Participants:
Series Code: HIM
Program Code: HIM000219A
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00:07 Child Impact International is an organization giving hope,
00:11 previously called Asian Aid. 00:13 Child Impact International is an organization 00:16 fostering permanent positive change 00:18 in the lives of disadvantaged children 00:20 and their communities. 00:21 Child Impact is committed to making a difference 00:24 in the lives of children and those who are in need. 00:27 Serving communities in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, 00:31 Myanmar, and will soon expand to other countries. 00:34 For the last 50 years, 00:36 Child Impact has invested in the futures of people 00:39 and their investment has proven infinite returns. 00:42 Driven by the dedication 00:43 to helping those who have the least, 00:45 Child Impact is an organization 00:47 focused on the welfare of children, 00:49 implementing diverse development projects 00:52 and sponsoring thousands of children. 00:54 Their outreach spans from child rescue operations 00:57 to providing an education for orphans, deaf, 01:00 and the blind children, 01:02 giving them a sense of place, a home. 01:04 But above all, Child Impact is an organization giving hope, 01:08 giving hope to children, giving hope to community, 01:12 giving hope to the ones who needed the most. 01:14 This is Hope in Motion. 01:31 Situated amidst the lush green paddy fields of Bobbili, 01:35 in Andhra Pradesh, India 01:36 is an institution that is home 01:38 to some of the most disadvantaged children 01:40 in the society. 01:41 This is the Asian Aid School for the Blind. 01:45 In a world where blindness is considered a curse 01:48 and blind children are abandoned, 01:50 this campus is a refuge 01:52 for children seeking care and comfort. 01:56 The Asian Aid School for the Blind 01:58 was established here mainly 01:59 by the efforts of Asian Aid co-founder 02:01 Helen Eager. 02:03 The Asian Aid School for the Blind 02:04 is very important to me 02:06 because actually I did find that we were supporting 02:10 a few blind children up in Jharkhand 02:14 and they were being supported by someone in the US 02:16 and I thought, oh, this is so wonderful, 02:18 I'm so glad our church is doing something for the blind. 02:21 And then I went home to Australia 02:23 and then I got a letter just few weeks later 02:26 saying this person in US is no longer supporting 02:29 these children so we sent them all home. 02:31 So that was basically the start of our blind program. 02:36 I said, well, bring them all back 02:38 and we supported them there in Jharkhand, 02:40 and then we started the blind school 02:43 actually in Andhra Pradesh. 02:45 Started with just a few children 02:47 at its new location in Bobbili, 02:49 the number of children at the school 02:51 steadily increased each passing year. 02:54 There are various circumstances that have contributed 02:56 to these children losing their sight. 02:58 Some of them are victims of accidents, 03:00 some due to vitamin deficiency 03:02 factored by lack of nutritious food, 03:04 but most of them were born blind. 03:06 The main reason children are born blind 03:08 in these parts of Andhra Pradesh 03:10 is due to socioeconomic practice 03:12 that is prevalent in these cultures. 03:15 We have found that with the children 03:18 that we support in the blind school 03:20 that nearly all of them, 03:21 the parents are blood relatives. 03:23 Now, the reason they do 03:25 this is basically poverty as well. 03:27 Because if there is, you know, 03:29 a small piece of land 03:30 they don't want that piece of land 03:32 to leave the family kind of thing. 03:35 And so they will often... 03:38 It's often uncles marrying their nieces. 03:41 And, of course, 03:42 if your daughter marries a relative, 03:46 then you don't have to pay a dowry. 03:49 While rural traditions and socioeconomic difficulties 03:52 dictate life in rural India, their children pay the price. 03:56 Cultural issues are hard to understand. 03:58 It may even seem bizarre and cruel at times. 04:01 It's difficult to change people's perceptions 04:03 that are rooted deep. 04:05 But for all its traditions and practices, 04:07 the fact remains that all parents love their children 04:10 and want the best for them. 04:12 It's very difficult for you as a caring parent 04:16 to find a way of giving your child a better life. 04:20 So not only are we making a difference for the child, 04:25 we are actually giving the parents some hope, 04:29 they all care for their child. 04:31 And they overcome with guilt and community pressure 04:37 because their child is blind. 04:39 So it helps overcome all these issues 04:43 in giving the child a chance, 04:45 but giving the parents hope that they simply 04:50 have no other way of getting. 04:55 Jagan is a ninth grade student at the school. 04:57 He comes from a small village, 04:59 about an hour's drive from the school. 05:13 Jagan's parents are dhobis, a washermen community. 05:17 In a class divided world, 05:18 they are at the bottom of the social structure 05:20 and are pushed to the edge of the village. 05:27 When my first son was born, I was happy. 05:31 My second son was born, and I was very happy. 05:34 But when my third child was born, 05:37 my wife and I became very depressed. 05:41 As if living at the edge of the village 05:43 wasn't bad enough, 05:45 their hardship was compounded 05:46 when their third child Jagan was born blind. 05:51 I am a dhobi, I go to the pond in the morning 05:54 and come back in the evening. 05:56 He was left alone at home. 05:58 When he goes into the street, other children made fun of him. 06:02 This is how he spent his childhood here. 06:04 He is blind, God made him that way, what can we do? 06:08 In rural villages where being handicapped 06:10 is considered a curse, 06:12 blind children face an uncertain future. 06:15 This is where Asian Aid School for the Blind in Bobbili 06:18 serves as a refuge for children born blind. 06:21 These children have very special needs. 06:25 Their needs are even greater than people who have, 06:29 who do not have sight in the western system, 06:31 in a first world country. 06:33 Because they are ostracized, their families are ostracized. 06:36 So creating this environment, 06:37 their focus is on them gives them an education 06:42 and gives them an opportunity to live a normal life. 06:45 It's so transformational, not just now for the child 06:47 but the parents, 06:49 because now they don't have the same stigma. 06:51 Their children can get on and live a productive life 06:54 and contribute to society, a huge difference. 07:00 This environment that gave them an opportunity 07:02 to live a normal life is indeed transformational. 07:05 With the help of a local school teacher, 07:08 Jagan was brought to the school for the blind in Bobbili 07:11 far away from the struggles of his parents 07:13 and his community. 07:16 I'm so happy he is studying there at the school. 07:19 When he gets a good education, he will get a good job. 07:22 I'm really happy about that. 07:23 Now, he can become 07:25 whatever he wishes to be in life. 07:27 The appreciation from these parents 07:31 sometimes is just overpowering 07:34 because they are so proud 07:36 that their child can go to the school 07:38 and they are so proud that when their child comes home, 07:41 they can see a dramatic difference. 07:44 Okay, read that first adding. 07:46 First adding, sir. Twenty four thousand. 07:48 Child Impact International 07:50 sponsors the majority of children living 07:52 and studying at the school. 07:54 Without sponsorship, 07:55 these children would not have the opportunity 07:57 for a new chance in life. 07:59 I really thank the Asian Aid sponsors, 08:02 the owners. 08:04 If it may not, 08:06 if the sponsorship is not there, 08:09 my life would not be there. 08:23 Today is a special day for the staff and students 08:25 of Asian Aid School for the Blind 08:27 in Bobbili, India. 08:28 Standing on both sides of the entrance, 08:30 the students and staff welcome 08:32 the arrival of a special guest Garwin McNeilus. 08:36 Garwin is an Adventist businessman 08:37 from Minnesota who has sponsored 08:39 hundreds of children in India. 08:41 He and his family has supported 08:43 and built a number of urgently need buildings 08:45 for Adventist schools, 08:46 including the school for the blind in Bobbili. 08:50 The needs of the blind school 08:51 were first brought to me by Helen Eager. 08:55 And Helen showed a video of where they were, 08:58 the conditions they were and how they had to take 09:01 their sleeping mattresses out, 09:06 lay them outside, sometimes it's raining, 09:09 put the desk in have their class, 09:12 and it made an impression that just wouldn't go away 09:16 on my heart. 09:18 Moved by the plight of the blind children 09:20 in an old crowed building in town, 09:23 Garwin drew out a plan to move them to a bigger campus 09:26 just outside Bobbili town. 09:27 He also designed the buildings. 09:29 This is beautifully designed for the blind children 09:34 who cannot see. 09:35 And once they get inside they take a single walk. 09:39 They can easily understand which side is a boy's hostel, 09:42 which side is the girl's hostel, 09:44 there is nothing to be confused. 09:50 The children now have a beautiful campus 09:53 where they can feel safe and secure, 09:55 their own home away from home. 09:57 The Asian Aid School for the Blind 09:59 is not just an institution 10:00 that provides food and shelter for the blind, 10:03 but it's an institution that prepares 10:05 them for the world outside. 10:07 And remember when they finish year 12 for example, 10:09 I'm talking about the sight impaired children, 10:13 they can go into university 10:15 and by giving them these opportunities, 10:17 they can get jobs that are already 10:18 there that government has set aside 10:20 for people with these sort of disabilities. 10:23 So we are channeling them, giving them the skills, 10:26 giving them the qualifications, preparing them for employment 10:30 but also we are giving them life skills. 10:36 These children may not have the ability to see, 10:38 but this disability does not deprive 10:40 them of the ability to learn. 10:42 They are perfectly capable 10:44 of acquiring skills needed for employment. 10:46 In fact, the Indian government refers 10:48 to them not as disabled but differently abled. 10:51 And the Asian Aid School for the Blind 10:53 provides them an ideal place 10:55 for these differently able children to acquire skills. 11:03 Without individual sponsorship 11:05 these children would not be here. 11:07 Today, because of Child Impact sponsorship program 11:10 and individual supporting its program, 11:13 hundreds of differently able students like Jagan 11:15 can receive an education, 11:17 an education that will help them to lead a dignified life. 11:21 Whether one is able to contribute in a small way 11:23 or in a big way, sponsorship endows these children's future. 11:28 Whether the Lord has blessed in different ways, 11:33 we are accountable for what we have. 11:36 We all know the Bible parable of the widow's mite, 11:40 how she gave what she could. 11:43 Some can do a child, some can do half a child, 11:46 some can do many child, 11:49 but the combination of what the Lord has blessed 11:52 you with is essential 11:54 for the welfare of the children 11:57 and it will make a difference in eternity. 12:05 Thanks to the untiring efforts of Helen Eager, 12:08 organizations like Child Impact International 12:10 and individual sponsors like Garwin McNeilus, 12:13 children at the blind school not only have a place 12:16 where they can acquire life skills 12:17 for the world outside, 12:19 but they have a place where they can prepare their souls 12:21 for the world to come. 12:23 I think of the blind school 12:26 if not daily sometimes several times a day. 12:29 And I think of the story 12:32 when we were taking the children 12:35 to get their eye operation and Dorothy Watts, 12:41 a long time friend of India 12:45 who is not with us anymore 12:48 and I were sitting on the bench. 12:51 Had a little girl, 12:54 and the little girl Dorothy says, 12:56 what do you want to do 12:58 if your operation is successful? 13:00 What is the first thing that you want to see? 13:03 And she said, "Well, I've held a kitty, 13:09 I petted a cow, she says, I want to see Jesus." 13:14 And Dorothy said, "Well, 13:17 we can see but we can't see Him." 13:20 And she says, "Well, then show me a picture." 13:26 And Dorothy said, 13:27 "Well, your operation may not be successful." 13:31 And she said, she thought, 13:34 she had a look on her face she says, 13:36 "That's okay, I'll see Him in heaven." 13:38 Wow. 13:39 Here this little girl, 13:41 the first thing she want to see if she could see is Jesus. 13:45 And I think when we wake up in the morning, 13:48 is that our thought? 13:50 The first thing we want to see is Jesus, 13:52 it has such an effect. 13:54 Jim, I think about it daily. 13:57 The faith of a blind child cannot be explained, 14:03 you need to come and feel it. |
Revised 2019-08-27