BK Orphanage

I went to visit this orphanage that Greg's company helps support last week with 4 other Fluor wives.  It was a sweet, funny, tender, and heart wrenching experience.  I can't post pictures of the children on the internet because most of there due to family abuse situations and if someone here saw their picture they might try to go and take the child.  That alone is heartbreaking.

The children-36 of them-greeted us all-putting our hands to their foreheads-a gesture of respect for ones elders.  They sang and danced for us.  We had snacks-which you don't turn down here if someone offers you.  I had banana bread and for the first time ever-drank coconut milk, from a straw straight out of the coconut and here's the proof.


They have their own school at the orphanage and 3 teachers/classrooms with multi age group/levels in a room.  Both the oldest and youngest children at the orphanage are in 1st grade-one is a 6 year old and the other is 16 but never had much opportunity to attend school. 

The nuns who run the orphanage are so sweet and obviously care deeply for their ministry there.  The children do their own laundry, work in the garden, care for the animals-they have goats, chickens, grow melons, tomatoes, bananas, green beans, and much more.  They were cooking lunch in something that looked like an enormous wok-some kind of clam/mussel stew and plates on the tables mounded high with rice.  They don't have a traditional oven in their kitchen.

One of the ladies I went with had previously been in touch with a nun to ask about a Christmas gift for the children and had requested a new sound system-everyone in the Philippines loves to sing karaoke and dance and many are quite good!  She and her husband and children got the children their sound system-which I know they will be thrilled with.

However, we were all surprised to walk into one of the girls' bedrooms and see that they sleep on wooden beds on VERY thin grass woven mats.  We were all burdened to help get mattresses for the children.  The bedroom we saw had 2 fans and the sister told us they have to close the windows at nights to keep out the mosquitoes and snakes.  They of course do not have air conditioning.

 Merry Christmas in Tagalog-the language other than English, spoken in the Philippines-it is Maligayang Pasko!  and no I do not know how to pronounce it correctly.

 banana trees

 Sister Gemma and their nativity scene

 some of the goats that live at the orphanage too

poinsettias growing

It is just really eye opening to see all that we have and take for granted-both here and in America.  All of us who were there were challenged to really look for opportunities that God puts in our path to help others!