This past weekend was my birthday. i don’t like telling people about my birthday; not because i don’t want people to know or to send their well wishes, i am fine with that, but i feel embarrassed by the attention, sometimes, especially if it is a group setting.
i spent a good deal of the weekend thinking about ANDERSEN, my special needs orphan, for whom i am fundraising for and building awareness for this Christmas season.
You see my fundraising efforts for him has not been going well. It is just past the halfway mark in terms of amount of time i have to raise that US$1000 for him, and we are nowhere close to the target!
i thought about ANDERSEN and whether people make a fuss on his birthday; does he get people stopping him as he walks down the corridors of his orphanage wishing him well? Are the caregivers there able to give him a little celebration at all? Does he get sad every time it is his birthday because it may remind him that he doesn’t have a family to celebrate with?
Then i thought about Christmas and wondered if ANDERSEN knew about Christmas. And if he did, what did he know about Christmas? Does he know only the commercial type of Christmas where it is all about shopping and getting gifts? OR does he know that Christmas is because of CHRIST? Does he know about the precious gift which God gave us at Christmas?
All these thoughts made me sad but it has also made me determined to get more people talking about ANDERSEN and his need for a forever family. It has also made me decide to ask for direct donations for ANDERSEN‘s adoption grant.
i have not asked for direct donations to any orphan’s grant for the last couple of years because people had not responded very well. But i really feel i should this year; partly because i am not sure what else i can do, partly because i know i have friends who would respond positively and give whatever they can.
So i am making an appeal here and now: PLEASE consider this Christmas season, as we think about gift giving and gift receiving, consider GIVING to ANDERSEN‘s adoption grant and helping to grow his adoption grant. Think of it as giving me a really lovely birthday gift. If you give more than US$35, you would receive a lovely Christmas ornament with ANDERSEN‘s picture on it. Click here to give.
This grant would be used to help his forever family make their way to him; adoption is a long, expensive process, and money should not be the thing which hinders a family from giving a child a loving home.
Please also SHARE ANDERSEN‘s need and story so that more people can help and you never know, someone out there might read your post and come forward as his forever family. Do also PRAY for ANDERSEN.
You can find out more about ANDERSEN by clicking on his name or picture to go to his profile page on Reece’s Rainbow.
Please also remember that shopping at my online shop, Angel Crafts Shop, where i contribute 50% of every sale to ANDERSEN‘s grant would also help.
Thank you very much.
syc
trippingdifferently 