Haven of Hope: A Safe Place To Call Their Own

"It is the mission of Haven of Hope to provide a refuge for children by giving each forgotten child a safe place to call their own"

Haven of Hope was started by my sister in law in 2010. HOH has been home to 15 orphans over the past 3 years, 3 of which have been adopted and found their forever home! There are thousands of orphans in China in a land where life is not highly valued, especially the life of a child with any type of special needs. The orphanages are overrun with children who have been given up due to a major birth defect or illness and even for something as minor as a birth mark!! Many of the orphanages in China do not have enough workers. So many of these children do not develop properly simply because they have never had any interaction with anyone and very rarely held. They usually come to HOH very malnourished and behind developmentally.

Haven of Hope provides homes for these children who have been abandoned. They are provided with a beautiful, safe home with wonderful caretakers and lots of visitors!! (Daniel and I like to go over and play with the kids at HOH) HOH is able to operate because of donations and sponsorships. These children have daily needs as well as medical needs. HOH is working to provide these children with the physical therapy that they need as well as paying for the cost of any hospital stays and surgeries that they may need. But all of that is only possible if they receive the funding that they constantly need. HOH is located in the apartment complex where we live and they have monthly rent that is due.

Many people asked Daniel and I as we left for China if we needed support and we just said that we did not. We were going to work in a school where we receive a salary. Now that we have been in China for several months and have seen the needs, I would ask anyone that would still like to give to us to consider giving to Haven of Hope. One time donations are needed to ensure that the children at HOH are able to stay here and not be sent back to an orphanage and to ensure that they are able to receive any extra care that their specific health needs may require. Monthly sponsorships of $30 are also needed to ensure that each of the kids are fully funded. Please prayerfully consider if you might be able to give to Haven of Hope.

As many of you know, Daniel and I have lost 2 babies. On Thanksgiving, The Jude and Hannah Kempf Fund was started at Haven of Hope. This fund is a way to recognize the grief of losing a baby through a miscarriage, as well as lost family members of any circumstance, while benefitting orphans at Haven of Hope. All gifts can be given in memory of a lost child or loved one and will be commemorated with a name plaque at Haven of Hope. This fund is an amazing way to give out of the memory of a loss in a way that will benefit little ones on the other side of the world! The Jude and Hannah Kempf fund is specifically set aside as an emergency fund for HOH. Please email me if you would like to donate to this specific fund. 

If you would like more information, including pictures and bios of the orphans that are currently at HOH, or to donate please visit their website at www.havenofhopechina.com or email me at thekempfsinchina@gmail.com.

God Bless!!

The Kempf''s China Recap!

Happy Holidays to Everyone from Chattanooga, TN!

We have enjoyed a busy, restful, shopping filled, family filled December in America. It has been amazing! I had hoped to get a blog post written each month while we were in China, but China is not a big fan of google so I have not been able to access my blogger account like I had hoped. I may need to just send out an email update this next semester.

We made it back to the States on December 10 and we will leave to go back to China on January 7. Please pray for an easy adjustment back to China life and and easy time getting over jetlag.

We are staying busy, busy, busy in Dongguan. The school is in the process of getting ACSI accreditation which is not an easy process. Daniel and I are both involved in this process. As a principal, Daniel is involved in writing policies and procedures and I have been involved in getting our administration and faculty certified, our personnel files in order, and other random tasks. It has been a huge blessing that we were at CBDS during the time that they were going through the renewal process with ACSI. We were able to see first hand many of the things that have to be done in order for us to get our accreditation. Because we are getting accredited for the first time and not just renewing, there is so much work in getting all of our policies and procedures in place and everything written down and organized for the first time. Please pray for us as our goal is to be finished with this process and accredited by the spring of 2015 when we will have our first graduating class!

TLC added an athletic program last year and we have been able to see soccer, volleyball and basketball games. It is killing Daniel not to be coaching!!!

 

Life has been fast paced in Dongguan. We were able to take a trip to the beach in October and we will be taking a trip to the Philippines in February for our 5 year anniversary. We have also taken several trips to Hong Kong which is just about and hour away by train.

There is a lot to get involved in including the church, school, and Haven of Hope children's home. (I will be writing a post in the next few days about Haven of Hope and how you can get involved.)

We have met so many great people  in China. Dongguan is a city with a large foreign (expat) community. Our school has students from 18 different countries! Dongguan is a city of about 10 million people so it is a little crowded and hectic. We plan to start taking Mandarin lessons this semester. We have picked up several phrases  and know what we need to know in order to take taxis around the city but we will start formal lessons soon. Now that we have been there a semester and are feeling settled in, we have decided that we will be there for at least a second year and possibly longer if we feel led to stay. Please pray that the Lord will give us direction in this area.

Our time here in the States has been a much needed time with family and friends. We came back a little early to travel and recruit teachers from several schools here in the Southeast. We were able to visit the Winston Salem area where we attended a CBDS basketball game. It was so good to see many of you and to be back in the CBDS community for a short time. We were able to spend a few days with our dear friends, Joe and Tricia Rybak. Most of our teachers sign a 2 year contract to come and teach with us so we are always looking to recruit teachers when we have the chance.

Our Apartment complex in China:

A field right in the middle of town across the street from the mall. This is a very common sight in China. 

Meat markets in China. One of my least favorite places to shop! The meat is just hanging out in the heat and it does not smell good!

A few prayer requests for the next few months:

• Our trip home next week.
• My health. As many of you know I have had several health issues over the past few years that have included miscarriages, unexplained anxiety and depression, along with several other symptoms. While in China I was diagnosed with a small tumor on my pituitary gland which has caused hormonal issues. I went to the doctor once we made it back to the states and had this diagnosis confirmed. I am now taking medication and will hopefully have much of this behind me very soon. Please pray that this medication will be the answer to regulating all of this. 
• Daniel's mother, who lives in China with us, will need two different surgeries very soon. She has a cancerous tumor that needs to be removed as well as a heart valve that needs to be replaced. Please pray that the Lord will give them direction about where to have these surgeries done and that He will provide the right surgeons and a quick recovery.
• Daniel's sister Melissa, who also lives in China, had her baby boy on December 12 at 29 weeks. He is in the NICU in China but is doing very very well for his age. His name is Jamin. His biggest hurdle at this point is learning to eat with a bottle and keeping his birth weight up. The NICU in China will not allow Chris and Melissa to hold him until he is discharged. So we all pray that he will make a quick recovery so that he can come home to be with them!

One Week And Counting..

Well, Ready or not....the week of our move to China is here. Daniel and I have had a very fast and furious summer.  On June 15, after selling or giving away MOST of our belongings, we left Winston-Salem and moved to Chattanooga where we have had a great time with family and friends over the past month. 
Saturday, August 3, we will leave for our new adventure in China. Thankfully, we have a very good flight itinerary. We will fly from Atlanta to Los Angeles and from there we will have our long flight into China (about 16 hours). Once we arrive, we will have about 3 weeks before school starts. During this time, we will choose an apartment and start getting settled in. 
We would appreciate your prayers over the next months as we start to adjust to a new culture and lifestyle. Also, I do not enjoy flying! (It is close to the top of my list of least favorite things to do!!)
We are excited about our move and will share more soon. If you would like to receive notifications of our blog updates click on the "subscribe by email" link below.