Staff Blog
We hear quite a bit about the front liners who are among the heroes of the pandemic. They care for people who are sick with the virus, do testing and put themselves at risk for the sake of the public. They will get the first round of the vaccine and that's how it should be. It seems to me that there are some other heroes who have come through for us during the past year. I'm thinking of companies like Amazon who have delivered millions of packages during the pandemic, allowing people to stay home and still get the things they need. Just in household alone we have bought masks, medical equipment, medicine, software, hardware, books, Christmas decorations, kitchenwares and tools on-line. These companies have helped slow the spread of the virus buy allowing people to stay home and avoid contact at stores.
In Cebu we also have different kinds of heroes who have made major contributions towards keeping our children well. First there are the CSC front liners, the child care workers, social workers, teachers and house parents who have been locked in at CSC for nine months. They have shown amazing perseverance, personal sacrifice and dedication to the kids. We owe them a big debt of gratitude and we will always remember their contributions to CSC during our most difficult days.
Next in line for appreciation are our leaders, who have been working hard in difficult situations to insure that food, medicine and personpower are there for the children. You wouldn't believe the planning, foresight and flexibility needed and the number of Zoom meetings required to keep things running smoothly.
But there are other, more unsung heroes, people whose names we don't even know but who have helped, in their own ways, to keep our kids healthy and happy. I'm thinking of the drivers and delivery people who have brought food and medicine up to CSC throughout this pandemic. Some bring sacks of rice, fish, dry goods, meat and milk from our various suppliers around Cebu City. And our CSC drivers had to bring children to the hospital emergency room late at night or get workers home or to work, dealing with changing government policies on quarantine passes, and unpredictable road closings and police checkpoints.
Through this whole time our new Field Director, Roberto Atienza, has been at the helm, navagating CSC's ship through the choppy waters of this time of crisis, monitoring government policies, leading twice weekly staff meetings, seeing that lines of communication are open and functioning well, helping keep morale as high as possible, attending to the spiritual needs of the CSC community and keeping in touch with our stateside leaders.
The contributions of all these people have resulted in our kids never missing a meal, having all the medicine and medical care they needed and being able to continue with their schooling. But most of all, these efforts have helped keep our kids safe. Not a single case of covid has touched our kids or workers! Thank you Lord, and all the people who have given their time, talent and sweat for the sake of these precious kids.
UFO's and Graduates
It is summer time at CSC. That means it is hot, really hot, too hot. But, the heat does not seem to deter the boys from making and flying kites, at any given moment there are numerous kite activities going on; making them, attempting to fly them, flying them, untangling the ones that get tangled together, trying to get them out of the trees and making sure we all see how high their kite is flying! There has to be some genetic code in all red blooded Filipino boys....April and May are for kites.
Today was GRADUATION day for five of our Preschool kids and three graduating from elementary into High School. It was a fun day for the Graduates!
We are now legally on our summer break - pray for a fun and safe time for each of our kids, and for our sanity! Having almost 90 kids on vacation in one place....oh my.
Enjoy the photos...
Pray along with us for comfort, healing and peace for our friends and loved ones in Boston.
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Molding minds
Yesterday at Children of Hope School, we proudly celebrated the graduation of three teenagers, who will go on to high school next year, and five pre-schoolers who will advance to pre-K. It was a special day for sure. The three oldest graduates have faced a lot challenges and have accomplished much in their years at our school. One of the graduates gave a speech. I thought he might discuss all of the academic challenges he had faced. While he mentioned those briefly, the larger message he shared was that of gratitude. He was thankful for his teachers and all of the time they had invested in him. He was thankful to the staff for their encouragement. He was thankful to his house parents for their guidance and leadership. He was appreciative of the support from the Aunties and Uncles in his life. And he was even thankful for challenges as he was so proud of what he had learned from them.
Waiting in anticipation...
The proud graduates!
I was impressed with his words and touched by his message. CSC is often described as a place of refuge for the kids that come here. Many have left violent homes, chaotic living situations or have had no home to speak of. We are proud to be able to offer our kids the basic things: food, shelter, clothing, a safe place to rest their head. But we are blessed to be able to give our kids even more. We have a beautiful school and a talented body of teachers who are willing to meet the individual needs of our kids. Our teachers go the extra mile every day and our kids benefit greatly from their tireless effort.
Our talented teachers!
Praise the Lord for how he has blessed CSC! Thanks be to God for how He brought each of these teachers to our school---for we are surely better for it! :)
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Kite Flying Season!
Continuing on with the theme of kites! Recently, I spent an afternoon hanging out with the kids at the shelter. Almost immediately, Jhaycob ran up to me with a tangled-up pile of string. He wanted me to untangle it so he could use it to fly his kite. I began looking around the yard and it was incredible how many kids were playing with kites. Some were making them, and others were busy untangling strings. Some of the kids were the "holders" and others were the "runners". Toddlers dragged plastic bags across the yard, and the older kids and houseparents had huge, fancy kites flying high in the sky! Some of the kites even had writing on them: "Fly CSC", "Cherne WOW", and "WOW CSC"! Enjoy a video of some of the different activities that were going on that day!
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Last Day of Preschool!
Everybody gets to join in on the kite fun at CSC. Friday was the preschooler's last full day of school. Uncle Marcel came into their class and taught them all how to make kites! They were so proud to each have on of their own! Enjoy the pictures of the kids making and attempting to fly their kites!
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Prayers
Whenever we're on duty, we help with putting the kids to bed. One of the things I love about putting the kids to bed is sharing bedtime prayers with them. The children are so surrounded by strong people of faith here at CSC - their house parents, staff, teachers, aunties, and counselors. Their prayers reflect what they've seen and heard modeled for them. They are thoughtful, sincere, and even eloquent.
Last night when we were on duty, there were prayers for lots of different things. Here are a few of my favorites:
- giving thanks for CSC
- giving thanks for the aunties and house parents
- giving thanks for hot dogs
- asking for a mommy and daddy
- asking for strength and wisdom on upcoming on final tests
- asking for healing for kids in "iso"
And the most touching prayer of all was a heartfelt request from one of the 12-year old girls in the house. She asked God to please comfort a family whose oldest sibling had recently turned 18 and could no longer be adopted. This was particularly moving to me because those siblings that she was praying for don't even live in her house at CSC. In that moment I realized what a supportive place CSC is - that all the kids and house parents and staff are praying across houses, across siblings, across ages, for God's presence in each of their lives. What a cool thing to be a part of.
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