A Special Place for Special Needs

Those of you who are familiar with all of New Hope Initiative’s projects might wonder why you haven’t heard anything regarding our orphanage for children with special needs in some time. Our last visit there was several years ago and we wanted to wait before sending an update. In September we visited the orphanage with a team from Sagemont Church in Houston, Texas. Our project in India is easily our most unique, as it diligently cares for children with both physical and mental challenges. The orphanage is small, as we are only meeting the needs of 15 children. This is a result of both funding issues, as well as the extra care required by the children.

The challenges these children face range from mild academic-related delays to extreme developmental issues that have rendered them totally incapable of caring for themselves. Some of the children have physical disabilities and one is hearing impaired (see Im(re)paired). Five of the fifteen orphans do not suffer from mental or physical challenges and serve as mentors and helpers to the more challenged children.

These five, all girls, were abandoned by their families who did not want to raise more female children. Abuse and other unspeakable horrors awaited them if left to a life on the streets. These young ladies, ranging in age from 12-14, are a great help to our facility.

Our goals for this center are to increase monthly funding so that we can add about 10 more children and to move our new director, a local named Jenny, from two days each week to a full time position.

Jenny has a degree in physical therapy and experience with children with special needs. She is doing an amazing job and we are incredibly happy that we added her to our staff of caregivers.

We also need a deep-water well on the property as all water is currently brought in by truck. A new well will cut operating costs, raise the level of care, and allow for farming. Not only will this improve the children’s diet, but give them valuable skills needed to survive.

The orphanage can be a challenging place. This is due to the extreme nature of the challenges these children face, and also the reality many of these children are discarded like trash because families believe they are a curse from the gods. However, no matter how great the challenges, it is awesome to see the difference we are making in the lives of these very special children. It is because of your continued prayer and support that we are able to serve this community.

Christmas Magic

You can bring incredible joy this holiday season to some of the poorest children in the world as you participate in our New Hope Initiative Christmas Project. We are hosting numerous Christmas parties in homes across America to raise funds for the children that New Hope Initiative sponsors in Africa and Asia. All of these funds (100%) will go towards Christmas presents for the children and projects that will directly impact their lives. These parties are informal, fun, and a great way for you to share your passion for New Hope Initiative with your friends and family. Check out our website to see if there is a party scheduled in your community. If there are none in your area, you can host a party!

We have a package available that will allow you to host a party. It is simple, easy, and is a great way to make a difference in the lives of the children New Hope Initiative sponsors. If you are interested in learning more about hosting, please email Beth Snyder. Make this a very special Christmas for some very special children.

Hearing Im(re)paired

As we focus on the ministry of New Hope Initiative we primarily report on the progress at our individual projects. These reports general give updates on the progress of our works as a whole. However it is extremely important to remember that it is individual people with names, faces, and personal needs that are ultimately the ones benefited by our work. We haven't reported recently on our special needs orphanage in India and the progress for that center, as a whole, is very encouraging but I want to focus today on one very encouraging story. Thirteen your old Malik came to our special needs orphanage outside of Hyderabad India one year ago. He was brought by his frantic mother who could not afford to raise him nor did she have any ability to cope with his hearing disability. Malik's father had abandoned the entire family because in his misguided religious belief he considered Malik's hearing loss to be a curse on his family from the gods. Malik had never had anyone work with him to help him overcome his challenges. He could not speak, he could not do sign language, he had little formal education, and only communicated with self taught rudimentary gestures.

Our staff at the orphanage instantly recognized the extraordinary ability that this young man possessed and began to work with his academic and social skills. The Indian government has a correspondence course for hearing impaired children and Malik immediately began to fly through the regiments. He finished entire grades in the matter of weeks and immediately proved through technology to be an academically gifted young man.

In September, New Hope Initiative traveled to India along with a team from Sagemont Church in Houston TX. Our team was immediately impressed by the amazing personality and obvious ability of this now 14 year old young man. One of our team members had read about the large number of children in India who were categorized as non hearing that actually had never been properly tested, so immediately we began to make plans to take Malik to a hearing center. He was excited and a bit nervous to travel into the big city of Hyderabad to be properly tested at a center. Our team was amazed to learn after a few short tests that Malik had some hearing in BOTH ears and would greatly benefit from hearing devices. Can you imagine a young man living his entire life robbed of the joy of sound because he never had access to the few hundred dollars it would take to have his hearing tested and corrected?

The truth is that even though our team was able to pool their funds and easily pay for this procedure, it was such a significant amount of money in Malik's world, that it would have forever relegated Malik to a soundless world if it had not been for New Hope Initiative and our supporters.

Malik's journey will still be a challenge. He has no experience with sound or any ability to process the noises he is now hearing for the first time after 14 years of life. However we are very confident in his ability and in his passion to overcome his challenges and we believe that Malik's journey to a productive fulfilling life is just beginning. Behind every school, clinic, orphanage, or other project that NHI operates please remember there are scores of Maliks whose lives are being impacted and futures dramatically altered because you care.