Staff Blog

Sore eyes has hit CSC!  As this blog is being written, seven babies and toddlers and one school age child have sore eyes.  Sore eyes is very common in the Philippines. In the US, it is called pink eye. It affects all ages and usually spreads from one eye to the other very quickly.  One’s eyes become swollen, turn pink, and are very itchy and painful. It can be miserable for anyone who has it, especially the babies and toddlers. Please pray for all the kids who currently have sore eyes and that it would not spread to others throughout the houses.

Many people who are familiar with CSC are familiar with Julieto. He hasn’t been around much the past several months because he’s been working as a baker. It was pretty exciting news when he got his job. You maybe read about it on facebook or heard about it from someone else connected with CSC.

I’ve been looking through old blog posts and seeing Julieto the other day made me think about some of the posts I read. He’s had quite a journey through his time at CSC and it’s been great to get to know him a little bit. You should get to know him better and read these two old posts!

Graduation Miracles

Baking with Jules

As I mentioned earlier he finally got that job as a baker. It’s common for many jobs in the Philippines for people to be employed on short contracts, usually six months or so. Julieto enjoyed his job and recently fulfilled his contract but he’s glad to have a little break. He was working very hard, often picking up overtime shifts and most of us rarely saw him.

That was last week and he’s already looking for more work. Please pray for Julieto and that God will lead him as he looks for the next thing!

The past week was a little intense for our inspirational speaker.  If you remember, last year Jacob had his launching as an inspirational speaker at Cebu Children of Hope School.  He then spoke at one of the local colleges.  After a long rest of not giving speeches, Jacob got booked at two different schools last week; Baptist Theological College (BTC) and Southwestern University’s (SWU) Physical and Occupational Therapy Department.

The 3^rd and 4^th year students and teachers of BTC lingered around after the short program.  They told Jacob how blessed they were hearing his testimony.  It was an awesome experience not only for Jacob but for Ginda, Joemar and Wilmar who attended the program as well.

Wilmar was asked to give a sample of his singing voice. Without any hesitation, he stood up, grabbed the microphone and sang “One Way.” It was amazing to see him singing with so much confidence.  Ginda and Joemar, on the other hand, were surrounded by students and teachers talking and asking them questions.

The 4^th and 5^th year students at SWU also had a lot of good questions to ask.  They were interested to know what kind of physical therapy exercises Jacob receives.  Some were also interested to hear more about CSC itself.  Others recognized Joemar as a server at a fast food chain.  Wilmar graciously sang “Let It Go” from the movie Frozen.

The therapy department at CSC continues to do its best to pursue this endeavor—exposing our special needs kids to the community and in turn teaching the community through this effort.  Keep us in your prayers as we look for new avenues for these special needs young adults.

Friend.  Pal.  Buddy.  Comrade.  Everyone has one or maybe more.  It is a need in human life.  As the old saying goes, “No man is an island.”  One can’t go through life alone.

The recent CSC banquet’s theme was: Friends.  CSC, in its entirety, has many friends all over the world. Different connections, but connected nonetheless. CSC is standing because of its many friends supporting, loving, and praying.

Inside the four walls of CSC, friendship starts.  The kids come from different backgrounds, but it is amazing how quickly they form a bond; a bond they keep forever.  Distance is never an issue between friends.  Whether it is 10,000 miles or a couple of staircases away, they find a way to exchange a few words and be in touch in each other’s lives.

At CSC, when you get sick and if it is contagious, you are put in isolation.  Now, the word isolation seems scary because you are separated from your friends.  However, most of the kids like to be in “iso” because they get to watch movies all day long, which is the only entertaining thing you can do when you get sick.

Being sick and being in “iso” did not stop these two friends from having a little chat.  The girl on top is sick while the girl on the bottom is well.  There are no visiting hours in the infirmary, but that did not mean she could not visit her friend.  They found a way.  And to top it all, she was not scared that she might get sore eyes from the friend she was visiting.

That’s how friends are. 

The last time I was in Cebu I brought a picture with me to give one of our children, a little girl in our Duterte Home. She has lived at CSC since June, 2011 with her two brothers. They came out of extreme poverty, and have made great strides in our care.

The picture I carried was from a group that sponsors this little one as a part of our Foster Friends program. They contribute a monthly amount to provide care for her as a partner of CSC. We have families and individuals who do so through Foster Friends, and in this case, we have a Kiwanis club who gives love across the ocean.

She was in awe of the picture as I explained who this group of people were to her. I had recently spoken to the group and gave them an update on their sponsored child. What a privledge it was to pass along a picture from them and tell this little girl, "all these people care about you." Her eyes lit up and she held the picture with great care as she scanned the faces of the people who give something of themselves to love her. Here she is proudly displaying the photo with two of her friends.

Every day the children at CSC see people who love them: the auntie helping them dress, the house parent leading devotions and the teacher answering a question. There are many people acting as the hands and feet of Jesus in Cebu. And, there are people all over the world making up those hands and feet along with them. What an honor it was to witness one of our CSC kids getting a glimpse of them.