Bethel China

Bethel’s City Life Project is arguably Bethel’s most important project in terms of preparing kids for independent living in Chinese society. Our 9 children in this project have thrived on the daily routine and structure of a public school environment and we are blessed to say that they do all love school (apart from their endless piles of homework)!

Outside of receiving a high-quality education, the kids live in their own homes with caregivers who act as a parent, teaching practical life skills such as how to cook, buy groceries, run a household, but also how to share, be generous, and other moral and social principles. Like a parent, their caregivers also have to discipline them, giving them appropriate punishments for bad behaviour.

Without this project, these children (growing up into teenagers) would most likely still be living in institutional care, often with 20 plus others, with little access to education and stimulating activities. None of the nine children in this project had received adequate education before Bethel. After the children turn 14, they lose the opportunity to be adopted into a family, and so we at Bethel are committed to being their family for the rest of thier lives.

Those who come into contact with our kids are impressed and amazed by their characters, knowledge and social skills. They are far from being perfect children, but we are so proud of them for achieving what they have considering their difficult starts in life.

Here is Pan Pan’s story:

Pan Pan came to Bethel in 2009 when he was seven years old. He had been attending a school for children with visual impairments close to his orphanage, but he didn’t have good enough self-help skills to be able to stay there, having not been taught to orient himself and walk, go to the bathroom or eat by himself. 

When he first arrived at Bethel, his teachers focused his whole first year’s education on self-help skills. After a while, he learned how to read Braille. He is a very good student, he loves singing and music, and last summer had the opportunity to go and sing in an event in Qingdao…and go to the beach! He will be 11 years old this year. He is a lovely boy and we are so proud of his progress.

Thank you for your continued support to Bethel!

Help us to spread the word:

We are looking for new sponsors for the school year starting in September 2013. We’ve found that having a number of sponsors for each project makes things much more sustainable, and so we’re trying to find 15-20 new sponsors, who can each contribute around $5000USD for the year, which together will add up to comprehensively cover the costs of this project.

Although nine children may seem like a small number, our vision is to see life-transformation for each and every visually impaired child in China. If you are interested in partnering with us on this project (or know an individual, company or foundation who may be interested), please email info(a)bethelchina.org.

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Links:

• http://www.facebook.com/bethelchina.loveisblind