Asha Mission Land Fund :: UPDATE!

Over the past few weeks, we have seen and heard some truly incredible things. We've gotten letters and checks from people in Arkansas who said they couldn't sleep until they gave to this need. We've heard of middle school kids in North Carolina doing creative fundraisers for this land. We've gotten emails from a girl in California working to set up a benefit show to help us reach our goal. We even had a guy in Alabama SELL A CAR and donate the proceeds for our precious kids in India! Over and over we have seen the donations roll in online.... $25.... $500... $1,000 - some from friends, some from family, and some from people we've never even met before!

We have raised another $20,000 for our Asha Mission Land Fund in less than a month! We are SO encouraged! To all of you who have helped us spread the word about this need, and to each and every person who donated - THANK YOU for being a HERO to our kids in India!

But the work is not over yet! We still have to raise another $55,000 and we only have 9 days to do it!

We are asking all of you to dig deeper and reach farther than you have before! Dig deep into your heart and ask what you can give. Reach out to your friends, family, co-workers, twitter followers, and blog readers and encourage them to get involved!

This Sunday is Mother's Day. I can't think of a better gift to give in honor or in memory of you Mom, than a donation to care for a child in India who doesn't have a mother!

And would you consider sharing this video with your church congregation? Your Sunday School Class? What about your friends and family who gather together to celebrate Mother's Day?

URGENT NEED :: Asha Land Project from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

These forgotten children need YOU to be their HERO! Help us reach our goal by May 20th, and be a part of a miracle!

URGENT NEED :: Asha Mission Land Project

Friends, we have an urgent need for the kids at Asha Mission Children's Home in India. Please watch the video below before you move on...

URGENT NEED :: Asha Land Project from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

In case you couldn't watch the video - allow me to explain this need here. The children at Asha Mission need a new (bigger and better) home. There are several reasons why. The first is a simple lack of space. There are 33 kids sleeping in 2 tiny rooms - rooms that are the same size (or smaller) than some of our walk-in closets in America. There is only space for 12 beds total (6 in each room), which means over half of the children are sleeping on the cold, cement floor.

Another issue with the lack of space is privacy. As the kids get older, they need enough room for the boys and girls to have some separation. It is not appropriate (in any culture, but especially in India) to have the boys and girls living so close together.

In addition to the lack of privacy, there is a lack of space to play! There is no yard at all for the children to play in - the front door opens out into a narrow, crowded street with open sewers on each side. The only open space in this house is the roof (which is not safe to play on) and the main room - which can't be bigger than about 40 by 20 feet. The children barely all fit in the room sitting down for storytime. It is definitely no place for them to get exercise! There really is no where for them to enjoy being kids.

But the biggest cause for concern is that this small home is only a rental property. It is not a permanent home for these children. If the landlord decides on a whim that he wants them out, then these kids could be back on the street. We've seen it happen before. You see, in India orphans are considered to be some of the lowest people.  They are unwanted children. Some of them are the product of rape or prostitution. Many are born into extreme poverty. They are abandoned at hospitals, put out on the street to beg, sold as slaves, or left to die on the roadside. They are outcasts - forgotten by society.

But there's more. According to our Indian Partners, the government has been talking about passing a new law in India. This law would require every orphanage to own the land and building it is operating in. If they do not comply immediately - they could have their children taken away, separated from the only family they have ever known, and thrown into a government orphanage with horrible living conditions. This law has been under discussion for several years, and our partners are fearful that it could go into effect at any moment.

For all these reasons, it is IMPERATIVE that these children get a bigger, better, permanent home. A home that will last. A home that will be around to rescue children for generations! But before a bigger home can be built we need land. That's where YOU come in!

India is an overpopulated country and land is very expensive there. Our partners have put down a deposit on a piece of land, but in order to purchase it we need to pay the full amount by May 20th - and we are $150,000 short. The GREAT news is - we have a $75,000 matching gift - but it will not be released until another $75,000 is raised.

We need your help! If we do not get the $75,000 raised by May 20th then we lose the land, the kids lose a chance at a new home, and our partners lose thousands of dollars they put down for the deposit. This is a ONE SHOT DEAL. We get one chance to change the lives of these precious little girls and boys - and to save the lives of many others who have yet to be rescued. 

So we're asking you today - right now - WHAT WILL YOU DO TO SAVE THEIR LIVES? How much will you sacrifice to give them a future? What will you do to protect their innocence?

Will you give away 5% of your savings - your security - to invest in their future? How about 10%? What about 50%? As you save for the future of your family, can you consider these children who have no one saving for them?

If you don't have money to give, then what will you DO? Will you host a benefit show? A bake sale? A garage sale? Will you sell your bike? Your 4-wheeler? Your boat? Your car?

How much is the life of one child worth? What about the lives of 33 children?

BE PART OF A MIRACLE!



PLEDGE TO DO AN EVENT HERE.

365 days in 90 seconds

In just a few hours,  we'll be on a plane bound for Africa. We're headed to Swaziland for our first trip of 2012, and we can't wait to share videos, pictures, and stories with you while we're gone! We'll be there for 4 weeks, and we've got a lot of awesome things planned (including starting a Children's Library at our Carepoint in Nsoko!)

But before we go, we wanted to post this highlight video. Last year we spent 5 months traveling overseas - serving our sweet kids in India and Thailand. We spent hundreds of hours in cars and planes (and a few extra hours in a boat or two!) It was an amazing, exciting, CRAZY year (and today it starts all over again!)

So check out what life looked like for us in 2011 - all wrapped up in 90 seconds!

365 days in 90 Seconds - 2011 Wrap from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

Music :: 29 by Justin Rosolino
Purchase the song here :: itunes.apple.com/us/album/wonderlust/id46928750

A great update on Aksha & Jyoti!

We wanted to give you another update on our sweet girls, Aksha and Jyoti. You may remember their story from this blog. The girls were both very sick - Aksha with serious lung infections and Jyoti with parasites in her brain (which we'd been fighting to heal for years!)

We just got a report from our partners in India that baby Aksha has made a complete recovery! HOW AWESOME! We also found out that Jyoti is doing well enough to start school in April, which is AMAZING! She is actually 1 year behind in school because she was not allowed to attend when she was having blackouts and seizures (due to safety concerns). We're so grateful that she hasn't had any seizures or blackouts in months and can finally go to school with the other children. Here's some video footage of the girls from our trip to India in November (and a THANK YOU from the House Mom & Dad for those of you who gave to this need). Don't the girls look wonderful?

Jyoti and Aksha THANK YOU from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

We are thrilled to share this good report! THANK YOU AGAIN to everyone who generously gave so that these precious little girls could get the medical care they needed!

Meet Baby Leah!

We would like to introduce you to the newest addition to the Asha House family in India. Meet Baby Leah! Isn't she beautiful?

Leah was born by c-section on January 20th. As you can see, she is already dearly beloved by the other children at Asha House!

We are so grateful that her mother cared enough to give birth to her and to give her away to a loving home. The truth is, many women in India get pregnant out of wedlock as a result of rape or prostitution. Most live in poverty, and have no way to care for themselves or a baby... so they often attempt abortions or suicide. Baby Aksha (also at Asha House) survived 4 abortion attempts, but struggles with lung infections as a result. Sweet little Tabitha (a 3 year old member of the Asha House family) almost didn't make it into this world - her pregnant mother was about to jump in front of a train when a pastor stopped her and brought her to Asha House. Other children aren't so lucky. Because girls are devalued in Indian culture, female babies are often strangled or suffocated at birth or abandoned on the street.

Leah's mother, however, lived at the house for several months so that she could get prenatal care and proper nourishment. When I met her in November, I told her how brave she was and thanked her for making a courageous choice for her daughter. While it's a tragedy that Leah won't grow up with her biological parents, we rejoice that she will have a chance at life! We know she will grow up with a loving "family" at Asha House, where she will be cherished, protected, and given an opportunity to get an education. So today we say THANK YOU! Thank you to the donor who paid for her to be born safely in a hospital, and thank you to everyone who donates regularly to help us care for precious children like Leah!