Donate
Donate securely through our online donation page. We are hoping for a lot of small contributions rather than a few large ones. Large is good, but our aim is to have many people become aware of the needs that exist and to spread the word. Jean and I have collected some money by doing odd jobs. We have gathered and sold aluminum cans. The advantage to us is that we get exercise as we walk the highway while we clean up the environment! Our website name (Pennies for gilead) comes from our first personal effort at collecting money. We would find coins people had dropped in parking lots and would pick them up and place them in a jar. We called these "Gilead" pennies. As word got out, our Grandaudgter, Hannah, began to scour the ground for the "Gilead Kids". Now, our Daughters along with a good friend of ours in another city Glen and Jeanie), do the same thing, . We also raise money from ourselves through a "bargain savings" concept. As an example, If I am hungry for a milk shake that costs $3, I will either downsize to a $2 one or just get a $1 bowl of vanilla. I pay the kids fund the difference between what I would have spent ($3) and what I did spend ($2). This gives the fund a dollar and I get my ice cream! I hate to admit that I occasionally visit the gambling boats in Shreveport, Louisiana. I go about 4 or 5 times a year with my $10 limit. Whatever I win goes into the kids fund. As it now stands, we have put over a thousand dollars in the Gilead account by using these simple methods. We have also raised serious money by other means as well which is why we are preparing our first Impact Trip in September 2010. So, if you have a little money or know where you can direct us to collect some funds, just let us know and we would appreciate it greatly.
Spotlight
We have finally gone live with a new website. We this website will allow supporters like you to help us generate money and to spread the word about the Philippine Childrens Home called "Gilead". The name "Gilead" comes from Jeremiah 8:22 and reminds us to help others through giving and healing.
GIlead is operated remotely by a non-profit organization in Manila, Philippines. KKFI (the parent organization) is actually part of the Methodist Womens Organization, even though the childrens home is non-denominational. Gilead is still spiritually based and driven, but it takes in children of all faiths. The childrens home is located about an hour out of Manila in the little Province of Pulilan and works with both boys and girls ages 7 to 13.
Children are taken in from all around the 7,000 plus islands that make up the country of the Philippines, and these kids come from all kinds of circumstances. They have been abandoned, neglected, abused, exploited or orphaned. We had kids who were living in cemetaries, under bridges, in alleys and even in the garbage dumps of Manila . The individual circumstances were hard to imagine for some of them. One child was given up by a mother living on the river banks of the Angot River. Her husband, a fishermen, had drowned on the river 6 months earlier. He left his wife with 5 kids and nowhere to live. She existed amongst the mango groves in a roofless makeshift cinderblock structure that had less room in it than an american full sized Cadillac. She cooked in a wok like pan over a fire on the ground.
Every day unfolded a new story or circumstance for Jean and I. It caused us to reflect on the world stage and all of its dramas and indiviual Players - some fortunate and others simply struggling along trying to do the best they could. We kept a daily Journal of our work and hope to share it with you as time allows.
While we served in the U. S. Peace Corps, we learned what their moto meant - "The hardest job you'll ever love". It was hard from ever angle - our own living circumstances, the helplessness we felt for the people around us, and the blessings that are revealed during times of stress and crisis. As bad as things sometimes got, we left with an appreciation for simplicity and a strong desire to remain connected and involved on our own dime.
