My Birthday Wish

In case you missed my last blog - I'm turning 30!!!

Today is my 30th birthday, and I just have one birthday wish. My wish is to raise the travel funds we need to return to Thailand and India this Spring. 

Many of you know that my husband and I work full time running an orphan care non-profit called The Sound of Hope. What I hope you know - is that we consistently sacrifice to put the needs of the children we serve first. What you probably don't know - is that often means sacrificing the administrative funds we need as an organization. As a matter of fact, it's been more than 2 years since we've had the administrative funds we need to travel. Unfortunately, our work is suffering because of it. 

There are 211 children in 4 countries who depend on our organization. It is incredibly important that we spend time at each of our international partnerships -- to build even stronger relationships with our native partners and with the children we care for. It's important that we spend time in each country researching the needs of the Children's Homes, planning future fundraisers, and gathering the media we need to effectively fundraise for the children. Our work in the US depends on the work we do while we are overseas. I cannot express this enough -- it is vital for the future of our non-profit organization that we travel this year. 

Today is my birthday, but I'm not wishing for anything glamorous. It might seem crazy to some people that on my 30th birthday, I'm begging you to help me return to the slums and brothels and orphanages in 3rd world countries - but that is honestly my heart's desire! I adore the children we care for through The Sound of Hope, and today my heart is aching to be back with them!

I made a promise to Jyoti that I would come back.

I made a promise to Susheela that I would come back.

Since we were last overseas, a brand new Children's Home (that we helped establish) has opened in Thailand, and the first 8 little girls have come into the home. I made a promise to those little girls that we would visit.... a promise that we would meet them and spend time with them and show them how much we love them. Every single time we call them, they get on the phone and beg us to visit. On every single phone call I hear 8 little voices pleading with us - "Rusty and Ericka, when are you coming to see us?!" And during every phone call I cry - because I cannot be with them.

And so, today, on my 30th birthday, it would mean so much if you would donate $30 in honor of my life and my work with The Sound of Hope at the link below. We need to raise at least $15,000 by the end of January, but even $30 will make a difference! Please GIVE so that we can GO and help these children have a better future! Please make my birthday wish come true!

What the latest Alabama win taught me...

If you're an American... or, at least, if you're an American living in the South, then you were probably watching the National Championship Football Game on Monday night. It was a boring 4 quarters, where the Crimson Tide absolutely stomped Notre Dame. And right now, you're probably thinking that the Alabama win taught me that the SEC is just as unstoppable as we thought they were!

But while that's true, it's what happened after the game that I wish I'd never learned. Because as soon as that crystal football was handed over to Nick Saban, this picture (of what I assume are some darling children in Africa), and several others like it, started circulating around Facebook and Twitter.

And suddenly, I learned 2 heartbreaking truths.

#1 - Our society believes that children in need, especially children overseas, only deserve our leftovers.

#2 - Americans are so comfortable with that belief, that we'll even make a joke out of it.

Now don't get me wrong - I don't think that every person who shared this picture (or laughed at this picture) was thinking, "Yeah, needy African kids who can't even afford food or basic clothing only deserve the crap I don't want." I'm sure there were a lot of loving, Christian people who shared this picture in an effort to be funny. But that's the point. As Americans - and I dare say, as Christians - this belief is so common, and so accepted, that we'll even laugh about it.

This picture is a cute, funny example of a deplorable and dangerous way of thinking. And maybe, it's the wake up call that many of us need. The adorable little boys in this picture, and the barefoot babies in ragged clothing in Swaziland, and the darling little girls playing in the trash heaps in India, and the forgotten little boys in the impoverished villages of Thailand - they all have one thing in common. They deserve our best.

But they rarely get it. As someone who runs an orphan-care non-profit, I get to see this sad story played out all the time. We have people who ask us if we want their old worn out running shoes to take to our kids in Africa. Or maybe we want to haul their old used VHS tapes to the kids? And don't even get me started on people and their money! When it comes to financial donations, the thought that people would actually sacrifice their wants so that these kids could have their needs met - well, the list of people willing to do that is short. Instead, they might give the $20 left over after they do their Christmas shopping, or the $30 they have leftover at the end of the month. But for a person to sit down with their family and ask, "What frivolous things could our family do without, so that these children can get the best care possible?" - well, people who think like that are very rare.

I wish I could make everyone love these children like we do. I wish I could make people understand that the orphaned baby girl in India deserves the same perfectly decorated nursery, beautiful new clothes, expensive carseat, organic baby food, and pricey formula that you bought your little girl when she was born.

And that the 3 year old orphan boy in Swaziland deserves more than one (worn out) change of clothes, a pair of light up tennis shoes, a soccer ball, a bunk bed with superhero sheets, and enrollment in the best preschool in town - just like you bought for your little boy.

These children deserve so much more than our pity and our leftovers. They deserve to be cherished, loved, and provided for. They deserve the same opportunities and educations that our children deserve. They deserve to have their needs, and even some of their wants met - just like your kids do. They deserve our BEST - not to be the punchline at the end of a bad joke.

Announcing a BRAND NEW Sound of Hope!

If you just read my blog then you're probably wondering why I've been MIA lately. (Sorry friends!) But if you're also my friend on FB or twitter, then you know the reason I haven't been blogging, is because of the CrAzY hours I've been working.

I don't actually remember the last time Rusty and I had a real (full) day off, but I do know it was before Thanksgiving. And since we got home from our Arkansas Thanksgiving visit, we've been working a lot of 10, 12, 15, and even 18 hour work days. But I'm thrilled to announce that alllll that work was worth it, because this week we revealed our BRAND NEW logo, website, and online store for The Sound of Hope!!!

For a while now we've known that in order to continue our full-time work with The Sound of Hope, we needed to focus on improving our organization. We've been "getting by" with free websites and printwork designed by friends, and while we're grateful for that getting us this far, it just didn't do our work justice. The children we serve overseas have INCREDIBLE stories, and we want to make sure people hear them, see them, and have a way to respond to them. So this Fall, we hired an amazing firm to make The Sound of Hope even better!

The team at Ideogram has worked tirelessly to create this awesome site for us, and we're so excited to see it live! On our homepage you'll find an interactive slider that shows each country we work in, our main video for that country, our latest tweet, and the projects we're currently fundraising for. (Move the boxes with your up & down & left & right arrows.)

Click on the map (or the menu in the top right of the page) and you can visit 4 country specific pages. For the first time, you can see (in detail) where we work, how many children we care for, and exactly what we do in each country. You can also find our latest country specific videos, blogs, and fundraising projects. There are 2 brand new Feature videos too - check them out on our India & Swaziland pages! (I'm just going to brag on my husband for a minute here, ok? Rusty did an amazing job on these 2 videos, so you will definitely want to watch them! :)

There are several other new pages, but I'll let you peruse the site and discover them yourself. I do want to point out one more INCREDIBLE addition though. This week, we opened up our first ever online store for The Sound of Hope!

For the past year I have been collecting merchandise from around the world to sell in our shop. We have so many beautiful, unique products from India, Thailand, Burma, and Swaziland - and I'm so excited to finally share them with you! There's original art, handmade jewelry, silk scarves, handpainted brass bowls and MUCH more! And the best part is - every single purchase helps us provide RESCUE, PROTECTION, and HOLISTIC CARE to children in need.

It's been really exciting to see how people have responded to our new site and the store! In just 3 days our store has had over 2,000 page views and a ton of orders. I believe this will be a great tool to connect new people with our work around the world! (And a big THANK YOU goes out to Alison Wilkey for the gorgeous product photos she did for us! :)

So, what are you waiting for?! Go check out our new site and shop in our new store! (If you place an order by Monday the 17th, you should get it in time for Christmas :) And please help us get the word out by sharing our new site with your friends via email, facebook, and twitter. 'Tis the season for year-end tax-deductible gifts, and we need your help to finish 2012 strong!

Planting HOPE in a trash heap.

Today I'm reposting a blog I wrote for The Sound of Hope. This is a new project in India that we are really excited about - and we've got over half of the funds raised already! We'd like to finish fundraising for this before Christmas, but we need your help. If you're looking for a gift for a teacher in your life, donating to this project in their honor would truly be a gift that keeps giving!

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Here in India, we've found that there are 3 main areas that the children at our homes are rescued from - the Red Light District, Leper Colonies, and the Slums. We've visited all three of these areas during this trip, but our visit to Chauma Slum was definitely the most overwhelming.

After a short drive from the Children's Home, we arrived at what appeared to be an empty trash heap. But as we peered inside the open huts made of leftover plastic and cardboard, children began to arrive out of nowhere. Within a few moments, we were surrounded by filthy, beautiful, pathetic, precious little boys and girls.

They were covered in dirt and sores. Snot dripped from their noses and their matted hair looked like it had never been washed or brushed. Their clothes were trash - torn, worn peices that other people had thrown away. And as they ran to us, Babu (our Indian partner) explained that any food they got was also from the trash - leftovers or spoiled items their parents found while trashpicking.

I looked deep into their eyes and it was more than I could take. I felt hot tears well up inside, but for their sake, I fought them back. They didn't need my pity - what they needed was love and attention!
After some hugs and kisses, a song, and some candy, I brought out my camera. They posed like they were little models - hamming it up and pushing themselves in front of my lens. "Auntie, Auntie! Take me!" they shouted as my shutter snapped. They all wanted to see their photos, and have pictures made with their siblings.

For about an hour, I lost myself with them. I took pictures while they fought for my attention. I held their grubby hands and patted their sweet little heads. We laughed and played together. I pushed them around on their only "toy" - a trashpicker's cart some adult had left behind. It was in the middle of this "game" that I was forced back to reality.

"Ericka - watch out! That is human poop you are stepping in! It's everywhere!" Babu shouted.

I shrugged it off and kept playing - but it hit home for me. These children are living and playing in trash and human feces EVERY DAY OF THEIR LIVES. Their parents abandon them during the day so that they can go and search through the trash heaps around town for food or recyclables - anything useful. This is the only source of income for these families. The children here are destined to live out the same fate... UNLESS WE DO SOMETHING.

I know we can't rescue all these children. The 3 homes we support in India are already overflowing with too many kids and not enough space. But leaving these little ones behind without doing anything for them was too much to bear. We don't want to just be spectators in these countries- we want to RESPOND when we see a need!

It turns out that Sharma, the house dad for Asha Mission, has been wanting to plant a school here for over 6 months. We eagerly asked what we could do to help. Babu explained that all they really need is funding, and the small amount it will take to run this school for a YEAR will shock you! Watch this video to hear more...

Chauma Slum - Delhi, India from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

Just $1,600 will fund a school in the Chauma Slum for 1 year. That's $200 to rent a plot of land, $175 to build a basic structure, and $35 per child to cover their school supplies. The school will be small and very basic, but if we can even teach these children to READ, then their lives could be changed FOREVER!

You see, for a forgotten child like this little girl, EDUCATION = HOPE.

So please, help us plant HOPE in a trash heap. You never know the possibilities that could grow out of this garbage!

My Night in a Brothel

"If you take me to America with you, I will leave this life."
 

Kamlal's statement stunned me. For a moment I envisioned myself taking her by the hand and marching out of the brothel. I started to reason that she could live with my husband and I in our guestroom. I saw a better life for her unfolding....

....but in the blink of an eye it was back to reality. 

Rusty joked with her that we could adopt her, and we all laughed. We knew there would be no way to take this 35 year old woman - with a husband and 2 children - away to America. It just isn't that easy. 

But looking around me, I wished it was. I was standing on the balcony of a brothel in the Red Light District of Delhi, India. From behind the iron bars on the windows, women were beckoning their customers. They would service the men in the 8 tiny rooms to my left and right - 4 on each side of the balcony, 2 on top of each other. I call them rooms, but they were more like prison cells. A 5 by 4 cement room with a cement slab for a "bed". There was no ventilation, and only a small red bulb for a light. I couldn't bring myself to imagine these sweet women "working" in these damp, dark cells. I shuddered and whispered the name of Jesus. There was little I could do but pray for His presence to fill the darkness.

We'd come to G.B. Road to visit the mothers of 4 of the boys at one of our Children's Homes. Our contact, Saji, had been doing ministry in this area with his wife for several years. In the video below, you'll hear him explain that there are between 15 and 20,000 women working in brothels on this road. The road is less than a mile long.

Red Light District, New Delhi from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

He also explained that for some families, prostitution is multi-generational. One little boy from our home has not only a mother working in these brothels, but a grandmother too. We've never been so convinced of the importance of rescuing the children out of this area. No child should have to grow up in a brothel. No little boy should have to watch his mother being bought by strange men night after night. No little girl should grow up seeing her mother treated like property.

But there are children who do. After a slow climb up a dark, filthy stairwell, we met a little girl who couldn't have been more than 7 years old. She offered me some gooseberries and we sat and ate together. She, like her mother, seemed happy. But our contact told us it was only a mask.

"Many people here have become addicted to alcohol and drugs, because once they get into this [profession], many people use them and mistreat them... therefore they have become addicted. Maybe they show their smiles on their face but inside their hearts I feel there are very many pains and agonies."

But the women aren't the only ones. When Saji introduced us to Kamlal, he explained that her husband was the one addicted. "We have taken him to rehabilitation two or three times, but it doesn't last. He is addicted, and he is abusive." We found out that Kamlal is forced to sell her body to support her husband. "He will come for money," Saji explained, "and if she does not give it to him, he will beat her."

I asked how much she costs.

"200 rupees," she responded.

FOUR DOLLARS.

That's the price for her dignity, her health, her self-respect. $4.00! I was appalled. The beautiful woman standing in front of me was only "worth" the price of my mocha at Starbucks.

As I tried to wrap my mind around that figure, I wondered if her work or her abusive husband was the reason for the back pain she was complaining about. She asked us to pray for her, and Saji explained that she'd experienced healing from prayers before. She knew she could turn to Jesus in her suffering. And so, I prayed. I prayed for healing, and then I prayed for a new life for her. I told her she was a child of God - made in His image. I told her that He had a plan for her life - and it wasn't prostitution. I asked God to reveal Himself to her and to reveal His plan for her life. And all the while she clung to me like a liferaft.

Rusty told me I should sing over her, and she agreed. From the moment we walked up the staircase I'd been wanting to sing Rita Springer's "Holy Spirit Come" over this place.... but when I opened my mouth all I could sing was Amazing Grace. I fought back tears as I felt God saying - "My GRACE is big enough. It's big enough to cover you, and it is big enough to cover Kamlal. My grace is sufficient - and it is even big enough to cover a brothel."

As we said goodbye, I prayed for His GRACE to find Kamlal.

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We met 9 more women that night in the brothel, including the mother of one of our boys. She was surprisingly social - full of laughter and insisting on playing "hostess" and getting us drinks. But when Saji explained she had been in this brothel for 10 years, I wondered what kind of pain was hiding behind her smile.

Rusty asked why the women stayed here. "Most of them cannot even read," Saji explained, "so they can't really escape this life." I found myself praying a prayer of thankfulness for my free education. I wondered how I could have been born in a place with so much opportunity, when there are girls just like me born into brothels.

Saji went on to explain that the apartments they lived in were owned by landlords that required half of their income. "So... if they make 200 rupees, the landlord will get 100 of it", he explained. Rusty and I looked at each other in disbelief. That meant these women only got $2.00 from each of their "customers". I tried to hide my shock as I took another sip of my soda.

My soda that was bought by money earned from prostitution.

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My mind was reeling as we prayed over two more women and said our goodbyes. They hugged me more tightly than I have been hugged in years, and I wondered why they clung to me so desperately.  I hoped it was because they saw Jesus in me. I hoped that they could see that I loved them. I hoped that our prayers brought some light into their dark world.

I whispered "Jesus" on every step back down the cramped staircase. Over and over I begged Him to come - for the customers, for the women, and for the children we were leaving behind.

As we drove away from G.B. road, I knew I would never be the same.

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We may not be able to end human trafficking on our own, or to rescue the prostitutes we met -  but we can fight for the next generation. The Children's Homes we support in India and Thailand are doing more than just rescuing children from brothels - they are preventing children from ever being at risk of trafficking. By giving these children a safe home, an education, and equipping them with sustainable life skills, we are providing a way out of this cycle. Our little girls will grow up knowing their worth, and knowing that they are capable of a better life. If you want to help us protect and empower these children, you can give a tax-deductible donation HERE.

100 Days in Thailand :: Day 40 - The Salawin River, M-16s, & Bomb Shelters

Today was the day the situation in Burma became real to me.

It all started innocently enough - we were just going out to spend another fun day with Rapee & Pastor Banya. They had suggested we go to the Salawin River for the day - something Rusty had been wanting to do anyway! We were excited to spend time with them again, and I was excited to get my first glimpse of Burma.

Right across the Salawin River is Burma.....

They asked if we wanted to do the "boat ride" down the river and we excitedly said YES! We'd wanted to do it earlier in our trip, but some artillery fire across the river had made it unsafe. We were glad it was a possibility today because I didn't want to miss out on this experience!

So... we climbed in and went down the river....

 The ride was so peaceful, and the landscape was beautiful....

The Promised Land Project

I am SO excited to share more with you today about The Promised Land project, one of the projects we are partnered with here in Thailand!

The Promised Land project all started with the dream of a Thai-Karen couple, Panya and his wife Rapee. Located near the border of Burma, The Promised Land Children's Home will be a place where children are rescued from desperate situations such as poverty, abandonment, drug trafficking, sex trafficking, or being forced to fight as child soldiers.

Approximately 7 acres of land has been purchased, which will allow The Promised Land to become much more than just a children’s home. The Promised Land will be a safe environment where children will be given love, stability, shelter, mentoring and an education. At The Promised Land, marginalized children will have a safe place to learn real life skills such as farming, fishing, raising livestock and other agricultural training. The agricultural products that will be developed will allow The Promised Land to become self-sustaining once the buildings are built and children are settled in.

This model of holistic care and self sustainability will EMPOWER the children as they grow older. It will give them the skills they need to provide for themselves and their families AND the opportunities they need to become leaders in their country!

As I mentioned in my last blog, we got an opportunity to visit the land recently, and it is truly INCREDIBLE!

It looks like paradise....

... but there are a lot of other reasons why this piece of land is so special! 

The first is its location - it is located approximately 20 miles from the Bur/ma border (read why that it important here). That means it's strategically located to help rescue not only Thai children, but also Burmese/Karen children. It's also located near schools so the children will receive a great education!

This land is also special because the soil is SO fertile. They are already growing crops of rice and soybeans and will be able to have 4 to 5 crops a year! This produce can help feed the children AND be sold in the market to help cover other costs of running the Children's Home.

 Soybean plants

There is also a fish pond (it's not yet filled or stocked - that's part of what we're raising money for!) which will also provide food and fish to sell in the market. And the land is right near a river, so irrigation will never be a problem!

One of the most incredible things to me though, was what is already growing and flourishing on the land. This piece of land has an ABUNDANT supply of fruit trees and edible plants that can be used for food and medicine! 

There are banana trees....

Jackfruit trees....

Coconut palms
(which are rare up north and can be used for food OR to make pressed coconut oil
- which can be sold for a high price in the market!)

 And sweet, edible bamboo...  

....just to name a few! I can't imagine a more perfect place to start a Children's Home!

This project is overseen by our partners in Thailand - which are the Thai-Karen couple Panya & Rapee and an American couple, Ray & Candace Ward, who have served in Thailand for 10 years. To find out more about them (and The Promised Land Project), check out the video below!

Promised Land Project (Thailand Trip Update) from Rusty Jackson on Vimeo.

To give a donation today, please CLICK HERE!

An overall estimated 3,000,000 Thai Baht (approximately $100,000 USD) will be needed to see this project fully become a reality. Any amount you can donate will help bring HOPE and OPPORTUNITY to orphans and vulnerable children from Bur/ma and Thailand for generations to come!