You can show hope to the orphans at Maria’s Big House of Hope by donating necessary supplies for their kindergarten class!  This is a great project for your friends, your family, or your church. You can either purchase the items and ship them to our office in Nashville, or you can donate online and we will purchase the items on your behalf.  But there’s not much time! These supplies need to be in our office by March 5:
Show Hope
c/o MBHOH Kindergarten Supplies
230 Franklin Rd.
Suite 11JJ
Franklin, TN 37064

Maria’s Big House of Hope is a medical care center in Luoyang, China, that cares for orphans with special needs, providing them with abundant love, medical attention, and hope.

Supply List: Due to transport restrictions, please only send the items listed below.

Thank you for your willingness to help show hope for these children! If you have questions, please call Cathy Troyer at 615.550.5600.

Kelsie Rae was originally admitted to our care in March of 2009 at 3 months old. At the time, she was diagnosed with MMC, a form of spina bifida. Kelsie Rae successfully received surgery in Suzhou at the end of last year, and was transferred to Maria’s Big House of Hope in early 2010. She now resides in the Tinkerbell room with Jim, Julian, Jessica, and Juliana.

Kelsie is such a beautiful, active little girl. Many of the nannies refer to her as “Mikaela #2” as these two sweet girls both have big, beautiful eyes set in their round faces, and share similar mannerisms. Kelsie is a very happy baby, who is almost always found smiling. She is learning to walk, and follows the other children around the room looking for adventures. She has become great friends with Julian and they often rush to the toy box together to find something new to get into.

We are excited to see Kelsie Rae grow and thrive under the tender care that Show Hope sponsors provide at Maria’s Big House of Hope. We have high hopes that she will be eligible to be matched with a forever family very soon.

Lebron has been receiving loving care provided by the support of Show Hope sponsors since he arrived at Maria’s Big House of Hope at just two months old. He was diagnosed with Down Syndrome, but at 20 months old, Lebron remains a very happy, healthy baby boy.

As Lebron grows, his awe at the world around him grows too. His sense of wonder adds great joy to MBHOH. This curious little guy quickly discovered the excitement of exploring the nursery with the other children as he just learned to crawl. Lebron also recently learned how to hold his own bottle and will quickly take it out of your hands if you try to feed him!

As MBHOH grows towards reaching full capacity, the partnership of Show Hope sponsors allows MBHOH to care for more boys and girls with Down Syndrome, providing excellent care in an environment where children like Lebron can receive the love, stimulation and therapy needed to reach their full potential.

Franky's Admission Photo

Franky came to Maria’s Big House of Hope right after it opened in July 2009. In fact, this sweet girl was named by Mary Beth Chapman while she was in Luoyang for the Grand Opening! At the time, this beautiful baby was 4 months old.  She was quickly diagnosed with a congenital heart defect and epilepsy and after several months of loving care at MBHOH, she was able to reach an average weight and is doing well.

Franky’s personality has really developed as she has grown. She loves to be held by her nannies and shows her appreciation with lots of sweet smiles. Since most of the older children have moved to the 1st floor, she is now the older sister in her room. This becomes obvious when you see a row of cribs with little bald heads and then you see Franky’s thick, black hair! All the nannies joke that she looks like a famous singer in China, and lovingly refer to her as the “little singer.”

Though she still suffers from occasion seizures due to the epilepsy, we know that her overall good health is a blessing, and are thankful to be able to celebrate her first birthday with her next month. Please pray with us that as Franky grows, God will open doors and show our medical team the right course of action for her CHD.  As this week is Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week, we covet your prayers for Franky as well as the other children at MBHOH and around the world facing the challenges CHD.

Debbie and Dana Blakeslee knew that the adoption journey could be a long process. With five children already at home, the couple felt led to adopt older children. When they accepted a referral for a boy and girl from Taipei, Taiwan after more than a year into their journey, the real wait began. The Blakeslee’s learned, however, that “God was in the waiting.”

Debbie shares,

“What can we say about this wait? How can we describe the anxious thoughts, the paperwork, the people God put in our path, the friendships forged with unlikely people that God was using to bring our children home? The day the letter came from Show Hope announcing our grant, my delight knew no bounds. It was NOT just a monetary grant to me.”

By an amazing “coincidence,” the Blakeslee’s oldest daughter, vacationing in Taiwan, was able to meet her new brother and sister just days after her parents accepted the referral back in the United States.

Months later, the Blakeslee’s held their first live webchat with their children, which they continued regularly for four months until they traveled to bring home their son, Kai. Because Sarah-Grace’s case was taking longer, the family knew they would continue with their chats and return for her on a different trip. They didn’t realize their return to Taiwan would be more than a year later, but their anxiousness turned to joy when at last their family was complete!

“To Show Hope sponsors I say ‘Thank you.’ It is so much more than money you are giving. It is hope and strength to go on for many long years and it is the belief that God is on our side in the wait.”

This week we welcomed three new admissions to Maria’s Big House of Hope! Please pray for Brooke, Kelsie Rae and Holly as they enter into the loving care of our nannies and nurses. Pray for their health, comfort and joy as these sweet girls join the MBHOH family.

In case you missed the “MBHOH-January Recap” video that we tweeted about last week, we’re including it in this blog post for you to enjoy. We hope the videos from China will bring you closer to the beautiful children that your sponsorship helps every day.

Show Hope would like to invite you to attend The Connected Child Conference 2010 in Advance, North Carolina (near Winston-Salem). This conference, held March 12-13, 2010, offers two separate tracks geared towards professionals and families. Dr. Karen Purvis, co-author of  The Connected Child will share her research, tips and proactive strategies for easing post-adoption family life. Show Hope is a conference sponsor and will be represented by two of our board members. Registration information for The Connected Child Conference may be found here.

If you follow us on Twitter, you may have already heard the exciting news. We are re-launching our web store with a whole new line of Show Hope apparel! Over the next few weeks leading up to the store launch, we will be giving you a sneak peak of the new merchandise that you can “purchase for a purpose.” Watch this behind-the-scenes video of our photo shoot and check back soon for updates!

Since he was just six months old, Judah has been under our care. Although he was diagnosed with Arthrogryposis, a condition that limits the use of his joints, we feel thankful that Judah is healthy overall due to proper nutrition, medical attention and the doting love of his nannies.

At just over three years old, Judah is very smart, alert and responsive. This talkative little guy lives and plays in the same room as Rihanna, Jessica, Jim, and Julian.

While Judah’s joint problems render him unable to walk, he learned to move around the room freely with the other children.  According to the nurses he will most likely never walk, but through concentrated physical therapy we pray he’ll gain use of his hands. We recently outfitted him with a wheelchair to improve his mobility as he grows. Many of the children at MBHOH are living with similar conditions that restrict their mobility, and it is because of Show Hope sponsors that they are given the resources to truly thrive.

For several years, Tom and Kris considered adoption but felt they were not in the financial position to do so. Kris’ sister, who was both adopted and adopting a child herself, told Tom and Kris that God would provide the finances if it was His will.

Soon, the couple’s interest was piqued when they heard about an adoption program from Hungary, as Tom’s parents were born in Hungary. After a lot of prayer, they began the paperwork to make their dream of adoption a reality, but knew the expenses were the greatest hurdle they would face. The adoption aid grant provided by Show Hope sponsors was just what they needed to bring Monika Grace (8), Kira Alexandra (6) , and Drew Laszlo (4) home. Their three older biological children have helped the children quickly become integrated into the family. Tom writes:

“We are so we glad we took the step of faith to [adopt] and that Show Hope sponsors helped make it possible. Just last week the two older girls asked Jesus into their heart! Praise the Lord! We don’t know how we could have lived without them. Thank you so much Show Hope for doing what you do!”