Volunteer in China this summer with Bring Me Hope! Bring Me Hope camps give you the opportunity to provide orphans with love, hope, a sense of self-worth, and long-term advocacy. You could be the only person to ever show a child love. What an opportunity!
Make your summer count and begin changing the world one life at a time.
“So what exactly does a week at camp look like?” We’re glad you asked! Here’s a week-in-the-life of a Bring Me Hope summer camp volunteer.
Today is the last day to enter our first Bring Me Hope contest… > HERE <
This is a first of our giveaways for the year with the intent to bring more exposure for people interested in Orphan Mission trips and coming to China. We also are interested in providing a way for creatives to donate work who are passionate about giving back and serving. So if you are a creative and are interested in partnering with Bring Me Hope, please feel free to contact us…we would love to hear your story (contact caitlyn@bringmehope.org).
Our first creative I would love for you to meet it Saray Gray, who is the owner of Crystal Raindrop. Her jewelry creating began when she was a little girl. Sarah and her sister would make different things for their Mom and Grandma together.
It was in Sarah’s Junior year of highschool, after making jewelry for her friend, thoughts of how she could turn her love for creating into a business began. Her shop opened when she was a high school Senior and she has continued ever since.
What inspires you to create?
One of the many reasons I love making jewelry is, I can pick the style I create. I like very simple, elegant jewelry, and that is not easy to find. All the jewelry I make is something that I would wear myself, and know that there are other people looking for the same thing.
How do you serve the community/others with your business ?
I love to be involved in raising money for good causes. I enjoyed being able to help with my friends fundraiser for the Bring Me Hope Foundation. It was not only a great experience, but it was a lot of fun as well. It was a blessing to see everyone give their all to raise money for this wonderful foundation.
What was the inspiration behind the piece you donate to BMH & what is the pieces name?
The piece that I have made to donated to the Bring Me Hope Foundation is a good representation of the style of jewelry I make. When I was asked to make a piece of jewelry to donate I honestly didn’t have any idea what I was going to make. So I just sat down one evening and got to work. Cutting wire, trying different ways to bend it, to get an eligible look to it. Eventually I knew exactly what I wanted it to look like.
The name of the piece is Blue Ellipse. I picked this name because of its rounded shape. The calming blue and hints of crystal that remind me of the moon on a cool night.
What piece of advice would you give to people who are creatives and want to use their business with a purpose?
If I had to give advice to someone looking to start their own business out of a hobby, I would tell them to have fun and really enjoy what they are doing. It is also very important to give what you are doing to the Lord. Seek the Lord’s guidance in your business always. I think that is the most important part.
Sometimes all you think about is what you have to get done and your deadlines, but that takes all the joy out of what you are doing. When you no longer find joy in what you are doing it shows in your work. So, take your time and enjoy what you are doing and thank the Lord for giving you your abilities.
Random funny facts about you?
And a random fact about me is I have a weird obsession with clocks..I Love ’em!
We loved having Sarah on the blog. To find more of her work send her an email (CrystalRaindropShop@gmail.com) or visit her website www.CrystalRaindropShop.com.
For the Kids!
Caitlyn + The BMH Team
We all know the horror stories people tell you when flying to another country for the first time. With those things flooding our minds, we sometimes get a knot in our stomach as we jump on the plane…only our imagination to accompany us for the next however many hours.
Last week’s Night Walk fundraiser was an incredible success! With 166 people walking in 26 locations, there were people supporting orphans in China all over the world! During the walk, we hosted a live stream of two of our locations in China. It was so fun to see the excitement on each of their faces! Some of the kids featured have been coming to camp for five years and are anxious to return!
On behalf of the kids, THANK YOU!
Today I had the opportunity to go and visit the lovely kids from a local private orphanage who we met at camp.
My Aussie friend, Hollie and I packed our vegemite sandwiches and boarded the jeep for a China day of many varied experiences.
We were met with big smiles and cuddles from Lily – 4 year old Down’s syndrome girl who is also deaf. She seems really happy and as bubbly as ever.
The highlight of the day was seeing Wei Wei and presenting him with a “stimulation tent” and a piano. As you may remember he is the blind boy who at 5 years old still weighs less than the average 1 year old.(but still managed to steal the hearts of BMH volunteers and staff.
He laughed and smiled when we presented him with his piano and all the children loved the tent that Hollie made them.
We treated Wei Wei at camp for worms and his terrible diarrhea has stopped and he looks like he has gained some weight!
We also got to see the little cleft palate/lip baby who was found in July. He was abandoned at a few days old in this box but is now a happy, chubby baby boy who loves his “grandpa”.
On a sadder note we got to meet another newcomer…
He is a little boy between 2 and 3 who was left at the door at 11PM a few nights ago. His legs were tied together so he couldn’t follow his parents after they left him ! Because he has had spina bifida he is incontinent of urine which must have become too much for his parents.
Thanks for your continued interest in these children – hopefully they will return to camp next year.
Currently we continue to pray for them and their carers – an elderly couple who now look after over ten kids.
Love, Julie Vidler in Xi’an
“A Mother’s Love’s” own Jeff Knipe brought a team from Florida to Bring Me Hope’s Camp in Xi’an this summer!
(Jeff Knipe with FangFang (above), WenWen (below) and translator at camp in Xian!)
Here is an excerpt from their newsletter:
Bring Me Hope Camp
From July 12-16, the AML team volunteered at Bring Me Hope camp in Xi’an. Each volunteer was assigned one to two children from nearby orphanages in Ankang or Fuping along with a Chinese / English translator. In total, there were 20 orphans, 18 volunteers, and 15 translators who bonded quickly and had an incredible 5 days together.
We visited museums, played in fountains, made crafts, ate meals together, and even had a talent show! Words cannot express the impact this 5-day camp had on all of us and our translators. One of our immediate projects is to get medical help for Wen Wen here in the United States. She’s a beautiful 20-yr-old girl from Ankang (Karly Knipe’s orphanage) who has never walked and we are committed to helping her in any way we can!
Our Current Needs:
Surgery for Wen Wen – We are working hard to obtain a medical visa to bring Wen Wen to the U.S. for surgery. Wen Wen is 20 years old and has never been able to stand up or walk! Please pray for this difficult process. You can see a video of Wen Wen on our website.
Adoptive Families for Si Jie and Fang Fang- We are praying that we can find families for these two precious girls. Si Jie is an adorable five-year old with club feet and Fang Fang is a happy and smart 14-year old with Hepatitis B.
(Sie Jie waits for a family.)
For more information about A Mother’s Love, please visit our website: www.amotherslovechina.com
Donations can be done through PayPal on their website or mail to:
A Mother’s Love 224 Chestnut Ridge Street Winter Springs, Florida 32708
Bring Me Hope was included on the “Rising Voice” website!
Remember Lena? She was with us during 2007 Summer Camp in Beijing!
Check out this video of others who are continuing to help her!