F o r H i s C h i l d r e n C o n n e c t i o n

For His Children Connection - November 2011 1

For His ChildrenMinistering to children in Ecuador in partnership with Corporación Para Sus Niños (CPSN)

Q u i t o a n d L a t a c u n g a , E c u a d o r

Connection

Kimberly and Rocio are reunited with their birth

family – parents Angel and María, and their little brother.

Joffre and Lesley pose proudly in their new

school uniforms.

We’re so proud of our “big kids” who started school in September: Carlos, Alejandra, Jonder and Carlitos at FHC-Latacunga, and Lesley and Joffre at FHC-Quito. Lesley and Joffre are mainstreaming in a local school for the first time. They each have a helper who accompanies them throughout the day as both children have special physical needs. FHC’s social worker, Sandra, visited the school in early September and spoke with the teachers and staff about Joffre’s and Lesley’s abilities, and she shared about FHC and our mission. It was a great meeting, Sandra reported, and the school has welcomed Joffre and Lesley with open arms. All of the children are adapting well to their new routines and are happy in school. We couldn’t ask for more!

We always love to share good news - Kimberly and Rocio of FHC-Latacunga (right) were reunited with their birth parents. The sisters arrived at FHC in July after they were found wandering the streets. While the girls were being cared for by our Latacunga Tías, the local authorities and our staff worked to help their parents establish a safe and stable home environment. The girls will attend a preschool while their mother is at work, and the Latacunga court will continue to check in with the family to insure that the girls are well.

Latacunga’s big kids shine

guapísimo on their first day of

school. Carlos is starting 2nd grade,

Alejandra is in 1st, Jonder started

Kindergarten and Carlitos is now in 2nd grade.

A Monthly Newsletter November 2011

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Fundraising for FHC is an on-going privilege. You can help! We have events happening throughout the year – your participation creates the funds that keep FHC providing quality care for the children.

“I'm living out my dream to use music to minister God’s love to children and youth in Latin America. After I graduated with a degree in Music Education from Western Washington University, in Bellingham, WA in 2007, God opened the door for me to come to Ecuador in early 2009. I volunteered at FHC and was impressed by Clark and Melinda's commitment to caring for FHC’s children with excellence. From earlier experiences in my life, I felt right at home working with the children with special needs.

“My music classes at FHC have been great. I enjoy one-on-one singing games with the infants and teach the toddlers about musical instruments. I use music as therapy for the children with severe disabilities. I am fascinated by creating new ways to reach the children with special needs. Zacarías, (14) is connecting with music now since I learned to hide behind a chair and pretend a stuffed toy monkey is singing! Flor, (6) loves music, and despite her developmental delays, she has learned the “toe song”, and points to her feet and claps every time she sees me! Jofre, (7) and Wilma, (9) are in wheelchairs, but they love to dance with their hands and they give me some huge smiles during music class. It’s a blessing to see these children experience music with unrestrained joy.”

The Matching Gift Campaign & Child Sponsorship Month concluded in October. We also recognized the 10th anniversary of our child sponsorship program!

About a dozen churches from CA to MO and up to PA participated in our Child Sponsorship Campaign to raise awareness of FHC and encourage new sponsorships. These churches hosted events every Sunday throughout the month to help meet our goal of “every child fully sponsored.”

Thank you to everyone who participated in the Matching Gifts or Child Sponsorship campaigns! The programs were a great success and we’ll be sharing the amazing results with you in the December newsletter.

Bringing music to FHC - Welcome to Jillian Comrie, professional musician and music therapist. Jillian (right) is volunteering her gifts and talents over the next year at FHC. We thank Jillian so much for blessing the children with her love of music. We asked her to share her impressions:

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November is a count-down to our (U.S.) Thanksgiving, one of the most beautiful holidays of the year as it reminds us to recognize our blessings. A grateful heart is a sure way to bring us mindfully into God’s presence. You can share that thought with friends and family by ordering a beautiful e-mail Thanksgiving greeting card sent on your behalf. The message will be an uplifting reflection on giving thanks. We’ll include a note that a donation was made in honor of your friend or family member(s). Beginning November 1st, send your order (name of recipient of card and email address) to info@forhischildren-ecuador.org. Send as many orders as you like, and we’ll do the rest. Thank you!

Get a head start on holiday shopping! Discover the freedom that FHC’s Alternative Gift Shop can bring you this holiday season – you can accomplish all your gift shopping and support the children at FHC at the same time, via donations that will cover the cost of physical therapy sessions, medicine, food and education. By purchasing a FHC 2011 Holiday Gift Certificate, you can select from the list of "gifts" below, and FHC will personalize a pretty gift certificate representing your selection to send to the recipient. Contact linda@forhischildren-ecuador.org, your personal shopping assistant! Just think of all the time you’ll save - no more wasted hours roaming the mall – we have one-stop "shopping" available right here, all for a very worthy cause.

$5.00 pays for one session of physical therapy for a child with special needs. Juan Carlos is our physical therapist - his work is excellent - and he's doing wonders with our children. We're blessed to have him working at FHC.

$10.00 will purchase a can of infant formula to feed a newborn for a week. (Did you know that an infant assimilates nutrients and calories better when physical touch is part of the feeding process? That’s one of the reasons why all the babies at FHC are held when they are fed their bottles.);

$15.00 covers the average cost of a checkup with a medical specialist. (Most of the doctors treating our children do not charge for their services. But some medical specialties such as pediatric gastroenterology or pediatric orthopedic surgery often mean that FHC pays a portion of the doctor's fees.);

$25.00 will feed a toddler for one month – a healthy, balanced diet, reviewed by a licensed nutritionist;

$35.00 x 6 months or 12 months – the suggested monthly amount to sponsor a child in the name of a friend or family member;

$40.00 will purchase medication for a child with special needs for a month;

$60.00 will pay for the annual school registration fee and cost of supplies for a child who attends school in the community;

$100.00 enables FHC to organize four outings or field trips throughout the year for all our older toddlers and children with special needs to a local park, or museum, or the Quito zoo, or other nearby sites, including transportation, fees, snacks… the works!

Thank you for shopping at our Alternative Gift Shop – these gifts truly come from the heart and place deep significance back in our holiday season which has become so commercialized. We’re looking

forward to hearing from you!

Here are the “gifts” available at the FHC Alternative Gift Shop:

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F o r H i s C h i l d r e n C o n n e c t i o n

Mateo Ricardo is excited

about the artwork created by

his friends at FHC!

Art for Life! Jen Schneider of FHC-Quito and Candice Braun, (Candice adopted Mateo Ricardo from FHC-Quito in January 2011), teamed up to present “Art for Life” in NYC, a silent auction featuring art painted by the children of FHC. Thirty-five masterpieces were auctioned off. Two local artists also donated their art. Guests could read about each artist (at FHC), and learn more about the ministry. Art for Life was hosted by Eric Zollinger of Zollinger & Associates, at his beautiful luxury condominium, The Caledonia (www.zollingernyc.com). Guests sampled Ecuadorian cuisine and were able to peruse and purchase colorful Ecuadorian scarves. The event raised over $5,000 for FHC. We would like to extend a huge thank you to Eric Zollinger, Kat Lawton, Ben and Candice Braun, Stephen Larkin, Chris Simpson, and Mario Politi for making this event possible. A special thank you to Gloria Rendon for preparing the Ecuadorian cuisine for the event.

A warm welcome back to Ecuador to Jen Schneider, who spent almost two months in the Northeast U.S. and Florida, visiting churches and sharing about FHC. Jen says:

“Thank you for your prayers during my travel in the States. I spoke at churches in four States, met with Mission Committees, shared about FHC at two elementary schools, four college classes, and two Bible studies. It was amazing to see how God moved people as they listened to the story of FHC. Three churches are considering a mission team trip to FHC in 2012; we welcomed many new sponsors for our Child Sponsorship Program, and several college students are interested in spending time at FHC as volunteers.

“Five elementary classes are writing letters to our children and are being creative with their correspondence with our children with special needs. Please pray for these new relationships started with For His Children.

“Now, after six weeks of being in the U.S, I’m back in Ecuador. It is wonderful to be with the kids and Tías again, and hear about the new developments that have taken place. Thank you to the churches who hosted me in the States and who have committed to praying for the ministry of FHC. We are looking forward to seeing you here in Ecuador!”

Eric Zollinger and Jerry Simpson proudly display their

purchases at Art for Life.

Prayer... Our supporters’ prayers are a great encouragement to us. Please pray for good health and the physical safety of our children. We pray regularly for their emotional and spiritual needs, and that God would use FHC to help meet those needs. Our staff needs prayer for continued wisdom, patience, love and strength to provide the best possible care for the children. A special request comes from our Administrator, Verónica, that the paperwork forming “The Network,” an association of children’s ministries in Pichincha province, will soon be approved. “La Red” will support and promote measures that improve the status of children needing out-of-home care in group homes and institutions. FHC is among the founding members and is currently heading up “The Networl,” which meets every other month in Quito.

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Recognition is long overdue to the Vineyard Christian Fellowship of Red Bluff, CA, for printing, folding and mailing the printed versions of FHC’s newsletters for well over ten years. In the late 90s, this

church stepped up and asked how they

could help FHC. We turned over the printing and mailing of the bi-monthly newsletter to them, at a time when our electronic version was not yet fully functioning. This offering of time, effort and expense by the VCF surpasses what words

can express in appreciation for their faithfulness. The team that gets the job done is VCF’s secretary, Katie Knight (above) and her mom, Libby Coates. Together they print, fold and stuff the envelopes, add postage, and Jerry Sigler takes the letters to the post office (Jerry is husband of FHC’s Child Sponsorship Coordinator, Linda Sigler). So to the Vineyard Christian Fellowship of Red Bluff, and especially to Katie and Libby (who is a sponsor of María de los Ángeles at FHC-Quito), a heartfelt THANK YOU for how you have efficiently, quietly, faithfully and with excellence - served the ministry of FHC over all these years.

We can all relate to reducing unnecessary spending, and FHC wants to eliminate extra expense by making sure that this

newsletter is printed and mailed only to those supporters who do not have access to the internet. As of November 1st, only those supporters who send us a special written request will receive a printed copy of the newsletter. Please send your name, updated mailing address and phone contact info in your request, to FHC Mailing List, P.O. Box 29, Conifer, CO 80433-0029.

Often visitors generously bless us with feedback about their experience at FHC. This month we received this encouraging note (edited for clarity) from Ann Cole of Eugene, Oregon:

“We are so grateful for our time at For His Children.  Clark and Melinda have deeply inspired me, my daughter, and her friend with the call that they answered and the care and beautiful environment FHC’s vision provides for the children.  Living with Marcus in the guesthouse and hearing his story (FHC Danish volunteer Marcus, (17) was cared for at FHC before being adopted by Soren and Lene Sorensen of Copenhagen) was one of the highlights for me personally.  Your love and example to him will affect many people on the path he takes through life. “All aspects of the orphanages were inspiring, the hardworking and smiling Tías, the volunteers who surround the children with music and medical care and love, the therapy pool- so essential for the disabled children, the beauty of the grounds, the trampoline, the playground, the resident llamas, the fresh produce delivered weekly and the nutritious meals… and the children, who are being cared for and are so happy. My heart has been deeply touched.  “Thank you for providing such a welcoming and comfortable guest home with internet access.  Thank you to Rahel (FHC volunteer from Germany) and for her guidance in showing us the beautiful people and scenery of Ecuador.  We were blessed beyond our imagination on our trip and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. May you continue to walk in the path of righteousness and in the ways of peace always.  My love and blessings to you and to For His Children.”

Thank you, Ann - and to all who support FHC through your giving and your prayers.

A special thank you to the Vineyard Christian Fellowship of Red Bluff, CA for your dedication to FHC for over ten years!

FOR HIS CHILDREN P.O. Box 17-08-8545, Quito, Ecuador Address: Calle E-6, No. 75-110, Sector Carretas (Capri), Quito, EcuadorUSA: P.O. Box 29, Conifer, CO 80433-0029 (Jerry Mogab, Bookkeeper) Facebook: Fhc Cpsn Telephone (Vonage): 818 812 6110 info@forhischildren-ecuador.org www.forhischildren-ecuador.org

The Vineyard Christian Fellowship of Red Bluff, CA blesses FHC by printing and mailing this newsletter. If you can receive this letter via email, please let us know so we can reduce mailing costs. Also, let us know if you have moved so we can keep our records current. Thank you.

|Melinda Vaughn, Director|      |Verónica Rodríguez – Administrator| |Rebecca Carpenter, Editorial Assistant|      |Melissa Mowrey, Graphic Design|