Helping Earthquake Victims in Qinghai

Batang School students in happier times

“Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today.” ~Thich Nan Hanh

It’s been almost two years since a major earthquake struck in Sichuan Province, claiming the lives of 86,000 people and injuring and displacing thousands more. Tuesday morning another major earthquake struck, this time in Qinghai Province where Angel Covers supports several schools. Thankfully, the Mama’s Wish schools in northern Qinghai were not affected, and all of our sponsored students at the TongRen and Xuri Schools are safe. But in southern Qinghai, the situation is dire. In some areas as much as 90% of the homes are now rubble and schools, hospitals, and other buildings have collapsed or been badly damaged. To make matters worse, the temperature is below freezing at night and survivors have no shelter or warm clothing. Rescuers have been battling altitude sickness, sleet, and high winds, digging through the rubble with their hands while waiting for heavy equipment to arrive to this remote mountainous region.

The Batang Yushu County Central Boarding Primary School is an orphan school located in Yushu at almost 5000 meters, near the epicenter of this week’s earthquake. Love Without Boundaries and Angel Covers have partnered in the past to bring solar water showers, yaks, clothing, and school supplies to the students at this school, and we are partnering once again to bring disaster relief not only to this school but to other victims affected by the quake as well.

With your help, we are sending disaster relief items such as tents and tarps, blankets and bedding, masks and gloves, flashlights, disinfectant, shoes and socks, heavy coats, and of course food, water, and medical supplies to those impacted by the earthquake. Please join with us as we work together to bring comfort to victims of the earthquake. To show your support, click on our donation page and mark your donation for the China Earthquake.

Thank you for opening your hearts to the children at Batang and the people of Yushu. Together we can bring hope to those who are bearing a hardship today.

Angela Taylor
Education Director
https://www.angelcovers.org/donate_now.html

Brief update on earthquake

We still have not been able to reach the Batang School. Jian Cuo (Director of the Mama's Wish program in TongRen) is leaving today for Yushu and is taking three truckloads of supplies with him. It will take several hours for them to reach the school. The trip is long and arduous; please keep them in your thoughts as they make the journey.

Angela Taylor
Education Director

Earthquake in China

As you may have heard by now, there has been a large earthquake in Qinghai Province where Angel Covers supports several schools. The following schools were not damaged and the students are safe: TongRen, JianZha, and Xuri. The Chenduo (WenLe) School is not reporting any damage, although homes in the area are damaged. The students at the school are also safe.

Unfortunately, the Batang School ("Yak School") is located near the epicenter of the earthquake and we are not able to reach anyone at the school. The school is located in an extremely remote mountainous area at appx. 4,000 meters and it is difficult to access. Although we have heard that up to 90% of the homes in the area are buried and up to 70% of the school buildings have collapsed, we stress at this early stage that these are unconfirmed reports. We will keep sponsors of this school informed as information comes in. Please be patient, as we do not know how long it will be before we will receive further news.

In neighboring Sichuan Province, we have read that aid has been sent into Ganze County, which was also affected by the quake. The RenZhen, XiangGen, and JiaDeng Schools are located in this area. We have not received word from any of these schools but are hopeful that they are safe since they are some distance from the epicenter.

We will keep you posted as news arrives.

Angel Taylor

Education Director

Mama's Wish - Letters from the Heart

It is always such a delight when we receive a big batch of letters and photos from our Mama's Wish students. We are so happy to be able to share these letters with their sponsors. Some of the letters are funny and sweet, while others are quite poignant and moving.

Dear Sponsor,
I grew up in a poor family in a rural nomadic village. Since my family is really poor, our school fees became a big problem and a huge family burden. In order to earn money my grandparents always left home to do temporary work even though they are very old. I told them many times that I want to leave school and help them earn money, but they disagree with me and don't want to damage my life.

Your help is like a lamp in the dark and brought brightness to my life. You have given me courage to try all the things that I'm interested. When I write this letter my heart is full of appreciation. I will always keep your kindness in my heart, study hard and never disappoint you.

Warm regard,
Zheng

Dear respected sponsor,
I am 17 years old and come from a poor rural family. My dream is to become a useful and talented person in the future.

My mother is deaf but she is capable of doing housework. I am really happy that my mother, who has never been educated, wants all her children to go to school. I am very proud of her, but at the same time I feel sorry for her. She is suffering so much because of her children. Being a daughter I want to stay home and help her with everything I can. But she does not allow me to do so. She hopes that we siblings have a happy life. No matter how hard she works, it is so difficult for such a poor family when there is no man who can support the family.

Just when I was not sure if I could continue, your kindness has given me this chance to continue my study and to become a knowledgeable person. Your kind help has given me hope for my future. I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Best wishes to you!
Suonan

Thank you to all our wonderful Mama's Wish sponsors who are making these dreams come true.

Karen MacNair
Mama's Wish Education Program
http://www.angelcovers.org/mamawish.html

Team Angel Covers

I logged seven miles on Friday morning, in the fog and drizzle, with no one but the earthworms to keep me company! Poor worms, by mile 2 it was no longer a matter of attempting to adjust my pace and cadence to navigate around the little creepy crawlers, but more a matter of looking for the least populated spots for my feet to land. Despite being alone on the trail, I felt good about being out there, training for my race and brainstorming all of the ways to raise awareness about Angel Covers and the work we do. One tremendous step would be to have some partners in this adventure, so how about joining me? There are four easy steps:

1. Choose a race in your area. You can find local races by searching http://www.active.com/ or the 'Race finder' on http://www.runnersworld.com/ Maybe you're a new runner or walker, and a 5K is the distance for you, or maybe you're a bit more seasoned athlete and a ½ marathon or full marathon are on your goals list. Find a race and register!
2. Set a fundraising goal. Angel Covers' staff can help you choose a particular program to direct your contributions to.
3. Spread the word. We'll help you set up a page on the Angel Covers website and you can add a widget to your blog, facebook page, or anywhere else you can think of to get the word out.
4. Keep us updated on your progress so we can share your amazing efforts with our supporters!

Not sure about running yourself? Please help me instead by going to http://www.angelcovers.org/teamAC/teamAC_holly.php and making a donation.

Running for a cause,

Holly

Caring people around the world.

I'm the first to admit that I'm not always very good about telling you how many ways people are helping Angel Covers and the kids we serve. But every month, someone new comes forward wanting to help. Sometimes it's for big jobs, like coordinating our programs, and other times it's in smaller ways. The last several months have been no different.

At the end of 2009, Rossella decided to participate in World Run Day. She made a pledge to Angel Covers and ran 7 miles in our honor. Some people would say that the $20 she pledged won't go very far, but $20 will buy a piece of fruit for 250 kids in Kenya, or feed an orphan in China for a month. Can we really say that $20 didn't make much of a difference? The children she supported think it did.

After returning from Kenya in September, Ivan had the idea to create money boxes and set them out at pharmacies around Spain. This week Ivan sent us $375 collected from these money boxes, which will be used to help rebuild the Humble Hearts school. That will buy at least 15 desks, or sets of textbooks, or blackboard.

In January, a Daisy troop collected two boxes full of first aid supplies for Humble Hearts. They also made adorable picture frames for the children of Angel Cottage. So often we take for granted that when we get a cut, a bandaid and antibiotic ointment will be waiting for us in the medicine cabinet. But the girls of this daisy troop realize how comforting and necessary first aid supplies are, and have provided months of comfort to the children of Humble Hearts.

Yesterday I learned that Abi, age 10, raised enough money to sponsor a Mama's Wish girl for one year. WOW! At the age of 10, she raised $130.00 and is now changing the life of a teenager halfway around the world. Xianba Ji will now be able to attend high school, will not be forced to marry at 14, and will have options after graduation she never could have dreamed of before....all because a 10 year old decided to raise money for her.

Today I learned that one of our program coordinators is going to run the Fredrick half marathon in May. She is establishing "Team Angel Covers" and developing a program so that anyone around the world can also run a half or full marathon in order to raise funds for specific needs in our programs. Want to run for Angel Covers? More information will be following soon about this new program and how you can get involved. Run as a group or individually knowing you are running with the support of Angel Covers. You will not only finish your race, but provide children around the world with what they need to finish ahead in life. Lots of thanks goes to Holly for developing this great program!

Every little thing we do makes a huge difference in lives around the world. I believe people around the world doing things such as these are the real heroes. What can you do today to make a difference in the world around you?

In awe,

Kari

-------

Finally!!

Months ago (ok, maybe even a year ago or more) Angel Covers started "selling" bricks at the new Angel Cottage. The idea was that for a donation of $10 or more, you could have your name engraved into a brick at the new home. These bricks would not only help complete this much needed home, but would also provide a beautiful visual aid to the students, showing them just how many people around the world love and support them.

Many bricks were purchased, both to have our own names on them, or in honor of those we love. While this project was hugely successful, it took much longer than any of us thought to get the home built and to get the names on the walls.

Good news though!!! Names are on the walls and they are beautiful!! Pictures are still coming in and everyone who purchased a brick will get an individual pictures. While we are waiting on all of the individual pictures, I wanted everyone to see how wonderful the dinning room at Angel Cottage looks. The bright and cheerful messages and names on the walls will be a constant source of inspiration for the children of Angel Cottage.

Forever grateful,

Kari