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.  

Teams and Sponsors

CCH is having an amazing two weeks with teams and 

home sponsors coming through.  

We had Mark and Kelly Kochner come and visit us.  

With them they brought: ring pops for the girls, fun dip for the boys, legos, play dough, cars for the boys, nail polish for the girls, and so much love for the kids.   Their heart poured out as Mark threw the football with Jeremiah from CVPalem and Kelly was building legos with the Ponduru girls.

Their joy and love and  enthusiasm brought smiles to all our children's faces! Thanks for coming and thanks to everyone who has donated things to bring for the children of CCH! 

One 8 year old boy, named Chad, without his mother's prompting, went upstairs and got his toy cars and told his mom he wanted to give them to the boys in India!  So special! Thank you for giving!

Thanks for praying over our boys and girls and loving on them this past week!  You have been a blessing to CCH and we look forward to your next visit!








And another team from New Bridge Church in Olympia, Washington, just got to town yesterday.

They are currently sponsoring 3 of our 20 homes through Warm Blankets!  We are so excited to introduce them to their girls in Somavaram, Choppakatlapalem, and Punukula.  They brought 4 bags of donated things to bless the girls of these homes and so many more!







We took them to Tanguturu today to show them a home that has been running for 3 years.  They brought books, games, and wooden cars to paint.  They are very excited to meet their girls this next week!

Please pray for safe travels as we take this team to visit their girls.  We are so thankful for our supporters and our teams that come to bless the children of CCH!  Thank you for coming and thanks for your support!

Games

The teacher that I am, I had a perfectly planned, orderly game for our 110 children at this past 2nd Saturday Celebration.  I soon remembered, kids + balloons = this...

We hope to bring this and so much more to Summer Camp 2012. These children, experiencing this much joy, while learning about the Fruit of the Spirit.  Please think about sponsoring one of the children for camp.  It is $55 per child for 2 nights/3 days of summer fun!

Our theme is Fruit of the Spirit and CCH has a team of 15 people working on the details.  From logos, to skits, to characters, to games, to speakers and teachers, and all the fun that goes into planning a camp for 200 children!  Please be praying for our team and be thinking about how you can participate!

Adhithiya

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

My name is Adhithaya I am studying 2^nd class.  Before I come to the CCH home I used to play with children in the streets.  When my father was died no one was taking care for my family.  I have three small brothers.  My mother use to do field work.  I am so interested to study in English medium, but my mother can’t provide much money for that.  I used to pray to God about my studies.  Always, I worried about my brothers.

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

I come CCH home through one my village brother.  When I joined in a CCH home I feel so happy.  Really God was hearing my prayer, not only my self my brother’s also studying with me in CCH home. I really was giving so thanks for God.  And I never stop the praising God.


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

• God is so great, believe in Him.
• If you love God, you may get peace in your life.
• If you help the others, God will help you.

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

After ten years I may get 19 years old, that time I just want to see in my life is very beautiful and I able to help for others.  So, now I decided that I will study until I get to be an engineer.

These are two of Adhithiya's brothers who live with him in the CCH Home!  Adhithiya is the oldest, then Karthik, and then Ravi Teja!  He takes care of them and helps them get ready for school.  Adhuthiya is a great older brother!  He is also first rank in his 2nd grade class and helps me translate with the other boys!

These boys had never been to the beach before, even though they only live 30 minutes from it.  They had such a great time together playing in the water!

A team came through and painted all of our homes last summer.  These boys want to be police and they love transportation.  SO the team did a city scene for them!  They love it and they are so happy in this home!







Exams are next month!  Please be praying for these boys!  

Summer Camp May 2012- We need your help!!

Hume Lake Christian Camps serves thousands of children each year at their summer camps for all ages.  Here the gospel is shared, games are played, friendships are made, and lives are changed.  Forever.  My best friend Marci's parents have worked at Hume Lake for almost 3 decades and I have gotten to experience this amazing camp through them!

Now we are in India and Hume Lake is a bit more than a drive away and we have 200 children who have never been to camp or experienced anything remotely close to this summertime must.  For these children of CCH who have never been to camp, this is their chance!  

So, the CCH staff is bringing Summer Camp to India!  We are so excited to serve these children and their families in this way.  We will bring to them an amazing camp experience, like the many you and I have experienced in our past!

These boys need to get out and run around and play some games.  When told about summer camp these boys asked if we get to play cricket!  "Of course", we said, "It's India!  What would camp be without a cricket tournament!"  They will also learn about playing the drums and the piano!

These girls LOVE painting and drawing!  We are bringing in an artist to teach them technique so they can express themselves through their art.  We will also have relay races and play badminton!  

In order for all this to happen, we need your help! 

We need each of these children to be sponsored before May.  The cost for 3 days and 2 nights of camp is $55 per child.  That includes transportation, food, lodging, camp supplies, and staff!  Thank you for helping!