanding these families are about what their child(ren) are going through: the fears they have, the uncertainty. One family that adopted a young boy last year always spoke about how brave he was to be leaving everything he had ever known. And I am again in awe of how God works and how He brings families to CSC to take children that have been loved powerfully here so that they will be loved powerfully elsewhere.
A new year has started and I know that in this coming year there will be more kids to leave CSC, and more families to come. Business as usual. And what a blessed "business" it is!
| Show Comments | | | Leave a Comment | | | Category: | Staff Reflections |
Back to School!
After two weeks of Christmas break, the students are back to school! Freshly sharpened pencils and new units are all a part of getting back into the routine of school. In our class, we began a new reading unit: “Survival”. The students were very excited to see new books in our classroom library that were about our reading theme. When the students have free time after completing their work, they are encouraged to read books from the classroom library. As a teacher, I like to set goals for what I want to see my students achieve. In this unit, I wanted them to have the opportunity to read more chapter books. I intentionally placed more chapter books in our classroom library with the hope that they would challenge themselves. Well, after a week of being back in the classroom, several students were up to the challenge! Two students have already successfully finished one chapter book and are planning on starting a new one next week! Other students are working on finishing the books they have started. These students are bringing these books to read during snack time and are often reading interesting passages out loud to each other. The best part? They are discovering that they actually enjoy reading and finding out what kinds of stories most interest them. I would say that after a long break, we have had success in coming back to school.
| Show Comments | | | Leave a Comment |
Reflections
Children's Shelter of Cebu started with young and inexperienced, but faithful and Godly, people from MN in 1979. At that time, those five Americans shared a home with just one bathroom with three Filipinos as they began the ministry by taking care of a seven-year-old girl and a few babies. All of the adults took care of babies in their rooms or by their beds. They took turns washing dirty diapers, making bottles, and cooking food for everyone. They also made disheartening discoveries that some of the clothes they had hung out to dry were stolen from the yard by the neighbors. Learning language was challenging and sometimes humorous. One story I heard was that one of the missionary staff had mistakenly ordered mosquito in a restaurant instead of chicken because of a misspoken Cebuano word. Another story involved the use of a staff member’s shoe to retrieve his last one peso coin that had rolled into some gunk in the gutter. Otherwise, he would have had to walk home from the city all the way to Bulacao, which was five miles away. Another memory was the staff needing to talk to the employees because the ministry needed to tighten its belt when funds were low. Other organizations here in Cebu City assisted CSC with donations during that time so that the kids never missed out on a meal.
In 36 years as a ministry, CSC has gotten bigger with three homes at the shelter and a teen home, serving 85 children by the end of the year 2015. In 1979, the CSC staff relied on God and what He could do through the first few supporters of the ministry. In 2015, that same faith and reliance on God continued to be as strong as before. God continues to prove to us He is true and faithful! Once again, He has done this through the financial giving of CSC’s supporters and CSC finished the year 2015 in the black.
"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Philippians 4:4-6
"Praise the Lord, all you nations; For great is His love towards us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord." Psalm 117
| Show Comments | | | Leave a Comment | | | Category: | Staff Reflections |
It all comes down to this!
We stand with humble awe at all the people who love our children. You're amazing. At the beginning of December, we needed $530,000 to reach our 2015 income goal. When the week started it was $239,000. These numbers have been daunting to look at!
At each stage, people have stepped up to care for orphaned children. One by one, we have seen gifts come in for $25, $50, $500, even $40,000. Each gift makes a difference. What matters is people pitch in however they can...and people have! As of this blog post, with 35 hours to go, we need $73,034. It is still a big number, but with your help we can do it. Your donation, regardless of amount, will make an impact.
Thank you for considering the Children's Shelter of Cebu as a place you would give to.
You might be wondering, "what exactly does CSC do?" Many things, but it all boils down to just five words. We have a simple motto: Every child deserves a family.
We are home to children who have lost their parents. They come to us from hospitals, from government officials who have found them in need and from caregivers dropping them off at our door. They are hurting, and almost always ill--sometimes gravely. We have four homes in Cebu City, Philippines, where today 89 children are being given loving care. Our goal is to love them as much like a family would as possible. Here are some of the ways we do that:
- As nurses. We have our own infirmary and a small medical team who work with 26 doctors in Cebu (many of whom donate their services). Our kids have a lot of needs in this area and we meet them.
- As teachers. We have our own school, and it is top notch. We have low student-teacher ratios and a wonderful faculty who love the students they teach.
- As advocates. We seek adoption for our children through various government systems. CSC children have been placed for adoption in 15 countries.
- As caregivers. Our houseparents love our children like family. The childcare staff are there for them consistently. We understand the importance of relational bonds and foster them.
- As counselors. We have two full-time counselors on staff to guide the children towards healing.
- As stewards. We have received Charity Navigator's highest rating, 4 stars, for the fourth consecutive year. Just 9% of nonprofits can say the same.
CSC is a Christian, interdenominational ministry. We serve children regardless of their faith standing, but the priority of our care is to show them the love of God. The truth of God and his love for children is at the heart of who we are, and has been since we started in 1979.
We would be honored if you would join us in this important work. If you decide to give, know we are deeply grateful. Thank you!
| Show Comments | | | Leave a Comment | | | Category: | General News |
