Staff Blog
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Deuteronomy 31:6
Handling the medical department during a pandemic is a huge responsibility. It was terrifying to hear Covid-19 reaching Cebu and the plan for eventual lockdown. Even with plans in our hands, we are still caught with so many surprises. The promise in Deuteronomy 31:6 has been our constant comfort, strength, and encouragement in the medical department as we face the many challenges during this pandemic. Looking back, when we were confronted about the virus people had little knowledge of, we were anxious and confused. We asked ourselves if we will be able to take care of all the children and employees entrusted to our care. The lockdown period, which we anticipated to last for a month, has been ongoing for almost a year now. We prayed that every flu-like symptom, especially in the first month, is just a simple flu, and the children and workers will just respond to medication. We made sure employees who are locked in had their maintenance meds and would be able to cope with the 12-hour shift each day. We constantly reminded our lock-out personnel to practice standard health protocol to protect themselves and their families. When we are terrified, God has reminded us to be strong and courageous. He constantly brought us back to His Word and reminded us that we are under His wings. He assured us that...
Under His wings, we are PROTECTED.
Even when we had emergency runs for lacerations for our two little kids and an admission, God restored their health and protected them from possible infection because of outside exposure. We have less sick kids during the year compared to our recorded illnesses in the past years. Our sick children also responded well to medications given by the doctors.
Under His Wings, we are PROVIDED.
We couldn’t thank God enough for using people and agencies to give and provide every need we have in the department. We were able to secure free tests for all our employees who came to serve during the lockdown. We had the means to quarantine our workers for 14 days prior to working through the CCHS facility. We were able to procure PPEs even during the scarcity of supply in the city. We were provided with doctors who were willing to answer our queries even at 2:00 AM, and we were able to avail of the home services for laboratory tests and eye check ups. We are grateful that we have workers who are committed to serve and be with the kids for 3 months and even longer. Lastly, God has given us wisdom to respond to every child’s medical or health needs and to come up with the health and safety protocol for the shelter.
Under His Wings, we are PROMISED.
Despite the uncertainties the pandemic brought, we are continually assured that His grace is more than sufficient to meet the needs of our children and workers. His promise to never leave us nor forsake us holds true in every situation we have faced. We thank God because in all of these, we are assured of His presence.
Indeed, under His wings, He covered us.
40 Years of Hope and Blessings at CSC
CSC will celebrate 40 years of ministry in Cebu City in June of 2019. Our friends and supporters are warmly invited to attend the festivities in Cebu on June 28 and 29. Everyone is invited to see historical videos, pictures and accounts from the past 40 years here on this website and on our Facebook page.
This is from Christmas 2007:
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One Great Afternoon at CCHS!
The United Nations Day celebration is one of the exciting activities at CCHS. It is always fun and informative. Children and teachers look forward to this event every year.
The day before the event, all the teachers put in great effort to prepare lots of things for the kids. Everyone stayed late that night just to make their country booth really captivating. There was the sharing of minds on what to display and how to arrange things in the booth.
The celebration started with the singing of the Philippine national anthem at the shelter followed by a parade heading to school. After the parade the children visited the the different countries: Belgium, Norway, Italy, and the Netherlands. Each group was given twenty-five minutes to stay at each booth and learn about the country. There was important information shared by the teachers, crafts to do, and food to eat.
After the country tour was the jeopardy game. Questions were asked to each group to test how well they remembered the things that were shared earlier. It was really fun to hear the students help each other think of the correct answers.
The event ended with a surprise thank you program for the teachers prepared by Teacher Eunice. It was indeed one great afternoon at CCHS!
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Habitat Turnover
Habitat Turnover 60 homes for our workers were turned over to the homeowners on October 2 7 in an emotional ceremony in Talisay, Cebu. After many delays this project was completed and our workers will soon be moving into their new homes. All of these workers will be owning a home for the first time, a dreams that would have gone unfulfilled if not for Habitat for Humanity and Paul Reasoner, who led the fundraising. 
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Love for Jacob
"Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own."
― Robert A. Heinlein
I came upon this quote a few days ago and it's quite fitting to cite it as I share about this little boy. Jaycob came to CSC a few days before his 5th birthday. He didn't seem interactive, something unusual for a new kid his age, but not surprising since we knew beforehand that he has autism. It was a challenge that the staff decided to take, but it was more challenging as the days progressed since he was often irritable and out of control. Furthermore, he was constipated and toilet training was difficult.
Moreover, we found out that Jacob has Hirschsprung's disease, a congenital disease affecting the colon. His doctor advised surgery but in order to do that we needed to decrease the size of his colon. A colostomy was the first option. With Jacob's behaviour we were convinced that a colostomy would be too traumatic for him. The doctor said there was a second option and that was to do daily rectal irrigation. Within a few days, Jacob started to interact with his caregivers. He would no longer push a playmate away. Having this procedure was indeed a relief for him. With love for this precious boy our nursing team performs this challenging procedure – everyday.
More than three months after the daily irrigation, the much awaited colon surgery was done. Now he is able to go on his own. You can see him laughing and playing around just like the other kids. Oh, what a joy it is to see him smile.
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Tarzan!
Morning meeting is a great day opener at CCHS!
Each day begins with a group gathering for ten to fifteen minutes. Children say greetings to each other, do some movements, share ideas, and listen to the teacher's message for the day. It is something that children look forward to!
One morning meeting, I raised this question to my class for sharing time, "If you were to ride in a rocket and bring someone with you, who would it be?" I gave my students one minute to think of an answer. Everyone was so quiet and serious except for one boy who kept smiling the whole time.
After the time given, each of my student happily shared their answers. Most of them wanted to bring a friend. One thought of bringing his brother. When I asked the student who was smiling, he didn't answer right away. After a few seconds he said, "Tarzan!" Everyone in class laughed out loud (which was the reaction he was hoping for). Before our morning meeting ended I asked him his reason for wanting Tarzan with him. He didn't give me an answer, just a sweet smile on his face.
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