Participants:
Series Code: HIM
Program Code: HIM001208S
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00:02 Child Impact International
00:03 is an organization that gives hope 00:05 and fosters permanent, 00:07 positive change in the lives of disadvantaged children 00:10 and their communities. 00:12 Countries include Zambia, Kenya, 00:17 India, Nepal, 00:18 Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Myanmar. 00:22 Child Impact's investment in the lives 00:24 of more than 3,500 children 00:26 continues to yield infinite returns. 00:29 Outreach spans from child rescue operations 00:31 to providing an education 00:33 and a home for deaf and blind children and orphans. 00:37 Above all, Child Impact's sponsors 00:39 give hope to the ones who need it the most. 00:56 There is something special about a child 00:59 whose life has been transformed. 01:01 They have an extra spring in their step, 01:03 a smile on their face and a song in their heart. 01:08 This is especially true for children 01:10 who have a disability in countries like India 01:13 and have been given the opportunity of education 01:16 and a saving knowledge of Jesus. 01:18 Child Impact International is giving deaf children 01:21 these two very important things. 01:24 The deaf school is located in Kollegal, 01:27 which is sort of a country town 01:30 about a two hour drive south of Bangalore. 01:34 And if you get up early enough, you can get there in two hours, 01:39 but in thick traffic it can be a three hour drive. 01:45 The thing that stood out to me 01:47 at the deaf school was just how happy the kids 01:50 were because they're suddenly 01:52 in a group of children that they can communicate with. 01:56 When they're back in the village 01:57 no one understands them, 01:59 no one understands sign language. 02:02 And when they get to the school, 02:04 suddenly they're not only getting an education, 02:07 but they're learning how to communicate 02:10 and that's such a huge thing 02:12 that we're not really used to 02:14 and then they communicate with each other. 02:17 And just to see them interacting, 02:19 to them being educated 02:21 and to see them playing together, 02:23 really is impressive 02:25 and they're really, really happy. 02:29 The Kollegal School for the speech 02:31 and hearing impaired is located in a rural setting 02:33 in Karnataka, India. 02:36 It has a wonderful campus, with over 100 students. 02:39 But it did not begin on such a grand scale. 02:43 For the starting of our deaf school, 02:46 we came to know that 02:47 there was a school for deaf children 02:50 that was being closed. 02:52 It was being run by another organization. 02:55 And the lady that was working 02:58 with me in the sponsorship program in India, 03:01 her husband was living in the area 03:04 where the school was. 03:06 And so we felt that it was a real tragedy 03:09 to think that these children 03:10 were just being left with, you know, 03:12 with no education possibilities. 03:16 And so for the first year, 03:19 we just rented a building and we had a little auto 03:25 that used to go and pick up the children 03:28 and then we had some of them 03:29 living in that small building also. 03:34 In 2002, after many years of renting, 03:36 a school was constructed for them. 03:38 This school provides food, boarding and an education. 03:42 It is also a beacon of hope to many deaf children 03:45 since it is located in a poor, rural area 03:48 where it's hard to get an education, 03:50 especially if you are deaf. 03:53 The deaf school is managed and owned by the church, 03:58 but Child Impact International 03:59 provides all the sponsorship 04:02 and all the funding for the school. 04:05 And one positive thing about the school is the excellent, 04:09 strong leadership we have in the couple that run it. 04:13 Jacob and Shinet, both understand sign language 04:18 and Jacob gives strong leadership 04:20 as the principal 04:22 and Shinet is involved in all aspects of the school. 04:25 And I just really appreciate the commitment 04:28 that they have to the school, 04:30 along with their staff. 04:35 This school established in this place 04:37 has been really a blessing to many. 04:41 In that regards I would like to say that 04:43 there're many children here 04:45 who are from very poor background 04:47 and if it is not for this school 04:49 they would have been back at home 04:51 doing some odd jobs. 04:53 This school has become a blessing for many children 04:57 and for the parents 04:58 because they are here having a good education, 05:02 having good shelter 05:03 and above all they are forming a good character, 05:08 to be kind, to be sharing. 05:10 And they feel like a family here 05:11 because all the children are here of the same kind, 05:15 so they are like brotherly, sisterly kind here. 05:19 And there're many other children 05:21 who have finished their studies 05:23 and they're standing on their own feet 05:25 and they are a good example for these children. 05:27 They look up to them and they have dreams, 05:30 and they have hope that 05:32 their dreams will be fulfilled one day. 05:35 Without this school for the deaf, 05:37 there would be very little hope for these children. 05:41 Those who are deaf are treated very poorly 05:43 because deafness is considered a curse. 05:46 Some families will try to hide the fact 05:48 that their child is deaf. 05:50 Sometimes fathers will leave their families 05:52 because they don't want the shame of being 05:54 the father to a deaf child. 05:57 Advith mother came here 06:00 with a hopeful heart, 06:04 but when we started talking to the mother, 06:06 we realized that Advith was born deaf 06:09 and soon as the father 06:11 has come to know that the boy has born deaf, 06:13 the father did not want to stay with the mother 06:16 because they consider this as a curse upon them. 06:19 So the father was insisting the mother 06:21 to leave the boy in an orphan 06:23 or leave him and then come. 06:25 But the mother having so much of love for the son, 06:29 she could not do 06:31 what the husband asked her to do, 06:33 rather she decided in her heart 06:35 that she will stay with the son, 06:36 give him a bright future, 06:38 so she parted ways from her husband. 06:42 She stays alone now to support Advith 06:46 and in a community like where she stays, 06:49 it's very hard to survive alone. 06:51 She can be misused by other men. 06:54 She can face a lot of difficulties. 06:57 To go and get a job itself is very hard for her 07:00 and she's very smart, she has masters, 07:03 she has done her college, 07:05 but now to go and find a job 07:08 and she has to go to the court 07:11 as well as to attend the case, 07:13 so people are not so happy 07:14 to give her leave on a working day. 07:18 She's finding it so hard, 07:20 but this school has given her a hope 07:23 to give education for Advith. 07:26 So with so much of difficulties, 07:28 she still puts a cheerful face 07:30 so that her boy in turn can be happy. 07:34 It is hard to imagine the difficult situation 07:36 that Advith's mother was in. 07:38 In India, there aren't any special programs 07:40 to help single mothers. 07:42 That situation alone is very difficult, 07:45 but adding in a disabled child 07:47 makes the situation almost impossible. 07:51 Thankfully, Advith's mother had the opportunity 07:54 to enroll him into Child Impact's school 07:57 for the deaf, 07:58 where he settled in to his new environment quickly. 08:02 After the mother left Advith in the hostel 08:06 and when she left, me and Jacob 08:09 we're looking at the boy is so small, 08:11 just three and a half years old. 08:13 And we were, like, wondering, 08:15 how this boy is going to stay here. 08:17 He's so small, will he be able to stay away from his mother? 08:21 Will he be able to cope with the other children? 08:24 But he surprised us. 08:25 He did not cry. 08:28 The way he conducted himself, 08:30 it's like he understood the difficulties of his mother 08:34 and he was ready to cope up with the other children. 08:37 He was happy, he was smiling, 08:38 he did not cry, he ate his food, 08:41 he went to his bed and morning he was awake. 08:44 He was perfectly fine with the other children. 08:48 Advith's story is just one out of hundreds of children 08:52 who have had their lives dramatically changed 08:54 for the better because of this school. 08:57 They not only receive an education 08:59 and valuable life skills, but also room and board. 09:03 Even though the school provides 09:04 these children with many opportunities, 09:06 the greatest opportunity of all is a saving relationship 09:09 with Jesus Christ. 09:11 You know, we have children, 99 percentage of Hindu children 09:17 and the remaining one is the Muslim kids. 09:20 We have only two Muslim children 09:22 and they are here. 09:24 When they come, they know nothing about Jesus, 09:26 they know nothing about Bible, 09:29 but after they come here, they learn so many things. 09:33 They have morning worship, they have evening worship, 09:36 they have song service, they learn many songs, 09:38 they take up the prayer, 09:40 sometimes they volunteer themselves, saying, like, 09:42 we want to tell a story. 09:44 And, of course, we have Sabbath services 09:46 where they learn many more about Bible 09:49 and now I can say some of the older children, 09:53 they know more Bible stories and they believe in Jesus. 09:57 Their belief is more than we. 09:59 Sometime we tend to fail somewhere 10:02 when we get temptations or when we get trouble, 10:05 we sometime go low and then get 10:07 our faith back and then stand. 10:09 But these children, 10:11 they put their trust completely on Jesus. 10:14 You should see their prayer, 10:15 you should really see their prayer. 10:17 When they pray, it's a sincere, honest prayer, 10:20 and we have seen answers for their prayer, 10:25 it's incredible. 10:28 It's amazing to see just a tiny amount of the work 10:31 that Child Impact's school 10:32 for the deaf has done and is doing. 10:35 They have given bright futures to hundreds of children 10:38 who otherwise would not have been 10:39 able to receive an education and live a meaningful life. 10:43 To me, it's just wonderful to be 10:45 able to do something for children 10:47 like the blind and the deaf. 10:49 To give them an opportunity to do something special 10:54 with their lives for God 10:56 and an opportunity that, you know, 11:00 coming from the villages and that that 11:01 they definitely would never have had without the fact that 11:06 our schools have been built 11:08 and sponsorship provided 11:10 so that the children can attend. 11:13 Without the generous support of sponsors like you, 11:16 none of this would be possible. 11:18 These children would have no hope for the future, 11:21 but you have given them hope. 11:23 Thank you for your support. 11:52 At the deaf school, 11:53 Child Impact has some great plans. 11:56 The school needs a new boy's dormitory. 11:59 New government requirements 12:02 means that we have to have separate buildings 12:04 for the boys and girls. 12:06 And so, Child Impact is very committed 12:10 to the future of the deaf school 12:12 and also wants to start a major project 12:16 building a new boys' dormitory. 12:30 Hello, I'm Tom Evans, 12:31 CEO of Child Impact International. 12:34 That was an amazing program 12:36 we've just watched about the deaf school in India. 12:39 This school gives so many children 12:41 from very poor backgrounds such amazing hope. 12:45 The program clearly showed 12:46 that this not only impacts the life of the child 12:48 and their education, 12:50 but it gives their families hope that 12:52 there's a bright future for their child. 12:54 I was also impressed 12:55 with the staff of the deaf school 12:57 and the spiritual input that they give to these children. 13:01 Child Impact International is very excited that 13:04 with your partnership and working together 13:07 with the church, we can fund those that 13:09 have special needs in this school. 13:12 We do need support for our special needs school 13:14 and invite you to support our Blind, 13:17 Deaf and Orphan Fund. 13:19 By doing so you can help the children talked about 13:21 in this program. 13:23 Please go to the website, 13:24 childimpact.org 13:26 That's childimpact.org and be sure to donate 13:30 to the Blind, Deaf and Orphan fund. 13:33 Thank you so much for your generosity. |
Revised 2021-10-21