You are my sunshine

He is not often still. His thin body is confined to a Cerebral Palsy chair, but he is always moving, his hands reaching out for anything he might be able to touch, all the while his head circling, eyes roaming. But when he hears his name - "Pang" - he breaks into a gap-toothed grin. He delights in human contact.

Those insightful words were written by JoAnn Yau. JoAnn and Nelson left their comfortable home in Hong Kong to go and serve the severely disabled children in our care in Xining Children's Home.

JoAnn's deep sensitivity is evident in what she has written about Pang, who is unable to control his limbs, but is definitely able to respond to love.

His dark eyes come alive at the sound of a friendly voice. For just a moment he makes eye contact before his restless gaze moves on, his focus jumping from chair to window to ceiling to his own hand, but when the notes of a song flow over him, his eight-year-old body quivers with excitement, and his legs jerk as if longing to dance. He clicks his tongue, contributing to the music. Then he falls into his habitual self-examination, inspecting his arm, and his hand, as if seeing it for the first time and realizing, 'Ah, yes, I am indeed fearfully and wonderfully made.'

Pang loves to be loved

Pang loves to be loved. Initially he is somewhat reticent with strangers, but he quickly recognizes a friend, responds to smiles, to snapping fingers, to ‘You Are My Sunshine.’ In the light of love, he shines, returning every ounce of the delight that has been shared with him. Unfortunately, this side of Pang’s character is often hidden because he so rarely gets the personal attention that brings it to life. He is one of dozens of special needs children being cared for by too few ‘Mamas’ at Xining Children’s Home. These harried caregivers are kept busy feeding and changing and cleaning up after children who can do nothing for themselves, so there is rarely time to play. As a result, children like Pang spend too much time confined to their chairs, waiting to be someone’s center of attention.

The government salaries of the caregivers are low, despite their demanding work. Without your donations to CA, the salary subsidies we provide would mean that even fewer staff would agree to take the job or stay on long enough to get to know the children. Please prayerfully consider giving toward our caregiver subsidy. Your gifts will help us to hire and support more 'Mamas' – caregivers who are so important for the well-being of our children. Please help us bring out the sunshine and respond to the love in Pang and so many other children like him.