Restoring Dignity - One Christmas Gift at a Time

It's that time of year again!  

This year we are so excited about our Christmas Campaign - Restoring Dignity!

Click on this link to read more about the Campaign and how you can get involved!

http://cch-india.com/cch-christmas-campaign-restoring-dignity/

Thanks for staying connected with us!

New Blog

If you have not visited our new blog sight (which is our website) - please do!

Here is the latest link to our blog: http://cch-india.com/world-race-in-ponduru/

We would love you to follow us for our weekly updates.  This month we have a World Race team serving with us and they are taking the time to write a blog each about their experience.  Please read about Bethany's experience by clicking the link above.

Thank you for your keeping up with us!

www.cch-india.com

We have a new location...

http://cch-india.com

Please check us out weekly to find new updates!  All the information needed is at our new location!

Thanks for making the transition and for supporting us so much this past year!

Before and After...

CCH has new children every year.  This year we welcomed 200 new children into church homes, got them ready for school, and after 3 months, they are feeling more settled!  We are so blessed to have so many children in the care of CCH!  God is good and His story is being told all throughout India!

Jyothi - Living in CCH home since 2009

Sean and I have been with CCH now for one and a half years now.  In this time we have learned how to get around Ongole, the city of our headquarters, and make a little home for ourselves.  We know where to buy breakfast on the street, where to get chocolate croissants, where to buy uniforms, shoes, pencils, plastics, and all the other things needed for 400 kids.  We know where all our children's homes are, what school the children go to, what their grades are and we know the principals' names.  We know the children's hemoglobin levels, we know most of their names but all of their faces.

But there are so many other things we don't know.

We don't know what it is like to be abandoned or orphaned.  We don't know what it feels like to go without food, sleep outside because there is no shelter, or not have good drinking water.  We don't know what it is like to study in a school where they are speaking and teaching in a totally new language (English).

Solomon Raju - Living in CCH home since 2008

But we do know someone who knows...Jesus.

Jesus meets our kids and takes them in and becomes their Father.  He provides food for them, puts a pillow under their head, and gives them Living Water.  He speaks to them in their language and they know his voice.  He heals them and protects them and loves them.

And our kids know it!  And they live it!  And they share it!

The pictures below are just some of the faces that have changed since becoming a part of CCH.  The first one is taken upon entering the home.  They may or may not have heard about Jesus before they came into the CCH home.  The second picture is a year or more after being in our church homes.  Jesus is doing amazing transformations in this part of India!

Thanks to all of you who have co-labored with Jesus in the journey of these children.

Monica - Living in CCH home since 2011

We look forward to seeing the changed faces of the newest 200 CCH children!

Opening New Homes

In the midst of distributing school bags, supplies, socks and shoes, and uniforms we are opening 20 new homes and welcoming 200 new children to CCH!  We want to introduce you to some of the new faces of CCH!

Here is Manisha from Verdicherla!  Currently there are 6 girls in this home and the home will have 10 by the end of this month.  The pastor of this home has 4 children of his own.  2 boys and 2 girls.  The oldest boy is away at school but the three younger ones live at home!  It is a full house with all 13 kids!!

These boys are in the Siddisamudram home.  This home is located in the middle of fields.  There are 60 homes in this village, which makes it a pretty small village.  These boys are being bused to the best school in the area which is only 8 km from the home.  They will take an auto rickshaw everyday because buses don't travel on the roads to this village.

This is Rajesh and he is from Peddavaram.  This home is near 4 other of our current homes.  Each of these 4 villages has the same city center.  We will be doing a 2nd Saturday gathering of all these children.  They will be really good friends!  Love this guy's smile!  He is so sweet!

These are the Thimmalagiri boys!  Most of our church homes have two stories, with the kids on the bottom and the church on the top.  This home is two one-story buildings on a large plot of land.  They will have many evening cricket matches!  We are praying for 3 more boys for this home by the end of this month.

This is a little guy from Vallala.  When we visited this home a few months back, there was an amazing sunset behind the house.  There are fields of grass all the way to the horizon.  Paramesh has never been to school before and he is very excited to have this opportunity.

This is Nane from Vepalamadaram.  I just wanted to add him because he was too cute not to add!

We thank you for the support of the current 200 children and we look forward to you knowing and loving the new 200 children.

Merry Babu

What do you remember from your life before coming to the CCH home?

My name is Merry Babu I am studying 7^th class this year.  Before I come to CCH home I use to worry about my life that who is going to help and who is going to provide my all things.  I never go to the school and I always use to just be in streets, just playing and thinking very bad about who I will be.  It’s very difficult to live in this world so I feel want to run away somewhere.  But I don’t know where.  I was full of confusion.

      

                                                       

What is the best part about living in a CCH home?

I come CCH home through the church pastor.  When I come CCH home I see other children and I feel much better.  When I was praying God told me, "Be bold I am with you". As soon as I heard that voice I feel want to dance for God.  Then I praise him a lot. 

If you were going to describe God to your class, what three words would you use to describe?

• Be happy for God is with you.
• Don’t worry, God loves you so much.
• If you able to help you should help with whatever you have.

In ten years, how old will you be? What do you want your life to be like at that time?        

Now I am having a 12 years old.  In ten years come I will be 22 years.  When I was having 22 years I like to work as pastor in CCH home. And I want to help CCH children.

Recently someone sent tractors for these boys.  They have never played with cars like this so they were very happy!

Merry Babu received the highest scores in his 6th grade class.  He is understanding and speaking English very well.  In this picture, he is with his classmate, as well as CCH brother, Anil.  They are really good friends.

At camp worshipping:  Merry Babu knows how much God loves him and it shows in His worship.

The most recent picture of the boys last Saturday receiving their new school shoes!  

They were so excited and thankful for them!  

Thanks for all who donated!  

Last week Merry Babu had a huge boil on his neck.  We had to take him to the hospital to drain it.  He had never been in surgery before and he was scared.  The pastor, one of our staff members and myself were there and we got to spend time praying with him before the surgery.  When he came out of the surgery, he had tears in his eyes, and he told me, in perfect English, "I have no mom and no dad.  I am thankful God has given me CCH."  We hugged and cried together.  It was a special moment.  He is recovering really well!

Praise the Lord for little ones who know how much God loves them!  Praise the Lord for all of you who make it possible for us to be here to love on these kids the way God wants them to be loved!

-Merry Babu's father died of TB and his mother committed suicide.

Summer Camp

Summer Camp May 2012

We had such an amazing week last week!  So many new experiences for children and adults.  

100 CCH children + 15 pastors kids + 20 pastors and wives + 9 teachers + 8 staff = a whole lot of fun!!

Here are the pics to prove it!

We had 9 classes for each group to experience over the 3 days!  Our groups were 12 children and each group name was a Fruit of the Spirit!  They loved each class and each class brought a new experience!

Badminton Class

Dance Class

Percussion Class

Games Class

Piano Lessons

Photography Class

Painting Class

Voice Lessons

Volleyball Class

Along with the classes there were other activities!  Exercise each morning, worship, free time activities, Bible reading, snacks, food and so much more!  Here are a few pics to show the other parts of camp!

Free Time Bead Class

Morning Bible Reading and Lesson

Amazing food

Morning exercise and stretching

Snacks - Mangos!!

Puppet Show each morning

Beautiful worship with flags

Pillows were a camp gift

I hope you enjoy the pics and can see some of the joy experienced here at camp!  We know you can't visit but we want all of you to experience as much as you can!  Thank you all who sponsored children, who sent supplies, who prayed, and who came to help (Thanks Holly!!).  

We have another camp this coming week and we still need some child sponsors.  

Please think about helping one child go to camp.  It is $55 per child.  

It is such an amazing experience for each person!

Hosanna

First night in the Government Hospital

As most of you know, our little guy, Hosanna got Dengue Fever last week.  The first night Hosanna was checked into a government hospital near Mederametla, his CCH home.  We sent one of our staff members, Ravi Teja, to visit him and ask some questions of the doctors and to give him a stuffed animal to keep him company.  Hosanna's fever spiked again so we decided to take him to a private hospital the larger city of Guntur. 

We moved him to a Private Hospital the next day

Because Dengue Fever is viral, there is not cure.  We can only treat the symptoms.  Treatment is replacing lost platelets, keeping the fever down, and keeping white blood cell count up.  

The blood bank

We sent ICM staff, students from our different programs, and church members from Mederametla church, his church home, up to Guntur to give blood.  There have been nearly 20 people who have donated blood for Hosanna.  We need good, strong the blood for the platelets.  Hosanna's platelet count was not going up using platelets from people with different blood types.  So, we needed to find people with the same blood type.

Danny

This is called a single blood donor and it is a very expensive procedure.  We had to do this procedure with three different donors.  It is a 2 hour process where the donors blood is taken out, the platelets are separated, and then the blood is put back into the donors body.  Danny was one of the three who donated his blood as a single blood donor!  Thank you, Danny!

My visit

I got to visit Hosanna in the hospital yesterday.  And there was a very positive blood report.  His platelet count was up to 85,000 and his white blood cell count was up to 4,100 from 1,800!  The doctor called me into his office and said that the first 9 days, they were trying to help him survive.  But he said that this day was the first day of recovery!

Reading together

The hospital can be boring...so I brought colored pencils, markers, paper, and a little book that teaches you how to draw animals.  He drew a dog, a turtle, a ladybug, and a horse!  He had such a good time!  I left the supplies with him.  I also brought a couple story books with me to read with him, but he ended up reading to me!  It was great to hear him read and see him understand the story!

It was a special time with Hosanna.  Today his platelet count is up to 91,000.  They will discharge him once he is up to 150,000!  Praise the Lord for this little guy!  Thank all of you for praying!  There were so many people contending for Hosanna and he is so thankful.  He said thank you so many times when we were together!  Thank you, Jesus, for the miracle in this little ones life!

Santhi and Camp

This is Santhi.  CCH staff talked with a few pastors and asked some testimonies from them.  The Narsimgolu pastor shared Santhi's story with us.

"Both of her parents have died and she used to live with her sisters.They are from a Hindu background.  Santhi's sisters used to make food for her sometimes and then she would just watch TV.  She didn’t really do anything else.  She never went to school.  Then she came to CCH.  She didn’t want to study at first.  Most people in the village thought that she was crazy.  My wife and I decided that through love we wanted to change her.  Two years later she is ranked 1^st in her class and she loves Jesus."
- Pastor Nathaniel

Narsimgolu Girls

This summer Santhi and her CCH sisters get to go to camp.  Last Saturday, CCH had their 2nd Saturday Celebration and we talked more about camp!  Each home will have a room to stay in at camp and so each home made a sign for their door.  All the signs have the home name, all the children's names, and their Pastor's family names.  This sign will be welcoming them into their room at camp!

CV Palem Boys

At Summer Camp 2012 these children will be studying the Fruit of the Spirit.
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 
gentleness and self-control."  

SN Padu Girls

They will have 9 workshops to go to - 3 per day - including:

Painting - mixing paint, different brushes

Dance - an expression of worship

Photography - zoom, flash, framing a shot

Drums - symbols, tamborines, bells

Tanguturu Boys

Keyboard - the scale, learn a simple song

Voice - English songs, singing lessons

Volleyball - outside fun

Badminton - a game for all ages

Races - working off some energy

We hope this camp draws the children into a deeper relationship with Jesus and helps them better understand His love for them.  Camp is something these children have never experienced before and so our goal is to make them feel comfortable and have so much fun with the staff and with each other!
We have 6 of our 20 homes sponsored!  That is 60 kids!  YEAH!!!  We need 140 more kids to be sponsored for Summer Camp!  Each child is $55.  This includes transportation, food, lodging, supplies, and all the fun that comes along with camp!  

There is another way you could give!  We're all on to our second or third digital point and shoot camera by now, right?  What about your older one(s)?  Does it still work?  Well, send it to India and help us teach our children about photography at summer camp next month.  We will be teaching the basics of photography from focus to zoom to proper selection of subjects, but we need useful equipment.  We're on the hunt for eight old, but still working digital cameras.  If you're interested, we have a Stateside address to which you can send your camera.  Thanks for your help!

New Bridge Church Visits their CCH Girl's Homes

New Bridge Church, Olympia Washington

New Bridge supports 3 of our current 20 homes.  They brought games and gifts and beads and most importantly, they brought love.  These three homes were so blessed by their visit.  Here is a picture of the team with the Punukula girls (from left to right): Jena, Stephanie, Leslie, and Mark.

Last May, when these homes were opening, Leslie had a dream about a little girl named Esther that she would be adopting.  Leslie didn't know it at the time but this is Esther and she moved into out CCH home in May!  New Bridge didn't even adopt the home until December but God knew they would be connected.

The team provided funds to furnish the homes.  They bought a dining room table and chairs, a sofa and side chairs.  They gave mattresses and fans and plates and cups and blankets and the beautiful Christmas dresses they are wearing in the pics.

Not only did they provide things in the physical but they spent time praying for the children and the pastors.  They spent time investing in a partnership that will last a lifetime.  They spoke over the girls the truth about who they are in the eyes of God.  It was a beautiful week with them and CCH is blessed by their time here in India.