This update was written by Susan McLay. Susan is our missionary partner from New Zealand. Enjoy!
“For this ministry update, I would like to do something different! I want to introduce you to all of our precious children at His Safe Haven Village!”
ELIJAH!
Elijah joined our family on October 4, 2020. His Mum came to visit us, begging us to take him. She told us she would drown him in the fish pond on her way out. Elijah’s Mum literally left him and ran away. We have been unable to find her. Elijah understands everything she said and he knows what she was going to do to him. He is now under the care of Ma Korto and settling into life here with us. His favourite place to be is sitting with Susan in the Dr’s office!
BARRY!
Barry is a fun, spunky young man with the best smile I have ever seen! He knows when people are lying and will call you out on it. Barry loves it when people come and sit beside him and just chat with him. He loves listening to stories and sometimes he gets jealous when new “brothers” join his family.
HANNAH!
Hannah is an absolute joy! She is always up for a hug and loves to be part of the activities going on. Hannah is extremely smart and is learning to form words from the sounds she can make. Hannah thinks the funniest thing in the world is when someone gets in trouble!
PRINCE!
Prince has been with us for just over a year now and is thriving under the care of HSH. Prince’s favourite position is to be swinging upside down! It brings such a belly laugh from him! Prince is learning to gain core strength and can now sit up by himself!
FAITH!
Faith is laughing more and more! He watches the world from eyes that notice everything. Faith loves listening to stories and does not like loud noises. Faith is learning to sit upright.
GARMIN!
Garmin is thriving and growing fast! She is becoming more and more aware of her surroundings. Garmin hates tummy time and complains the whole time! Garmin is now sleeping through the night and Ma Gormah is very thankful for that!
HAWA!
Hawa has mastered the art of sitting in a chair and swaying to music without falling over! She absolutely loves the therapy music! Hawa is learning to show us signals when she needs something and there is a lot of expressions we are learning from her eyes.
JUNIOR!
If there is mischief to be found in therapy, it is almost always a guarantee Junior is the mastermind behind it! He loves rough play and does not like not knowing what is going on. He also loves to sit and chat with Barry.
ANGEL!
Angel sits and grins the whole day away! He gets so excited about things, he often is too tense to move. Angel’s favourite thing to do is visit the kitchen and find out what they are cooking for the day. He loves building with blocks and does not like when they come crashing down!
SURPRISE!
Surprise is blind but that doesn’t stop him from being very active. He loves to clap along to the therapy music and can keep a beat going. Surprise has also learnt to sit by himself and loves it when people are cheering him on or reading him a story.
ERIC!
Eric could be a top baseball pitcher! Watch out for Eric! If you walk into the therapy room and get smacked by a ball it probably came from him! Eric loves to throw and catch balls. He loves it when someone else is chasing the ball or throwing the ball for him to chase.
JOSEPH!
Joseph has been with us almost a year now! He constantly has this smile on his face. He loves hugs and teasing the boys that are mowing the grass by taking their sunglasses and then pretending he doesn’t have them even though the glasses are on his face! He understands everything and is learning to form words with the sounds he makes.
GEORGIA!
The best way to get a smile from Georgia? Tell her how beautiful she looks and how much you love her dress! She loves looking fancy and having her hair done. Georgia is sensitive, she will cry when others are hurting. Her and Rhoda have their own secret language and are best friends!
PATIENCE!
Patience is fun loving and bubbly! She will tell you off if she thinks you have offended her and she will be the first to crawl and give you a very tight hug around the neck when she forgives you! Patience laughs a lot and loves life!
RHODA!
Rhoda is thriving! She loves therapy and dances the time away! The funniest thing to Rhoda is watching Patience cry. We still know nothing about her past but Rhoda is blossoming into a confident, happy young lady. Georgia is her best friend and she protects her.
GRACIE!
Gracie is learning to use her facial expressions to help us understand what she needs. She also loves dancing and wants to be standing and holding someone while you dance with her.
EMMANUEL!
Emmanuel is learning to sit upright by himself. He is now sleeping through the night and doesn’t jump and cry every time a loud noise startles him now!
PAPEE!
Papee responds to his name, he is learning how to build with blocks. Papee enjoys being left to entertain himself and struggles when there is attention focused on him.
EMAN! (Emmanuel)
More and more we are seeing smiles come from Eman! He is growing and thriving in the family. Eman is learning to be comfortable with touch and relaxing when being held.
JOASH!
What a difference a year makes! Look at Joash’s face! A year ago he was a sad little boy, with no will to live. Today he is found with a constant grin on his face and a love for life! He loves being cheered on to try new things and is gaining strength in his legs to stand.
SYLVESTER!
We are noticing such a decrease in Sylvester’s anger outbursts and he is very calm. He is learning to tolerate therapy and we are learning to notice when he needs a time of quiet.
JOHN!
John dances the days away. Even without music John is dancing to his own tune and randomly bursting out laughing! John loves the painting of Jesus and the children we have painted on the wall and he is often found just looking at it.
CHARLOTTE!
Charlotte recently had a huge break through! She allowed herself to relax enough in my arms and fall asleep! Charlotte is growing and learning to accept human touch.
WILLIAM!
William doesn’t talk but he successfully can respond to his name being called. William loves to be on the swing or quietly in the corner watching the world go by. He loves food and is learning to feed himself and drink from a cup.
DAVID!
This little boy from Lofa that came to us barely alive, is now laughing, crawling and learning to balance by himself. David grabs and eats everything in his path. He gets jealous when others receive his Mother’s attention and loves cuddles.
ZOE!
Ma-Zoe as she is called, does not know what having a bad day means. If you are struggling, just go spend time with our delightful girl. She will cheer you up just with her wonderful presence! Ma-Zoe loves to be helping in the kitchen and does a great job sweeping the floor and carrying water, or just laughing with the kitchen staff and anyone else that is around.
DU!
Until recently Du watched the world through serious, eyes and posture. During the lock down, all the Mum’s children were around for therapy and he was brought into a new world of learning to play with trucks and racing around with the bigger boys. This opened something inside him and you will now find Du happily laughing and pushing his favourite truck around the therapy hall.
DEVINE!
Susan, the director of HSH has taken Devine into her home and is raising him as her own son. Devine is learning to pull himself up and walk. He loves to talk to people on the phone and he loves to be playing the keyboard with his big brother Joshua. Devine is a delight and very easy going, everyone is his friends and he is always exploring something new.
