By Ericka Jackson | October 25
The vast majority of the precious children in Swaziland will not celebrate Christmas this year. 95% of them will not get a gift at all, or even eat a special meal on Christmas Day. When I think of how lavish our Christmas celebrations are in America, I'm appalled at the difference. Most families spend hundreds (or thousands) of dollars on gifts for their children, decorations for their home, and every kind of delicious treat you can imagine! Yet these precious children in Swaziland will go without.... unless we do something about it!
Our partners in Swazi are planning 30 different Christmas parties at the 30 carepoints they serve. The children who come to these carepoints are orphans or vulnerable children whose lives are deeply affected by poverty and HIV/AIDS. They face hardship, death, and disease on a regular basis, but at these Christmas parties, they are free to just be a kid! The parties will be a time of celebration, games, and songs for the children to participate in. Each child will eat a good meal, with some chips, fruit, and donuts as an added treat. They will also each receive a special gift, and the school age children will receive a backpack too! As you can see from their smiles below, this is the highlight of their year!
But this won't happen without your help!
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By Ericka Jackson | August 29
We were recently invited over to the Gearhart's house for dinner and "a surprise". I'm pretty sure the surprise was supposed to come later in the night, but two bites into our burgers 3 year old Saige asked aloud, "Can we give them the money for the kids Daddy?" - and the cat was out of the bag! A few moments later all three little Gearhart girls, Zoe (7), Haven (5), and Saige (3) were presenting me with a clear jar full of money.
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By Ericka Jackson | August 27
The past month has brought heavy rains to Northern Thailand. Mudslides have killed several people in the villages by the river banks, and even in Chiang Mai, several neighborhoods have had flood damage. We are sad to report that The Promised Land Property, which we've been working to develop since January, was hit by a major flood that redirected the course of the nearby river. The land is threatened as flooding has already taken out one of the main access roads and the front gate.
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By Ericka Jackson | July 25
11 days ago I got an email from one of our partners in India. In it, he told me about some of their immediate needs. There were two sick children who needed to see specialists, and a pregnant woman who wanted to give her baby to the orphanage.
But there was more to that story.
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By Ericka Jackson
Jul 13
On July 2nd, The Sound of Hope co-founders Rusty & Ericka Jackson, our Thailand partners, Ray & Candace Ward, two of our new board members, and several friends volunteered with the US Campaign for Burma at the U2 concert in Nashville, TN. We spent the day raising awareness for the human rights abuses happening in Burma, and urging people to take action on behalf of those suffering. Read more...
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