Our Zhaotong foster care program in Yunnan province is growing! We have four wonderful new children in need of three sponsors each to join our program and benefit from the love and support that a foster family offers. Our search for foster parents has begun and we would love to get the children into their new foster homes as soon as possible.
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Last fall we ran a blog about a darling four-year-old named Gena from our Zhaotong foster care program. Gena was born with no eyes, and her eyelids are fused shut. However, this seems to have intesified Gena’s determination to become independent and to make her opinions known. Our foster care manager reports that Gena is becoming more and more confident and can even be, well, a little bossy! She recognizes each of the family member’s cell phone ring tones. When she hears a phone ring, she calls out the name of the relevant owner and tells them to answer the phone. When she hears the family meal being prepared, she instructs everyone to take their places at the table. When adults ask one another to do tasks such as clean the floor or help with the food preparation, Gena is always there to repeat the instruction and ensure that everyone does as he or she is told.
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Last week we shared a blog about a very special girl named Suzy who has a gorgeous, crystal-clear voice. Some readers were not able to view the video of Suzy singing, so we’re running an encore presentation with videos that will hopefully work better this time around.
In fall 2010, we featured lovely twelve-year-old Suzy on our blog in Suzy: Look With the Heart. Suzy is part of our Zhaotong foster care program in Yunnan and attends a boarding school for the blind with her foster brother, who is also completely blind. She has just enjoyed spending the spring holiday home from boarding school with her foster grandmother, with whom she is very close. When her grandmother’s back aches from doing the household chores, Suzy is so kind to her and rubs her back to help her relax. After meal times, she also tries to help her foster grandmother by straightening up the kitchen. She knows where all of the bowls and kitchen pans belong and can put them all away on her own.
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Last fall we featured lovely twelve-year-old Suzy on our blog in Suzy: Look With the Heart. Suzy is part of our Zhaotong foster care program in Yunnan and attends a boarding school for the blind with her foster brother, who is also completely blind. She has just enjoyed spending the spring holiday home from boarding school with her foster grandmother, with whom she is very close. When her grandmother’s back aches from doing the household chores, Suzy is so kind to her and rubs her back to help her relax. After meal times, she also tries to help her foster grandmother by straightening up the kitchen. She knows where all of the bowls and kitchen pans belong and can put them all away on her own.
We were so excited to receive these videos of Suzy this past week! The first one shows her braille notebook and, more importantly, shows her singing like an angel. Suzy’s song begins at around 2:00 into the video, and we know you won’t want to miss hearing her sweet voice!
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Four-year-old Gena is so cute that she could be a calendar poster girl! We thought we’d share these photos of her enjoying life in three different seasons.
Fall is harvest time, and here you can see Gena enjoying some delicious corn. She has a healthy appetite and certainly seems to have a zest for life!
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But the eyes are blind. One must look with the heart. — Antoine de Saint-Exupery
We think that once you read about Suzy, you will agree that this quote describes how she lives her life. Like any typical pre-teen, Suzy’s favorite activities are chatting with her friends and listening to music. She has a loving heart for others, especially her close friends and foster family. Suzy is different from many other typical teens, however, in that she does not have a family of her own. In addition to that rather large obstacle, Suzy is blind.
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Our Friday Photo of the Week features tiny Jimmy from our Zhaotong foster care program. Our manager delivered some new toys to each child in the program recently and captured Jimmy checking out his new blocks. Doesn’t it look like they’re nearly as big as he is? He’s only a few months old and has just arrived in foster care, so we’ll look forward to seeing Jimmy grow into his new blocks in the months to come!
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It’s Friday, and we’d like to introduce you to some darling new arrivals to our foster care programs!
At just two months old, winsome Kim has already experienced surgery for pulmonary cysts. We are hoping she will be released from the hospital next week so she can join our Zhang Village foster care program. Doesn’t she look anxious to get started with the real business of life? All of us on the Foster Care team feel incredibly privileged to be able to work with children like Kim and watch these children grow and develop within their foster families. We enjoy watching their personalities develop and are so grateful to our wonderful foster families and sponsors.
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For the past two and a half years, exuberant eight-year old Rosa has been in our Zhaotong foster care program. Rosa was born with a clubbed foot and an extra toe and also has suffered nerve damage following surgery for spinal bifida. These and other medical issues have prevented her from attending school, but Rosa refuses to let that stop her from learning. To support her desire to read and write, her foster parents bought a little desk and chair for her and put it in their home. Every day, Rosa sits down with her exercise books and pencils and practises writing characters and some mathematical problems. Her most fervent hope and dream is to go to school.
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;
He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle;
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim ‘ere he drove out of sight,
“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!” — Clement Clarke Moore
Joanne from Zhaotong Foster Care is showing Santa how it’s done as she puts her finger aside her adorable nose! We are thrilled to announce that she will be meeting her forever family in the new year.
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