A Whole New World

Treacher Collins syndrome is a genetic disorder that affects growth and development of the head. It prevents the skull, cheek and jawbones from developing properly, causing facial defects and hearing loss. It is not a great start in life for any child.

Visiting the beach

Fei Fei was only a few days old when she came to Xining Children's Home with this syndrome. The tiny little girl was born with partial external ears.

Over the next few months, Christian Action cared for this tiny girl in the special care unit of the Children’s Home. When she was three months old she was placed with a loving foster family. In June, we brought Feifei to Hong Kong for medical consultations.   Whilst in the care of her Hong Kong foster parents, Fei Fei has progressed dramatically. Her foster mother Brittney wrote:

The past two and half weeks have been filled with joy as we've seen Fei Fei thrive. We've given her the name Faith during this time and our faith in our Father has truly increased as we've seen her progress. She came to us late one evening and we fed her a bottle and she went straight to sleep and slept the night through. I thought 'Wow, this is easy!' She hasn't stopped moving since she woke up the next morning! She loves to be on the go and is one of the most social babies I have ever encountered. She loves attention and trying new things. When we go to the beach and the pool, she enjoys the water, and dips her entire head under the water, surfacing with a smile. Going for walks It's a great joy to be with her at this stage (she’s six months old) and we've experienced many milestones at a rapid rate. During her first week she began holding her own bottle and rolled over onto her tummy and back again. She'll be crawling in no time! Last week we were able to capture her laughing for the first time. We’ve discovered it's the simple things that make her giggle. It brought tears to my eyes seeing the joy in her smile. This week she's started to sit up by herself. When she heads back home in a few weeks she may just be walking out the door! :) 

This has been an incredible opportunity for us to love and pray over Fei Fei (Faith), but I feel she's the one who has brought the love into our home! She's so loved and blessed by so many already and all the more by Our Father in Heaven!

Following an Auditory Brainstem Response Test, doctors have determined that Fei Fei is able to hear, so she will soon be fitted with a hearing device. This is very exciting, because it should open up a whole new world to her!