Many of the pictures we see of children in impoverished situations are just heartbreaking. Looking at the conditions in which they live can move us to tears. But the pain of seeing these conditions is what motivates us. Looking into the future and seeing hope moves us to action. Helping children, and those who care for them, dream of what the future can be and see the path to reach it is what we do. Not we, here in the office, but the larger we. Everyone who has ever made a donation, purchased a product, or volunteered in anyway. The roadblocks can be quite large and it takes all of us to clear the way. This month brings some amazing news in the way you are helping support children around the world, along with new windows we hope to open.

A Child in Need

Every once in awhile, we are made aware of a child who is in need of medical care and is not receiving help from other organizations. This is not surprising as all organizations have a limit of what they can do. Recently, we were contacted about a young man named Cao Fu Yi. He was born with a congenital heart defect known as a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD). This is a hole in the heart of the wall between the two ventricles. Cao Fu Yi requires surgery to heal his heart. He is currently in foster care in China, and just turned 1 year old on August 4. The fees to cover the heart surgery are $3500. Please help us heal Cao Fu Yi's heart.

Mama's Wish

In 2005, our friends at Love Without Boundaries learned about a group of young women in the QingHai province in China who were determined to get a high school or college education and create a brighter future. Angel Covers is pleased to announce a partnership with Love Without Boundaries to expand this program. While most of these young women are not orphans, they come from extremely impoverished families in the Huangnan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture where the average family income is $100 per year. Angel Covers is currently seeking sponsors for 67 of these hard working young women who are seeking a high school education. School begins again in September and without sponsors many of these young women may not be able to continue. It only takes $10 a month to keep one of these young women in school for the year and help them to reach their potential. You can learn more about the Mama's wish program at our website, and also find students who are waiting for a sponsor.

Renzhen, the New School!

In January, Angel Covers and Love Without Boundaries purchased a building, which allowed the students at Renzhen to have a place to learn. The students were learning outdoors year round at very high altitude. With the harsh conditions in this region it is only possible to receive reports during a few months out of the year. It was tremendous to receive the reports at the beginning of this month and see all the incredible progress that has been made. The building renovations have been completed. The school now has classrooms with desks and a dormitory for boys and girls. Prior to completing the renovation there were no girls in the school, as there was not a place for the students to live where the boys and girls could be separated. In addition to the new classrooms and dorms, yaks were purchased on this trip, which will help provide the school with a source of income and food. Love Without Boundaries provided coats for the students to keep them warm during the harsh winters. Our partnership and efforts at Renzhen have resulted in a truly holistic program meeting the need of the students in every way. Thanks to our wonderful donors for everything you enabled us to accomplish. And thank you to everyone who helps support our annual Gift's From the World auction, which provided many of the funds needed to help purchase and renovate this building.

Yaks Purchased

In addition to purchasing yaks for the Renzhen school, 15 yaks were also purchased for the school at JiaDeng. JiaDeng is a very poor school in the Sichuan province. The school struggles with having enough desks and maintaining teachers because of low wages. Having Yaks will help produce an income for the school and save them costs on milk, clothing, and other areas. Thank you to everyone who helped us purchase yaks this summer!

Angel Cottage Update

Construction on Angel Cottage is Nairobi, Kenya continues to progress, although slowly. Currently this project is about half funded. The deaf and orphan students at Humble Hearts are living in a very overcrowded Angel Cottage and this project desperately needs to be completed. Please help the current students of Angel Cottage have a adequate place to live, while allowing children who have been turned away to move into a beautiful new home.

Chickens, Cows and More Chickens

The chicken and other animal projects just continue to thrive and help schools and orphans. In Kenya, the cows at Dagoretti have not yet started to produce milk but they will soon. This will bring some much needed milk for the orphans and also some income to help with their food. The chickens at Dagoretti have been laying eggs. The eggs have been very helpful in providing food for the children as well as income to purchase other food. The number of orphans at the school is very high and the program currently only feeds about half of the children. We are expanding the chicken program at Dagoretti to help feed the rest of the children. In Uganda, at the Maranatha School, the chicken coops have been completed and the chickens have been ordered. The young chicks should arrive around the first part of October. The buildings continue to be used for classrooms until chickens arrive.

Success in College

You may remember a year ago we asked for support for Julius. He is a young man, who was orphaned at an early age, in Kenya and dreamed of attending nursing school so he could return to his village and help others. Julius was admitted into nursing school and several of you offered to pay for his schooling. Julius has now finished his first year of school with exceptional grades! Because of the support of so many people, Julius is well on his way of achieving his goal. THANK YOU!

Gift's From the World

Angel Covers', annual Gifts From the World auction will be November 4-10 this year. Work is well underway to make this another successful auction, which will provide funds for our educational programs. Set these dates aside to work on your holiday shopping, or just to find something wonderful for yourself. If you would like to volunteer to help with this years auction please contact us. We can always use more items too, so if you have something to donate, please contact us right away.b

Grant Writing Director

Angel Covers is please to announce that we have a new grant writing director. Karin has accepted this position with Angel Covers and brings with her a tremendous amount of experience. She will be working to train other volunteers to write proposals and help us expand our abilities to seek grants. We are thrilled to have Karin on board, as this is an area we have been hoping to expand for quite awhile. Welcome Karin! We look forward to the wonderful things that you bring to Angel Covers. If grant writing is an area you would like to learn about, please contact us.

Greeting Cards

Our new greeting cards created from block prints by students at Humble Hearts School for the Deaf have been receiving great reviews and feedback from many supporters. These boxed sets of 10 cards are absolutely beautiful and tell the story of Humble Hearts. The cards make great gifts, as well as being wonderful to have for your own use. Order your cards today! Also, be sure to watch for holiday cards later this year.

Squeaky Shoe Sale

We have placed several styles of our squeaky shoes on sale. Quantities of these styles are very limited. Almost all canvas styles have been on sale for awhile and quantities are very limited. Now a few of our leather styles are on sale as well. Don't miss the opportunity to get your pair at reduced prices! (pictures: leatherwithlaces, ladybug, twotone)

Thanks for the incredible difference you are making in this world! Keep up the great work!

Sincerely,
Kari Fillmore
Director, Angel Covers