Project Report
| Dec 5, 2014
15 Years of Winter Warmth
By Dr. Dearing L. Garner | Executive Director
![Dr. Garner with orphan baby receiving new boots]()
Dr. Garner with orphan baby receiving new boots
When I first started leading teams of volunteers to put winter boots on kids in Eastern European orphanages fifteen years ago, we encountered the most dismal and hopeless circumstances. Even though we traveled just before Christmas, it was as if the Grinch of oppression had stolen away all the joy of the season. Forget about Christmas decorations; where we went electricity, coal, and food were in short supply. But volunteers always brought lots of happiness and light with their presence and gifts to the children. Gradually, Christmas decorations began to appear, even in the orphanages – sparse but nevertheless an attempt to recognize the season.
Now when we travel to Eastern Europe fifteen years later, it is sparkling with Christmas décor. It always reminds me of the light CERI brings into the lives of those hit hard with the struggles of life. Where once there was little hope and much despair, Christ offers a solution! I know you want to be part of what we do, and I encourage you to make a generous gift in the spirit of all that Christmas means to help a child or family. You cannot know the difference your gift will have on lives, but we can give in faith believing the Lord will multiply many times over its impact. Thank you for your faithfulness.
Wishing you a very Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!
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Aug 25, 2014
Kids 'n Boots, Here We Come!
By Gretchen Lange Baumgarten | Director of Development
![Baby is happy to receive new boots]()
Baby is happy to receive new boots
Would you believe December is around the corner? It may seem far away, but December will be here before you know it. Each December CERI travels to Eastern Europe with teams of mission volunteers to fit orphaned children, youth, and adults with disabilities with brand new warm, winter boots.
Kids 'n Boots is a signature project of CERI's, reaching thousands of children and youth every year. This year will be no different. Mission teams are almost complete as volunteer applications keep pouring in. Now, we just need to reach our goal so we can purchase new boots. $25 buys and delivers one pair of warm, winter boots to a child in need.
We will again purchase boots from the Zorile Shoe Factory in Moldova, stimulating one of Europe's poorest economies. As teams return to Moldova again this year, we are humbled by your gifts to support this project. Thank you for your faithfulness to CERI and the children we serve!
How many children will you clothe with winter warmth this Christmas season?
![Mission volunteer dotes on little girl]()
Mission volunteer dotes on little girl
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![Girl gets new winter hat to accompany new boots]()
Girl gets new winter hat to accompany new boots
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May 29, 2014
Christmas in July
By Gretchen Lange Baumgarten | Director of Development
![Boy with new boots]()
Boy with new boots
Summer is officially upon us! For many of us, that means plans for a summer of fun with friends and family, ocean and waves, picnics and BBQs, hikes at dawn, and ballgames at the park. For CERI, summer means mission trips traveling the globe to help children in need.
This summer CERI will be in Moldova for the sponsor trip, a special opportunity for child sponsors to spend quality time with the children and youth they support through child sponsorships. Also in Moldova, teams from across the U.S. will travel in and out of the country all summer long conducting fun summer camps for children and youth.
Teams will also serve in Mexico and Paraguay through medical missions, while teams return to South Africa and Sri Lanka to plant sustainable trench gardens and encourage the continued development and growth of CERI’s microenterprise program.
Mission season comes to an end with our December Kids ‘n Boots mission to Moldova where teams of volunteers personally fit children in need with brand new warm, winter boots. In order to be ready for Kids ‘n Boots this December, CERI must kick off fundraising with ‘Christmas in July.’ Will you help us jumpstart our goal?
Your gifts continue to impact children and youth in need around the globe! Thank you for trusting CERI to be a vessel of your generosity to the world. On behalf of the those we serve every single day…
Gracias ~ Multumesc ~ Ngiyabonga
![Gardening in South Africa]()
Gardening in South Africa
![Moldova Sponsor Trip]()
Moldova Sponsor Trip
![Microenterprise in Sri Lanka]()
Microenterprise in Sri Lanka
![CERIkids Camps]()
CERIkids Camps
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