As Content and Copy Manager at Children’s HopeChest, I have access to hundreds of stories.
There are over 120 monthly reports from our CarePoints that I sift through to find stories to share with YOU! Some of these reports break my heart, as I grieve the pain that some of the children we serve experience in their young lives. But some of these reports have given me immeasurable hope and increased my faith in God’s goodness.
Three of my favorite stories to read in monthly reports are stories of a child moving from survival to health, hope and dignity being restored to parents who are able to provide for their children, and children being able to move through their pain and have hope for the rest of their lives by processing their trauma and grief. I invite you to join us in spreading the hope that we have in Christ as you read three ways that you can make a difference before 2018!
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Starvation, dehydration, preventable diseases, and water contamination are unfortunately very normal forces that shape many children’s lives. Many children can only think of one singular problem — where to find food and water. Some children’s physical journeys with Children’s HopeChest begin from a state of immense physical suffering. I love reading reports of children who are able to excel in school and pursue their dreams because they are no longer concentrating all of their energy into simply surviving.
Life is literally brought to communities where CarePoints establish clean water stations and provide daily meals children. You can spread joy by bringing the gift of clean, drinkable water to CarePoints like Adacar!
No child should have to want for food or clean water. Making an investment allows us to bring these basics for survival to those who need it most.
$70 can provide flour and beans for a household for two months
$12000 can help bring clean water to an entire community
Many parents and guardians experience the weight of grief and depression when they cannot provide food or an education for their children. Their focus cannot stray from the present because they are constantly concerned with how they are going to feed their children.
Some of the brightest stories of hope that I read are about parents who express joy that they can put their talents to use and feed their children. Numerous CarePoints offer vocational and occupational training to children’s parents or guardians, as well as small business loans so they can lift their heads up and look to the future.
You may have seen Daniel’s story on our Christmas page. His story is one of my favorites!
Daniel worked as a day-laborer in a shoe factory for 11 years before learning about a business loan program offered through the CarePoint that his daughter, Elnata, attends. Daniel now has his own business and six people working for him, most of whom are fathers with children in the Merkato CarePoint in Ethiopia!
You can make an impact in the life of a Father like Daniel. A donation can help create business opportunities for the guardians of children in HopeChest programs, allowing hope to flourish, potential to be realized, and dignity to be restored to parents.
$200 can buy sewing machines and supplies for our tailoring programs
$1000 could be used to expand income-generating activities, training and programs to new locations
There are a number of external factors that orphaned and vulnerable children experience that can suppress their human spirit. Losing a parent or family member is incredibly common in countries that struggle with HIV/AIDS, war, or other catastrophic events. These are the stories that make my heart ache. The grief counselling that is offered at many of our CarePoints is by far one of my favorite programs offered through Children’s HopeChest.
These programs are monumental in children’s growth process and help them move through their pain and gain hope for their futures.
Although I ready hundreds of stories a month, there are some that I will not forget.
Innocent lost his father when he was a young boy. After going through the counselling program offered through his local CarePoint in Swaziland, he saw light in his life once again:
“I didn’t understand why my father died while we were so young and my mother didn’t care for us. This has been so painful in my life, and I started doing all the bad things. However, the more I did those things, the more my life felt hopeless and meaningless. I’ve been in a lot of fights, and I got to a point where I really hated my life. I didn’t want to live.
However, after attending grief counseling, I began to feel loved. It’s like a light flashed into my life which made me understand: God has always been there for me and He has good plans for my life! I started to feel hope being restored in my life and it became so real that even now I know Jesus loves me and there is hope for my future in Him. His presence made a difference in my life and now my life is better and I have stopped stealing, and I’m associating with good friends.” Innocent, 16 years old
Trauma and grief can be paralyzing, but we know that through Christ, redemption and healing is possible. We can play a small part in the plans that God has to ignite hope and restore dignity for the world’s most vulnerable children. Making a donation this Christmas can help children like Innocent find hope.
$500 can enhance our current grief counseling programs
$1000 can expand grief counseling programs to another location
There is still time to make an impact before 2018! I ask that you prayerfully consider giving a meaningful gift, which will allow us to reach more children and maximize our impact.
I hope that you are encouraged by the tangible and monumental difference that you can make. There are five more days to give generously and make a remarkable impact in the lives of thousands of people!
