Summer 2011

	Mr. Tesfatsion Tsegaye, In-Country Director

 I am glad to give an overview of this quarter’s newsletter. Throughout last quarter, God’s provision and support was there throughout each and every activity. The Bible says, “Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain.” Psalm 127:1.

 We are so thankful for God’s leadership, help, and direction during the last quarter. It is God’s amazing grace that brought all the outcomes we now celebrate. I would like to thank the almighty God for giving us strength, wisdom, peace, and stability so that we are able to minister to so many children and communities in Ethiopia.

 I am also grateful to HopeChest ET staff for the unreserved effort they gave last quarter. Without a committed and hardworking staff, it is difficult to make things happen as planned. I am very proud of the team spirit and commitment they have. Thank you HopeChest US staff for the leadership you have shown. We are glad to be working together in this life-changing ministry.

 Children’s HopeChest (CHC) has been doing tremendous activities in Ethiopia. In our program model, “Survive, Thrive and Succeed,” we have been providing support for children at different CarePoints/orphanages, and for the community at large. In our “Survive” phase, a great number of children receive medical treatment and health checkups. We have distributed food for the children at each CarePoint, and have also drilled wells for some of our partner CarePoints. Under the “Thrive” phase, children at each CarePoint have been attending school and taking various classes to develop their skills. Under the “Succeed” Phase, we work towards sustainability and empowerment in the community and in the family.

 At CHC ET, there are two major funding approaches: Sponsorship and Capital Projects. We receive and directly wire Sponsorship funds to every CHC CarePoint each month. Capital project funds are utilized for the construction of large projects such as, school construction, wells, and the building of bridges.

 CHC ET staff has hosted a number of US teams nearly every month. We have been blessed by these teams visiting our partner CarePoints throughout the last quarter. Due to their visits, sponsors and sponsored children have had the opportunity to spend time together as a family. We are so thankful for our sponsors and donors; due to their continued support, children and their families have benefited greatly and their lives continue to change.

	A Message from Two of Our New Staff Members

Helina Damitew

 My name is Helina Damtew. I am a born again Christian, and a second year student at the Ethiopian Full Gospel College. Before I joined CHC, I taught high school. I joined Children’s HopeChest two months ago, and am working as a Trip Coordinator.

 I am very happy being a part of the CHC ministry, because I love assisting children as well as the community. This is also the intention of our heavenly God. Throughout scripture He commands us to care for the orphaned and vulnerable. As believers, we must follow the footsteps of Jesus.

 I want to thank all of our sponsors, sponsoring communities, and Children’s HopeChest staff for your enormous contribution to the great number of deprived children in Ethiopia. Together we can make a difference with the help of His grace.

God bless!

Yifrut Abebe

 I was born in a Christian family which gave me the opportunity to learn the Word of God in Sunday school. I do not know exactly when I received Jesus as my personal savior, however at the age of fourteen, I fully understood the meaning of Christianity and as a follower of Christ I became baptized.  My life was then changed completely and I decided to follow Him.  Since that day I have served in the church, ministering and worshiping the Almighty God.

 I have worked the last six years for different organizations in different positions, and have now joined CHC Ethiopia as the Capital Project Specialist. In the future I plan to work on different programs in order to build the capacity of our partners.

I wish God’s blessing for all of you!

	Discipleship Lessons

 Discipleship lessons are taught twice a month.  During this time we not only teach specific lessons, but also perform extra activities, such as:

• Discussing with the CarePoint leaders and staff about the needs of the children
• Providing individual mentoring, and learning more about each child’s behavior
• Assisting the children in writing letters to their sponsor families
• Delivering sponsor letters to the sponsored children

 Last quarter our discipleship theme was, “Jesus, our personal savior and provider.” -Matt 6:31-33, John 14:6, Acts 4: 12.

 The objective of this lesson was to identify Jesus as our only personal savior and provider.

 There is no fulfillment in following false gods; they can never become our personal savior. In this lesson the children are able to understand what it means to stand before the world and represent Jesus, how to receive the Lord’s provision, and accepting Him as our savior is the primary action that must be done for eternal life.  Jesus himself affirms that He is the only savior. “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.” Without our Lord Jesus Christ, we are inadequate; with him, we are invincible.

 When we receive that he is our only personal savior, He will be with us forever and watch over us. He is our faithful and eternal father who provides all our needs.

 *At the end of each lesson we ask the children to express what they have learned.

	Summer Vacation

 Last quarter the children were on summer vacation, however they attended school half days every day except for Sundays.  The normal academic school year ended at the end of June prior to the heavy rains. During this time, the children were sad because they missed some of their classmates.  Many of the children were not able to come because the heavy rain filled the river and made it dangerous for them to cross it.

 On the other hand, it was fun for the orphaned children who are living in the dormitories, as well as for those who were able to reach the CarePoint safely.  They played soccer and other indoor games during the school break. They also received a daily meal.  Some of the children received gifts from their sponsor families. The children experienced great joy when their sponsor families visited them.

	Thank You

 The children express their gratitude as follows:

“Thank you sponsor families, community leaders, and Children’s HopeChest for all of your support in providing meals and assisting in education. Without these great contributions we would be forced to stay on the streets and become hopeless. As you know, many of us do not have families who can support us by providing our daily needs. Our grandparents and guardians are not able to provide for us education materials and food.”

 In general, they are grateful for all of the support they have received.  All express these feelings of gratitude, and extend their thankfulness to their sponsor families, community leaders, and to Children’s HopeChest.

	Life Story

Birtukan Tefera’s (ET2119067)

 Birtukan is six years old, approximately one year ago she joined the CHC program at Trees of Glory. She does not know her father, and her mother suffers mentally. She was psychologically depressed and physically weak, and was unable to even wash her face or hands when she first arrived. After one week of her coming to the CarePoint she reached out to both Girma and Simret (leaders at TOG) and asked them to be her guardians. Immediately they embraced her and promised to care for her. Girma introduced his daughter to Birtukan, and the two girls have become close like sisters. Birtukan now shows a very healthy composure, she has undergone a psychological, physical, and emotional transformation.  Whenever given the opportunity to pray, she prays for an extended period of time for everyone in her life. Because of your support, Birtukan has become one of the most outstanding students at Trees of Glory.

	Simret Mengesha, CarePoint Leader

“You, LORD, bless everyone who cares for the poor, and you rescue those in times of trouble…” Psalms 41:1-3.

 First of all, we extend our greetings to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ!

 Lives have been touched by the helping hands of Children’s HopeChest and sponsor families; the children have literally been transformed by the grace of God. We come into a covenant relationship with each other as we answer the call to work with these precious children. As we minister to their physical needs, we pour into their spiritual lives with the word of God and sound Christian teaching that leads not only into salvation, but into a life of servitude and spiritual growth.

 We are fulfilling the needs of these children by providing meals, clothes, shoes, education and other gifts that come directly from our sponsor families. We will also never forget the kind treatment that you have shown to Webit Bekele. Thank you.

 Consistent correspondence brings about behavioral change and improves the children’s confidence; consequently they feely communicate with their sponsors families and express themselves. Sending photographs and written letters especially encourages the orphaned children, and they realize that they have families abroad who care for them.

 Educational support also develops each child’s reading and writing skills, and encourages many of them to begin communicating to their sponsor families.

 Their families have also been greatly influenced by the children’s behavioral, psychological, emotional, spiritual, and educational transformation. They often voice their hope that we will be able to further progress the school to the next grade level.

 All TOG staff members extend their gratitude to the community leaders, Children’s HopeChest, and sponsor families. Be blessed in the Mighty name of our Lord for all of the effort you have shown on behalf of the needy children.

 We are also so very thankful for the livestock project; currently we have six cows and three calves. The children are getting milk in addition to their daily meal. We are selling the extra milk and using the funds to pay for the feeding expenses of the cows. We are also looking forward to the construction of the well for the benefit of the children and the community at large. Without water, life is very challenging at TOG.

 Finally, I would like to say, “God bless you all for the heart you have shown for the children.”

	Trees of Glory

Trees of Glory main objectives for the children are:

• To provide daily meals
• To create access to schooling to all of the orphans and destitute children in our community
• To provide primary health care
• To provide mentoring and counseling in order to make them good citizens
• To educate them on and help improve their personal hygiene

	Prayer Requests

• Pray for the children’s parents and guardians to know more about Jesus as we serve their children.
• Please continue praying for the commencement of the well project, we are looking forward to getting clean water and getting relief from having to transport water from a far distance by using a donkey.