Staff Blog
This is crunch time at CSC. Year-end giving, especially in December, is a huge part of CSC's income for the year, so we really rely on the generosity of our supporters at this time. We always come down to the last few days of the year needing a bunch of money! Is it stressful? Well, no, at least not a lot for me. I have witnessed so many years of God providing through his people, our supporters, that I don't really get stressed. Concerned and hopeful, yes. Prayerful, yes. But I can honestly say that I don't spend too much time worrying.
The challenge for me is to remember to be thankful while being confident and expectant. I don't want to take God's goodness to CSC for granted. Ever. We have been trying to be more intentional lately about teaching thankfulness to our CSC children. They receive so many blessings every day in terms of food, clothing, medical care, education, recreation, counseling, and fun activities. Lots of people work very hard to provide all of this for them. They know that they will receive nice gifts at Christmas and on their birthdays. If someone should skin their knee a loving nurse will attend to it. Social workers are preparing their legal documents to prepare them for adoption. House parents are available for emotional and spiritual support. Staff members have time to encourage them and show their love in practical ways. More than a hundred people are working for them every day, not to mention all of our supporters! We want them to be thankful for what they have. Part of this entails remembering where they came from. All of our kids grew up in poverty, and most experienced malnutrition, sickness and despair. We want them to appreciate what they have been given.
We have a program called 
Junel's Box that helps with this. Named after a former resident who had a huge heart for others, this program allows the CSC children to give money from their allowances to help a poor family that is selected by our social worker team. We buy food, building materials and household items and deliver them to the family just before Christmas. It is a time for the kids to "give back" and remember that there are people who are hurting and need a helping hand. We also tell our children regularly about all of you dear people who give generously to help us take care of them. I want them to know that the money that CSC has doesn't come from me or the wealth of the staff. It comes from cool people, most of them who are of modest means, who love them. These reminders are important to our kids. Every night at bedtime the children pray, thanking God for all of you who bless their lives.
Thanks to our friends for year-end gifts and prayers and for all that you do throughout the year to make life better for these awesome kids.
An early morning hike with Uncle Marv and Auntie Marlys
7:00 am is early for some folks on a Saturday morning, but for the CSC kids its a great time for a morning hike. Recently Auntie Marlys invited a visitor, Marv Hadenfeldt, to join her and 20 of the kids for a hike up the mountain to see the sights and enjoy the beauty of nature. Marv is a regular visitor to CSC and loves to hang out with the gang. And the feeling is mutual.
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Science Fun!
Friction, motion, and static electricity are just a few of the topics we've been learning about lately in science! It is EXTREMELY difficult to teach about static electricity in Cebu's very humid climate. There are no flannel sheets to show off sparks, rubbing your feet on the carpet doesn't do anything, and even rubbing balloons in your hair doesn't always produce the desired effect. But along with the help of the air conditioned library, we have been attempting to see or feel a little bit of static electricity. The kids were extremely excited on Friday when the balloons finally "worked".
Friction and motion are easier topics to tackle! After discussing them for a week, we had some fun with the "tablecloth" pull. We started simple with just a small piece of paper and a marker. Soon we moved up to using a large piece of paper and several dishes, bowls of water, pencil boxes, and other things. The kids loved it, but I had to make sure to tell them NOT to try it at home!!
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Satisfaction
Ruth, Anthony, Andrew, and I traveled to the West Coast this past week to visit family and friends, giving us the opportunity to spend the afternoon with several "kids" who were adopted from CSC 15-20 years ago. We were hosted by Neil and Nelia (Healy) Collins for a delicious lunch of Filipino fare.
Joining us from the greater Washington and Oregon area were Jennifer, Nolly, and Aida, along with their families and friends. It was a great joy to be "cared for" by these wonderful "kids" whom we ourselves had cared for so many years ago. We all got to wow over each other's families and share stories from the past. Often the discussions drifted to the topic of how tall some at the gathering had grown and how vertically challenged others had remained. Puzzling.
But an even greater joy was to see how these now young adults have grown in their personal lives, established loving marriages, had beautiful children of their own, and gone on to find success in life despite some challenges along the way.
It gave Ruth and me a great deal of satisfaction to see a few of the successes of CSC's ministry and the ongoing benefits children are having from adoption. God has continued to bless so many who received the gift of a new family so many years ago!
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Elesio and the Workshop
I'd like to introduce you to Elesio Ewayan, or as he's known as around here, Sho.
Sho has worked at CSC for 13 years.
Sho is one of the reasons why, as a visitor recently told me; "the Children's Shelter of Cebu has the best kept facilities in all of Cebu."
If you're looking for Sho the first place to check is the workshop. The kids know that this is a place they can't play, but they will often times stand at the invisible fence in front of the shop doors as Sho works to patch the sole of a shoe, repair a desk drawer, or mix a batch of paint.
The workshop isn't state of the art, but it's amazing what he can accomplish with a basic set of tools.
When CSC's president Matt Buley came to Cebu earlier this year he met with the staff and handed out bracelets. The braclets had CSC's logo on them and the phrase "These hands change lives." As I watched Sho work I looked down and saw that he was wearing his bracelet.
What an incredible example of someone using their hands to change lives.
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Student Interviews
The Group 4 kids recently finished a video interview project for one of their afternoon classes. Everything about this was done by the students! The questions, the recording, and the video production. I hope you enjoy getting to know three of our very smart, creative kids in this video! :)
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