Both Hands in the News!

 Both Hands Reaches Great Milestones!

149 orphans served!

137 widows served! 

Over 3000 volunteers!
 

106 families served!

 ....in only 3 years!!

Message from the Founder:

What would it feel like if your favorite professional football team, basketball team, and baseball team, as well as your college team….all won their respective championships…on the same day!!  Take a minute, close your eyes, and imagine that.
 
That’s how I feel with Both Hands hitting all these milestones in one month. If you’re reading this, you were one of the many who helped make it happen and I’m so grateful for your obedience.  Too many to name…over 3,000!...just stand with me in awe of the King!

-JT Olson

Both Hands 100th Project
in Smyrna, TN! 

Jason and Kelly Stewart's project was featured in two local newspapers. Their story and video is powerful! Grab a box of tissues and click here to see their video.  

Featured Project: The Zuzunaga Family   

“It really was a great experience as we were able to share God's love for this really needy woman.  I am so amazed at all that God has done during our adoption process, including the Both Hands project....  

              ...Because we chose to answer God's call to adopt, He has also given us the opportunity to minister to other people, including Louise, who we might otherwise, not have met.  We serve a really BIG God and I'm so glad He can see the BIG picture because mine is definitely too narrow."

-Luis & Gentry Zuzunaga

Santa Barbara, California

Both Hands Hires First Full-Time Employee!

Aimee Hawtrey joined the Both Hands team as the Operations Manager at the beginning of August.  

"I am so excited to be part of the Both Hands team working together with Lifesong! What an amazing opportunity to practice pure religion- assisting the orphans and widows- on a daily basis. God is so good to have opened the doors for me to join this mission."

-Aimee Hawtrey 

Click HERE to GIVE to Both Hands Foundation!

Little Ephrem

Ephrem from Lifesong for Orphans on Vimeo.

 “What first drew me to this little boy was his sweet round face.  Obviously, he has suffered a great deal from malnutrition.  When we visited the school he and the rest of the children were so focused on their meal.  It’s amazing to see how Lifesong was changing their lives.  After lunch, I found myself surrounded by children playing a name game.  He reached out and kissed my hand.  My heart melted... I think of him daily.” 

Jenny Anderson, Orphan Advocate

Sometimes it can be hard to imagine the hardships that go on around the world.  We sit in our comfortable homes, with pantries full of necessities, and it seems strange that most of the world doesn’t have a pantry, let alone food to fill it.  But for millions of children in Africa this is their reality.  Hunger is a part of their daily lives.  Then add the fact that many of these children are also orphaned, either by death or abandonment… it’s almost more than we can bear.  It’s hard to go there mentally and we protect our hearts by pretending it doesn’t exist.  But it does.  Children are suffering.

Little Ephrem is one of those children.  Born in Ethiopia, his father is now dead and his mother disappeared years ago.  He was taken into his grandmother’s care, but she has struggled to provide for him.  At 4 years old, Ephrem is extremely small for his age, and most likely suffers from a type of growth disorder, though the lack of specialized medical care keeps us from knowing for sure.  And since he has been malnourished most of his life, it is no wonder his health is affected.

Praise the Lord, Ephrem is now enrolled in Lifesong’s Adami Tulu Nursery School, where he is getting two meals a day and seems to be flourishing under the care of his teachers.  His sweet demeanor and precious smile easily capture your heart.

 

Happenings in a Land I'm Missing Today...

Here’s update from Lifesong Ukraine director, Denis Poshelok:

Recently we received many warm scarves and hats for our children at Loubetin Orphanage.  Each scarf and hat was handmade by a group of women from Alabama.  It's getting cold here in Kharkov and these items are a great necessity.  Praise the Lord we now have enough scarves for every child we work with!  Thank you to everyone involved in this work!

A couple months ago we had three additional kids come to our families in Izume.  Two came to Slavik and Natasha (making their total 10 children) and one more came to Voval and Sveyta (giving them 11 in their family).  Three weeks later new furniture (beds, wardrobes, shelves) for Slavik and Natasha's home arrived.  It is good furniture built by our old friend Vladim and is made out of sold wood and veneer.  Kids are so happy to use new beds and mattresses.

Good things are happening in Izume.  As always, we thank our Father for everyone who supports the work at Izume and all of Lifesong Ukraine!"

Last year I got to visit the families in Izume.  Let me tell, you, they are some amazing people.  Slavik and Natasha were in the middle of dealing with 3 children in the hospital with TB and yet Christ still radiated in their lives, even in the midst of great struggle.  My heart is warmed by when I think of them now bringing more children into their home.  So cool!

Thank you, Lifesong staff in Ukraine!  I love and miss you all!  

and maybe I'll see you in 2011... (wink wink, boss.)

Liberia

Here's an update from our Lifesong Liberia director, Bishop Emmanuel Jones:

Our newest school in Marshall is progressing smoothly with 84 students and 5 teachers.  This school is the first and only school in the Marshall community (of over 10,000 people) and presently runs from ABC to Grade 3.  There are over 50 children from the community who are attending school for the first time in their lives. 
We have also formed a parent-teacher committee to help us get more involved with the community and to do evangelism as well as creating an opportunity for community transformation.

Our second distribution of relief materials, which was shipped by Lifesong, took place over the Liberian Thanksgiving weekend.  Each of the children received a bag for their clothing, a blanket, 3 sets of clothing, a pair of slippers, and a camper cup. More distributions will take place this month at hospitals and old folks’ homes by the orphans as a way of learning how to share their blessings with others.

Lifesong Liberia celebrated its 1st anniversary this month.  Our schools held an All Schools Day which brought together all of our schools on November 22 as part of a celebration.  We were blessed with special guests from America, Andy Lehman and liaisons, Keith and Kay Knapp. 

Life at the orphanages is much better than a year ago but daily problems are always abounding.  We are able in a small way to make beauty out of ashes.

 

Have a great tuesday, everyone!

Rejoicing

Hello all!  I'm coming to you from Music City, visiting my dear friend and fellow orphan advocate, Sandra Ney (who Lifesong is partnering with in her efforts to bring hope to orphans in Cote d'Ivoire, Africa).  This weekend Sandra hosted an orphan awareness day, where we made flower pins to raise money for the children in Cote d'Ivoire.  Here are some shots of the day...

What a success.  Her house has been buzzing ever since, with phone calls and friends stopping by to see how they can help.  Praise the Lord!

The spirit of the weekend totally reminded me of last month's Orphan Sunday, where there were 568 registered events across the US (plus many unregistered events: over 21 in Florida alone)!  And the response didn't end there... at each registered event an average of 539 individuals were challenged to action (ranging from 3 to 5,000)!  And i know more went on that we don't even know about.  Wow.  Thank you to everyone who participated in Orphan Sunday this year.

You know, sometimes it can get so discouraging, feeling like nothing is getting done as fast as I think it should.  I look at the need and wonder how in the world we can even make a dent.

But God is moving mightily in His people to rise up on behalf of the orphaned, and when i look at how Orphan Sunday has become such a powerful tool for awareness... when i look at how a woman in Tennessee is spreading the vision through flower pins... and when i see the response...

then I get excited.  I begin to catch a glimpse of what He is doing behind what I naturally see.  And it is big.

If you have a story of rejoicing, we'd love to hear it.  Maybe an orphan ministry is getting started in your church.  Maybe you finally got your travel date to pick up your child, wherever he or she may be.  Maybe you had an inspiring conversation with a friend and that action you've been praying for is finally about to happen... let us know!  

In Him our hearts rejoice, for we are trusting in His holy name.  Psalm 33:21

Want to know more about the vision in Cote d'Ivoire?  Check out Sandra's blog here.