SSS: Considering Travel to Haiti

Okay, someone is putting together a team to go help at what we will call our "friend orphanage in Haiti" (because the orphanage's "real" name is French and there is no way I will remember how to spell it!). We are working on sending SOMEONE from Sixteen Small Stones to Haiti to help at the orphanage! We have some DEAR friends who are going, and we would like to get one of us on the plane with them. If you want to help pay for this trip, please specify in your paypal donation. This is a marvelous opportunity for Sixteen Small Stones to help in Haiti! God works miracles in our lives, if we are open to His promptings. I want to be the one to go from SSS, but it may be someone else who doesn't have a little child at home who needs them. :) Either way, I am praying that, if it be God's will, we can send one of our SSS team members to Haiti! When a crisis like this takes place, it brings out the best and worst and most apathetic in people. Which side will it bring out in you?

ORPHANAGE IN HAITI!

We have a connection with an orphanage in Haiti! FOR NOW, ALL non-specific donations sent to Sixteen Small Stones will be sent DIRECTLY to them! I was SO excited when a friend of mine contacted me and told me of her close ties to someone there running an orphanage who really needs our help. We now have a SPECIFIC orphanage on which to focus!! That is the way I like doing it ;). Serving the orphans! :D As soon as I have permission to post more information about his wonderful orphanage, I will do so! SO CHECK BACK SOON! I appreciate all of your support and prayers. If you have any extra pennies to spare, please don't feel like it "isn't enough" or that they "won't make a difference"...I promise, to those children, THEY DO! Thank you all so much for reaching out to others in their time of need. Sorry this post is not at all eloquent. I am too excited to write well! :D (NOTE: If you want your donations to go to Amazima, Luckyhill, or one of our other "friend" orphanages, please specify in the note sent with your donation via paypal. If you work with Amazima or Luckyhill: The money we have commited to sending will continue. NO WORRIES!:D Also, if there is an URGENT NEED from any of our "friend" orphan homes, please let us know and we will post here your need and make sure those funds reach you!)

HAITI: Do I stay or DO I GO?!?!?!?

My Mom has offered to tend Taiger so I can go get my hands in some service in Haiti. I believe EVERY LITTLE HAND HELPS. But where I am not going with an organization, would I be able to help, REALLY?! I am going to spend today praying about it and seeing what info I can find...But I really would LOVE any input you guys have about this. Do you know anyone down there? What do they say? I am sometimes so eager to HELP, I forget about the logistics! Any advice or suggestions?

Christ's Love and Haiti

SO MUCH has been happening...SO MUCH GOOD! Sixteen Small Stones is slowly but steadily moving to the next plane. I have wanted to post and write ALL about the amazing things happening with and for SSS! However, right now, there is something more urgent to be said.

Have you been keeping up with the news coming out of Haiti? Over seventy thousand found dead. If you have ever lost someone, if you have ever been hurt, or afraid, if you have ever been left homeless, then you can identify with one of those people. That is a blessing to be able to identify with someone hurting. You can offer then support and can plead to God on their behalf in a way the rest of us can't.

On the other side of that, do you remember the pain that went up from your heart when went through that hard trial? Now, multiply that pain by 70 thousand, and you can identify with each mother who lost her child. Multiply that by, maybe, 4 and you can identify that with the pain going out from each family of children who lost their parent. Do you see where I am heading? The pain and suffering being experienced in Haiti right now is unfathomable. Children left without parents, parents without children. Husbands who have lost their wives, and vice virsa. Friends who have lost friends. People have been left with no belongings (you have to admit how important they are, too...think if you lost your scrapbooks? Your journals? Think if your child lost her favorite stuffed animal or blanket. Think if you were left with no clothes, but those on your back...no warm coat, no clean underwear. What if your little boy were sleeping in a short sleeved shirt and shorts and now is cold? There is no where to go BUY him clothes, there are no blankets, no jackets.) People are trapped under rubble. Many people have undergone amputations from being trapped under debris. People have lost parts of their limbs, have lost family members, friends, homes, money, belongings.

But I fear at this time there are many people who have lost hope.

Today, I gave a quick lesson in church on the love of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Jesus' love for us is enormous! Sometimes, we describe it like that sun...but that is just because it is something we can see and something that is magnificent and huge to us. But, in reality, it pails...PAILS in comparison to the enormity and power of the Love CHRIST has for each and every one of us. it is hard for us to comprehend, but we MUST try! It is IMPERATIVE that we feel the LOVE Christ has for us! Because it is in that love that we find HOPE. I pray that we will ALL feel the love of Christ, so that in our darkest hours, we can find HOPE.

Right now, I pray that the people of Haiti will feel of Christ's love for them, so that they, too, may find hope in this nightmare in which they currently find themselves. Out of the chaos and death, the pain and fear, peace can be found...love can be found...HOPE can be found, all through the LOVE OF CHRIST!!

This is a call to help, too. By sending donations and items to Haiti, we are providing the people with the necessities of life...things they NEED NOW! But we are doing something more. We are showing them the Love of Christ! We are showing them that there is someone listening to their prayers, and responding by sending US to help them. Let us love them as Christ would! Let us cover that nation with our love and prayers. Also, let us SHOW THEM that CHRIST LOVES THEM by sending them love and prayers and donations, so they can see that Christ loves them and is listening to them, so that they may find HOPE in that love.

I am sorry this is so discombobulated!

Starvation

Okay, people....Today is a day to change your life and the lives of many children. I read on the Lucky Hill group that the children in the area surrounding Lucky Hill Orphan Home are STARVING. Stop for a moment and think about you as a child. Think of having no food for days and days. No! REALLY think about it. Think hard. Try and feel how that would feel. Think about how you would feel. If you are a parent reading this, think of watching our children go DAYS without food. DAYS. Lucky Hill is not only an orphan home. Lucky Hill is also a school for children in the surrounding area. I will not post her entire message, but a woman who just returned from Lucky Hill posted that she saw one of the children who attends school there EAT HIS PENCIL for LUNCH! Yes. She said he ate it like a candy bar. I want you to pick up a pencil right now. I want you to put it into your mouth. How hungry would you have to be to eat it? How hungry would you have to be to chew the wood, taste the powdery lead, and swallow it. And then take another bite. How hungry? How do you think that child's mother feels? How would YOU feel if all your child had eaten in days was his school pencil? Think about that. ....By the way...the lunches at Lucky Hill, available to all the children who can pay for it, is 30 cents. Where have YOU spent 30 cents today?

Two Dollars

RIGHT NOW, I want you to go get the two dollars you were going to spend today on soda pop. Go get it RIGHT NOW! And while you are up, grab a stamp, envelope and a pen/pencil. GO NOW...I will wait ;). ..... ..... ..... .... .... Did you get them? If not, I'll keep waiting..... ...... ....... Okay, now, on the envelope write this: Sixteen Small Stones C/O Breclyn Everett 1811 South 1800 East Sugarhouse, Utah 84108 Put the two dollars in the envelope, lick the edge and seal it. Stick the stamp on. Now, walk it to your mail box....Now, don't start thinking of excuses! Your shoes aren't on? That's your best excuse? Grab them and put them on! No, don't stop to wash the dishes, or to brush your teeth...just run the envelope to the mail box and flip the little red flag up. ........ ........ ........ ........ YOU'RE BACK! That two dollars is on it's way to Africa (well, to me first, but then STRAIGHT to Africa). Yup, you did it! You helped someone in Africa! Was that so hard? And I promise you, you will NOT miss your two dollars. That money is going to buy church supplies for a primary in Ghana (read my previous post for more info on that). What a great cause! Helping children learn about God? Bringing them closer to Heaven? I can think of nothing greater in the world. Think of the peace YOU feel because you know of Heavenly Father. Think of the joy you feel because you know of life after death. Think of the comfort you have felt when reading the Scriptures. Now look! You just gave that to someone else! Aren't you so, so happy? So often, we say we want to do this service or that one. But we think we will do it "in a sec" or "later", and really we DO have EVERY intent to do it!!!!! Then, things come up...crying baby, dishes, dirty clothes, boiling water...and before you know it, it is two weeks later and you are thinking, "I really would have liked to have done that service. Darn it!" Well, congratulations, you did this one! I wish I could express how thankful I am. I wish I could tell you how appreciated your two dollars will be. I guess all I can do is say, "THANK YOU" and hope that will suffice. Here is the list of things the primary really needs. (You will probably be surprised with how little they are willing to get by. Our primaries here are so well equipped!) It may also help you see just what is needed and why. THANK YOU! This is a post from a sweet Mom who is adopting a little boy from Luckyhill Orphan Home. She is organizing the donations for the primary. Childrens Songbook ($18.25, hardcover) CDs of hymns and primary songs so teachers learn new ones (Children's hymns CDs: $650, Standard hymns: $11.50) Cd player (no idea how much that costs in Ghana....ballpark $50?) Starter library package. (They already have empty cabinets with locks. I'm waiting to find out if this means that they want, say, a Primary manual for each class for each year of curriculum, or what, so that I can post prices.) Teaching aids like picture kit (simplified Gospel Art Book is $3.25; can't find the Gospel Art Kit listed - anyone have one to donate?) 3 sets scriptures for primary classes to read together. Triple plus bible. (1 regular quad is $35; a triple + Bible is $20 + $25)*All of this is at the Accra temple bookstore if money can be wired or brought by one of the adopting families). I should have plenty of room in my suitcases when I go, so if anyone wants to donate those things, they can - or if anyone wants to donate $ for buying those things at the distribution center at the temple in Accra, that's good as well! :) (And if anyone has gently used items from that list, I'm sure they would be very happy to have them.)At this point my very tentative departure date is November 16th, so donations would need to get to me by then - or I could send them with the next person going over there. :)Isn't it kind of weird and amazing to think of a Primary without any of those things? (Well,maybe it won't be that way for long. :) :) )

SERVICE PROJECT FOR LUCKY HILL ORPHANAGE AND THE PRIMARY, GHANA AFRICA

So, we have another GREAT

SERVICE PROJECT OPPORTUNITY!!!!!

Remember Lucky Hill Orphanage, where William was living when we sent him his care package? Well, the man who started that orphanage is the Bishop of the LDS church ward there (Mormon). Their primary has almost NOTHING by way of materials...no Scriptures, no pictures, no song books, NOTHING! This is the primary the orphans of Lucky Hill attend! (Primary is the axillary in the church organized for children to learn the gospel through lessons, music and activity. The children attend primary on Sunday's, going to a one hour of class time and one hour of a group time, where they sing religious music and have a lesson). Sixteen Small Stones is joining Shannon Watson and Lucky Hill Orphanage in providing items for the primary. A list of items is provided below. Sixteen Small Stones is mailing a check to Shannon Watson. She is going to forward any funds collected to the directer of Lucky Hill who is going to purchase the items in Ghana. It will be MUCH easier than finding someone to carry the items to Ghana. We are going to start the donation at $50.00 and are looking for ANYONE and EVERYONE who wants to, to add to that amount! PLEASE help us provide these worthwhile items to children so wanting to learn the Gospel! If you want to donate money, please comment here, or send me an email at smallstonesafricaandchina@yahoo.com. You will be giving the option to either mail the money to me to add to our check, OR to mail your donation directly to Shannon Watson. Please state in your comment or email which you would prefer to do so I can give you the correct mailing address. Also, please make sure to give me YOUR email address so I can get the mailing address to you! Let's take advantage of this service opportunity! THANK YOU, ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sincerely, Breclyn