Before Typhoon Rai (called Odette in the Philippines) made its landfall in Cebu, City, preparations such as cutting the big branches of the trees and safely piling them in the front yard were already made to minimize risks and hazards in the facility. The residents and houseparents prepared the plastic drums to store water, secured the appliances and furniture in the living room, and ensured the safety of Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home for the upcoming Typhoon.
On December 16th, 2021, Typhoon Odette made landfall in Cebu, City. The staff and residents evacuated for safety and emergency purposes as the wind rose and the typhoon became stronger. The residents felt scared and nervous, as it was the strongest typhoon they have experienced so far. Nonetheless, everyone was calmly praying and reminding one another of the presence and goodness of God despite the calamity. By 11:00 PM, the typhoon had already slightly weakened.
Typhoon Odette left a lot of places devastated with broken homes, downed trees, and loss of electricity, signal, and water supply for days. Fortunately, Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home had a generator that provided the ability to pump water and electricity for light and charging. Some of the trees in Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home also tumbled down, and the debris, iron sheets, and woods were scattered inside the facility. There are also minimal damages in the ceiling of the living room, the roof in the washroom, and broken flower pots. The door separating the facility and CSC Office was also destroyed by the typhoon. The Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home residents took 3-4 days to clean and clear the storm debris. No staff or resident was hurt or injured during the typhoon.
The Typhoon also caused stress and anxiety to the Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home houseparents and residents, especially worrying about the safety and security of their families, relatives, and friends. Consequently, Stress Debriefing Activity was conducted for Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home residents to reduce their stress and help them recover from the overwhelming situation. Through this activity, they recognized their feelings, worries, and stress from the typhoon. The residents also shared their coping mechanisms when dealing with difficult situations. Some of the coping strategies mentioned were reading the Bible, making arts and fictional stories, meditation, watching television, listening to radio/ music, cleaning, planting, and more. Furthermore, the activity ended with breathing exercises to calm and relax their body and mind. Currently, the Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home and the residents are now back to their normal daily activities.
It seems that there is just one crisis after another and we have heard of the desires of the residents to be finally free or "unstuck". In the midst of recovery from the Typhoon and Covid-19 pandemic, the Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home Program continues to look forward to helping its residents take steps to build their future.
Please pray with us as we think of strategies that are safe, yet relevant and meet the needs of the residents who desire to look forward to the day that they can be reintegrated back into the community.
The front yard of Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home facility, during the onslaught of Typhoon Odette
Residents help clear the tree branches and other storm debris in the front yard and parking area.
Resident helped remove the branches of the tree on the facility's roof.
Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home Living Area after Typhoon Odette
The current condition of the washroom after Typhoon Odette.
Stress Debriefing Activity to Teen/Young Adult Transitional Home residents on December 21, 2021.
40 Years of Fun
CSC will be celebrating 40 years of ministry on June 28 and 29 here in Cebu City. Plan to be with us for this exciting and meaningful look at how this ministry has grown and thrived since our inception in 1979. We will be celebrating the goodness of God and the contributions of the many people who have given of themselves to make many good things happen here. Check out our videos that give a taste of the celebration.
Video Trailer 40 Years of Performances
40 Years of Great Kids 40 Years of Twins
40 Years of Adoptions 40 Years of Fun
Math and Science Day at CCHS
What an exciting event last Friday! CCHS hosted our annual Math and Science Day where students individually competed to show their skill and knowledge as well as worked together in small teams. CCHS students had a chance to participate in the following events: Math-Science Scholastic Bowl, Math-Science Dance contest, Games, Science Experiments, and Awarding.
CCHS is very grateful to the teachers who made this activity fun for our students, to the students who gave their best effort in all of the activities, to our judges on the dance contest, and our visitors. We give God the glory and honor for a successful event.
Here are some pictures showing this great event!
Math-Science Dance Contest
Math Science Scholastic Bowl – It was a great opportunity for our students to showcase what they have learned in the classroom. The students answered questions from easy to challenging.
Preschool Counting Activity – Match that Number
Go Preschoolers!
Level A Measuring Activity - Jumping Frog
Keep that frog jumping!
Level B Gravity - Cotton Blowing
Blow more! Keep blowing! Don't let it drop!
Level C Balancing – Bicycle Racing
The ultimate winner of this event was the contestant who had the longest time consumed to reach the finish line.
Volcano: Watch carefully for the volcano's eruption! Don't blink your eyes on this one.
Balloon: Shake, shake, shake until it inflates!
Egg: Wrap the egg well so that it does not break when it falls from a high elevation.
Rubik's Cube: This was the most mind boggling event. We all waited for the first one to finish and hit the bell. Cherry Mae (in the green shirt) solved the cube in 48 seconds!
The Underground River
This week, my Level A2 students finished the topic about the natural sceneries of the Philippines. One of the natural sceneries talked about really amazed everyone: the Underground River in Palawan. During the discussion the students asked many great questions.
Here are some of them:
1.) Is it scary inside?
2.) Are there lights around?
3.) What animals can be found inside?
4.) What if an earthquake happens, will the cave collapse?
5.) Is there a ghost inside?
6.) How did the water enter the cave?
7.) Can we go inside the cave just by swimming?
8.) How many bats are there in the cave?
9.) If the boat we are riding in turns upside down, what will happen?
10.) Is it okay to make noise inside the cave?
After the questions were answered, I asked them to raise their hand if they wanted to visit the underground river soon. Out of five, four raised their hands and one was undecided. The other students tried to convince her to raise her hand but she didn't. I then asked her why. This was her reply: I'm scared to go in the river!
The class was then given a culminating activity which was to draw a picture of an underground river. At first I thought the students would find it hard to do but I was wrong. All of them couldn't wait to start drawing their picture!
Green CSC
Check out the changing look of CSC. Solar panels have been installed on the roofs of the Cherne and Eicher Homes and at the school. This will save us thousands of dollars in electric bills every month. It has changed the look of the houses, especilly the Cherne Home. But the savings will soften the blow a little. At CSC we want to be good stewards of the money that God has entrusted to us and that comes from friends like you. Money saved here will be available for food, medicine and the education of our children.
Tools!
It is really nice to dream about something big. It gives you strength to achieve your desired goals in life. One goal our preschoolers have is to live in a loving home surrounded by their family. But, if you look closely at a home, it takes a lot of work to build, just like our dreams.
During a recent art class in preschool, we introduced the students to different tools we use to build things. It started from reading a story (which they really loved!) to a coloring activity and our last activity for them was to have a first-hand experience on how to use the different tools. We went to the shelter and, through the help of Uncle Cio, the students were able to saw, hammer, and measure. We let our students try each tool one at a time to avoid chaos and to ensure safety. Clearly, their eagerness overflowed as they patiently waited for their turn and the whole activity was filled with so much fun!
As teachers, our ultimate goal is to help our students build a strong foundation so they can achieve their dreams and aspirations in life. At Cebu Children of Hope School we have a huge supportive team around the world who support the ministry so us teachers can help our students dream dreams of what their lives could look like. We, together, are all building a fantastic future for these kids!