Be a part of Alabama Gives Day!

“How did a girl from Oxford, AL end up here?” – It’s a question I often ask myself, whether speaking Thai in a Chiang Mai market, greeting women at a carepoint in Swaziland, or putting on my traditional punjabi suit before riding through Delhi traffic. My life looks very different than I ever could have dreamed it would, growing up in small town Alabama. Sometimes I still find it hard to believe that my husband and I are running our own international non-profit. When we aren’t working in our office in Maylene, AL, you can find us living and working in Thailand, India, or Africa.

Back when I was a student at Oxford High School, if you’d told me I would be comfortable half a world away in Africa I would have thought you’d lost your mind. A few years later, when I was struggling in Spanish classes at Auburn University, I would have laughed at the idea of learning Thai! But sometimes, things don’t go as we plan – and I am grateful for that! Every day that I get a chance to rescue innocent children from horrors like drug trafficking, sex trafficking, genocide and abuse, I am in awe that this is my job.

Through our work in third world countries, we are making a real difference. Little girls, who suffer in extreme poverty in Africa, are getting an opportunity for an education. Little boys, who would otherwise be forced to fight as child soldiers in Burma, are learning sustainable life-skills like gardening and raising livestock. Forgotten children, orphaned and abandoned in India, are being welcomed into loving homes. And it’s all happening because someone gave a few dollars to show they care.

If you’re reading this and wondering, “What does this have to do with me?” - well, I’m getting there.

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Give a year-end gift to The Sound of Hope!

As we wrap up 2011, we know a lot of you out there are looking for the right place to invest your year-end tax-deductible gift. We would like you to consider investing that gift in The Sound of Hope. We’ve had a wildly successful year thanks to many generous donors. Our organization’s revenue has grown by 1,209% in 2011. That growth means a greater impact in the lives of hundreds of orphans and at-risk children around the world.

To be more specific, last year (in our first year of operation as a 501c3 organization) we were able to release $3,200.00 to care for our children overseas. This year, we released $100,667.57 to the Children’s Homes and Children’s Programs we are partnered with in Thailand, India, and Swaziland!

We are beyond excited to see this increase in giving. You see, we’ve spent 5 months of this year traveling to and living in 2 of the countries where we have partnerships - Thailand and India - and we have seen the needs of these children first hand. Our bottom line is simple - the more you give, the more we can do for these kids. More money means more children rescued from poverty, drug-trafficking, sex-trafficking, genocide, disease, and abuse. More funding means more children living in safe, loving homes - and more children with an opportunity for an education!

We know that, as a donor, you want to see the greatest impact made with your year-end financial gift.

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NEW PROJECT :: Swaziland Community Garden

If you're familiar with our work at all, then you know that we're about more than just providing the basic needs for orphans and vulnerable children overseas. All our partnerships - in Thailand, India, and Africa - provide more than just "the basics". We are passionate about EMPOWERMENT, so finding partnerships that provide holistic care and are working towards sustainability is extremely important to us. We want to encourage self-sustainability, not create a dependence on foreign funds.

That's why we we're so excited about the latest project we helped start in Swaziland!

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO US!

Today The Sound of Hope is 1 year old!

It was a year ago today that we were incorporated as a non-profit organization.... my how the time has flown! In the past 365 days we've applied for our 501c3 tax exempt status (and were approved by the IRS after only 14 days!), put up this website (thanks to LBR Creative - lots more to come on it soon!), set up our partnerships in Thailand, Swaziland, and India, and lived in Thailand for 3 and 1/2 months to work alongside our partners there. And those are just the high points!

We've also released over $18,000 of support to the orphanages, children's homes, and care points we partner with. That means that $18,000 worth of tangible HOPE has been given to children that were once in hopeless situations.

YOUR DONATIONS have improved the lives of over 200 children this year, and that's a very big deal. We could not be more thrilled!

So today, we celebrate YOU, and we celebrate EACH AND EVERY CHILD whose life has been touched by your generosity. And we start to dream a little bigger as we think of another year of bringing HOPE to even more kids in need. How much more can we do together this year? How many more lives can we change?

We believe that the coming year will be even bigger than the last - with your help. So high-five the person next to you, eat a slice of celebratory birthday cake, and then consider giving a donation to help us start  YEAR #2 off with a bang!

The Promised Land Project – UPDATE

For two days we've been back at The Promised Land Project getting video and photos of the work that's being done. It is so exciting to see visible progress being made on the land! I can't wait for the day when the home is finished and this land is full of the laughter of children!

This will be a place of

RESCUE

PEACE

OPPORTUNITY

EMPOWERMENT

&

HOPE.

Since arriving in Thailand, the Sound of Hope has funneled more than $5,000 into the Promised Land. This money has infused energy into a project that had been stagnant for more than a year. Check out this video to see what has been happening in just the last couple of weeks!

Promised Land Project - Real Time update from Thailand 2/24/11 from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

We still have a long way to go, and we need your help!

To give, just CLICK HERE!