Chicken Coop at Grace Orphanage

The chicken coop at Grace Orphanage in Yangon, Myanmar, was destroyed in Cyclone Nargis. However, thanks to your gifts towards Myanmar Relief, they've been able to repair their chicken coop and are taking care of 200 chickens! Below is a "before" picture of the destroyed coop, and an "after" picture of the repaired chicken coop. 

The orphanage is able to make a small profit selling the eggs, and then after a year, when the chickens aren't laying any more eggs, they sell the chickens.
 

Flooding at Faith

Faith Orphanage sent these photos of their flooded campus:

I am sending you some picture of the flood. But I am sorry to say that the picture are not so clear since it is copied from the movie.

Esther [one of the orphans] came back from school at 11:00 this today because she got the fever. Please pray for her. All the rest of the children are doing fine.

Flooding in Myanmar

The rainy season has arrived in Myanmar, and it is hitting hard. We just received this letter from the director of Faith Orphanage in Myanmar:

Greetings to you in Jesus name. How are you? and how is every one's? Here we are all doing good. But unfortunately we has been flooded since 5/7/08 till today. We have been trying for year to prevent from this flood but we can't. And this time is very bad as never before. The children can not go to school because of this flood. Please pray for us that this will end up very soon and this may not cause any trouble to the children. Thank you.

May the Lord bless you.

Please keep the orphans in your prayers!

Orphanage Director Doing Relief Work

Joseph, the director of Emmanuel Orphanage, just sent us this letter about a village he visited to evangelize and do relief work. Their condition is heartbreaking:

There is a stream which is stagnant and joined to the sea of India. Cyclone Nargis raised the water and has beaten the villages vehemently. The cyclone washed away 90 peoples as well as oxen, pigs and cows. After one week their corpses and carcasses are so rotten and full of bad smell. The survivors drank the stream water and their physical body sensed pain and sickness. No one cares for their strong trouble except for the living God. As king David said, "refuge has failed me, no one cares for my soul." (Psalm 142:4)

The cyclone also washed away all the paddy and rice. Whatever they collected in to the barns for at least one year is gone. As far as I know, no one has come to care for them. Then they have no pots to cook food and they steeped rice in water and they ate it fully but it has given them some problem in their body and they got pain and dysentery.

They have no toilet as well. And when I looked inside their tents, there was no floor and it was full of mud. There was no way for them to cook food or to sleep at night. Some of the people have no clothes to wear the body in fully and some wear in half.

When I looked and saw how they are poor and needy, I could not restrain my heart and I gave them all what I brought and we faced some trouble on the way of going back. But I am exceedingly joyful in all our tribulation.

Their existing place is surrounded by Adawady River and the sea of India. In so far as I know, no one desire to minister to them because to get there you need to sail a long time and it is full of mud and it is difficult journey. Some people can not walk even by foot. 

But the Lord has opened the way for me to minister them and I went to them joyfully. I told them that I would come to you again and the Lord is going to open the door for me to minister and for them especially. 

Yesterday we sent $1,000 to Joseph so that he can provide physical help to this village while he continues to tell them about Jesus.

Click here to donate towards ongoing relief work in Myanmar.

New Buildings

I'm happy to report that all of our damaged Yangon orphanage buildings have been repaired, and because of your support, four orphanages are going to get new buildings. This includes Emmanuel Orphanage, which was renting a building (click here for the photo of their rented building). Below are photos of the children at the other three Yangon orphanages that will soon have better buildings:
New Heritage


Agape

Love and Mercy

A New Building for Life Concern Orphanage

The children of Life Concern Orphanage will have a strong and sturdy building before much longer! The director just sent us this picture of the foundation being laid: This is their old building, destroyed in the cyclone:
Click here to help the orphanages in Myanmar.

Update on relief

We received an email from our primary contact in Myanmar that showed how our first relief gift was spent. Eight of the orphanages that Orphan's Tear supports on a regular basis received funds to repair their buildings, and twenty orphanages received emergency help for food, water and medical needs.

We're receiving reports from some of the orphanage directors that they are traveling to the harder hit areas of Myanmar to distribute aid. Below are a few of the photos from those areas. They report that people are hungry and homeless, and spend their time standing along the road hoping to receive food and aid from the cars that drive by.

Click here to help the orphanages in Myanmar.

Update from Victoria Orphanage

We just got a few more photos from Victoria Orphanage. It looks like they've done quite a bit of cleaning up since the last photos they sent.

Update from Life Concern Orphanage

From Life Concern Orphanage:

Hoping that you're fine. As for me and all the kids are saved from the badly typhoon. The shelter of the orphans, toilet and others are badly damaged by the storm. They typhoon affected the price of foods and others. Yangon might not be the same when you come back to Myanmar. If possible, we needs your helps and prayer urgently.
We do pray for you and your ministry to be a blessing for others.
Yours,
[Life Concern Orphanage]

Prayer requests

A photo of the director and orphans of Love and Mercy Shelter from December, 2005

The director of Love and Mercy Shelter sent an email to request prayer for his son, Samuel, who is coughing, and also four orphans who are sick. Their well was damaged in the cyclone, and so they don't have easy access to safe water. And because the ground is still covered in water, water-borne diseases are spreading.

Also, five of the children at Emmanuel Orphanage are sick as well. Please keep them in your prayers.

Click here to help the orphanages in Myanmar.

Help Has Arrived!

Our first wire of $11,000 was received by our contact in Myanmar, and we are getting reports and thanks from the orphanages in Yangon. I wanted to pass on this good news to you! 

Here is a letter we received from Love and Mercy Shelter in Yangon:

I greet you in Jesus name from LMS, Myanmar. I received ------ for the house renovation of the roofing. Thank you so much for your help and prayer. God is so good and He is caring [for] His people every day and night. I would like to say again, thanks to all my brothers and sisters.

May God bless you all,

[Love and Mercy Shelter]

Here is a letter we received from Rhema Orphanage in Yangon:

I am very glad that God is with all of us. Romans 8:28 comes true to us. It seems that all the damaging roofs, windows, doors, window glasses and some walls will be substituted with the new one. What I mean is the older has gone and the newer has comes. The newer is better.

God is so good!

Thank you so much for all the things that you have done.

Click here to help the orphanages in Myanmar.

Photos from Emmanuel Orphanage in Yangon

Over the weekend we received photos and an email from Emmanuel Orphanage in Yangon. As you can see, their building isn't in livable condition. We want to build them their own cyclone-proof building so that they no longer have to pay rent or depend on a landlord to repair their building.

[The] children.... stayed in our kitchen room while the cyclone was striking our house. Now we do not have food to eat, clean water to drink, our rented house is not repaired yet. It has been 6 days after the cyclone, our house owner did not come to repair the house. We need your prayer and humanitarian help.

This orphanage is now living in a tent

We are getting requests for help not only from the orphanages that Orphan's Tear supports on a monthly basis, but also those that are on our waiting list to help. We got the following email from Zion Orphanage in Yangon:

Greetings in Jesus' name from Zion Children Home, Myanmar. I hope you are keeping well and doing ministry for the glory of God.

We Zion Children Home are in your waiting list but I also believe there are many people before us in your waiting lists. However, I would like to share the problem that we have faced from great storm in last Friday and Saturday. After more then 13 hours of great storm in Myanmar, especially in Yangon city and other lower part of Myanmar, people were lost and homeless.

We Zion Children Home also faced the same problem. We all are safe but we do[n't] have home any more. The storm destroyed our house, we are in very small tent. We need your prayer. As already mentioned above, I know that we are in the last part of waiting in your ministry, since it is emergency and important, I humbly request to consider our needs as you are appointed by God.

Your in His service,

Zion Children Home

Help us to provide relief and a home for these precious orphans! 100% of your gift will go to help the orphans.

Aid Urgently Needed!

In light of the recent news that the government is confiscating aid shipments and denying visas to aid workers, the plight of our orphanages is more desperate. Money is the only thing that can flow into Myanmar at the current moment. If they have the money, they can buy what they need. 

We just sent an initial amount of $11,000 in relief that will get to our Yangon orphanages very soon for immediate food needs and medical help. But so much more is needed to help rebuild the orphanage buildings so that the children can safely return home. None of the orphanage dormitories that we have built were damaged because they are solid brick and concrete construction. In the past few years we have built around sixteen dormitories for orphanages in Myanmar. We want to build cyclone-proof dormitories for all of our orphanages, so that they won't live in the bamboo and thatch homes that were so easily blown over in the cyclone. 

100%  of all gifts to the Myanmar Disaster Relief fund will go towards the immediate and pressing needs of the Yangon orphans, like food, water and medical treatment, and then to repairing their buildings so that they can safely return home.  

Update from Emmanuel and Love and Mercy Orphanage in Yangon

We just received this report from Emmanuel Orphanage in Yangon:

Praise the Lord! We have just escaped from the Nargis Cyclone which took hold many lives in Yangon city. The scourge has brought us into a world of depression, loneliness, rejection, helplessness and deprivation of food, water and electricity. The Cyclone took away the roof ( tin plates) of our rented house and the front fence was badly destroyed. The ground floor of our house got flooded and brought about a lot of diseases to our family. Five of our children are affected with diarrhea. The practical problems that strike our lives: non-availability of food to eat, pure drinking water to drink and water to use, electricity, and the sky high prices of goods in the city. It has been five days that the Cyclone struck , but the house owner did not come to repair our house. We live in a ruinous house!

What we have like food and water, we give it to others who are in dire need and now it is running out! Our orphanage has 30 family members. To live a day for our family is now overwhelming and nothing is done to our rescue and rehabilitation so far. I do not know how long we can live as the effect of the Cyclone is overloading for us to carry on! We strongly keep the faith!

I pray that God speaks to your hearts and be a life-rescuer to these Cyclone struck people of my country. I want to send you photos but I could not do it because of the slow of internet connection!

Thank you for your concern for our lives and ministries in Myanmar. We are now in urgent need of your personal prayer, sympathetic and humanitarian help!

From Love and Mercy:

We are saved by the grace of God and your prayer supporting. As you said, our house is strong and we have generator these are God had prepared for us. So I thanks God and praise to Him. The roof were swept away.Please pray for us that we are struggling for water. We have generator but it could not pump the water so we really need the engine and compressor.

Thank you brother, now we really need your help and prayer.

Donate to Myanmar Relief

In the wake of Cyclone Nargis, the situation in Myanmar has become very serious. It is estimated that over 22,000 people have died, and 1 million people are now homeless. Clean water is in short supply, the price of food and basic necessities has skyrocketed, and the government is being very slow to accept international aid.

We have heard from six of our ten orphanages in Yangon (Victoria, New Heritage, Shalom, Life Concern, Grace, and Rhema orphanage), and we know that they are going to need a lot of help to repair damages and rebuild.

100% of what you give to the Disaster Relief Fund will go to help with relief for our orphans and our brothers and sisters in Christ in Myanmar.

Please keep the orphanages in your prayers.

Preaching opportunities in Yangon!

The cyclone in Myanmar has apparently opened up some doors for the Gospel to go forth! Our primary contact in Myanmar writes: 

The cyclone "Nargis" smashed us on May 2, 2008 from 9 pm to 12:30 pm the next day with strong wind, 130 miles per hour. And old man of 74 years from my neighbor told me that it was the worst in his life. The people who lived around our office were helpless, all their poor huts were collapsed and they all ran to our office for safety. Altogether they were 107 persons. We cared and comforted them as far as we could and fed them with good food. Some were shocked, sick and lost all hopes. During that time Anna, my daughter took an advantage and shared them the good news to the victims.

Anna wrote to us as well:

Goodnews... That time our neighbor were come to the office and they ask for food and one meal we feed them. I asked them , "do you want to listen about Jesus?" and they say "Yes." Around one hour I preach them the Salvation of God and we really enjoy it.

Update from Grace Orphanage

From Grace Orphanage in Yangon:

I assume that you have heard the cyclone. It has never been in Myanmar. It hit so bad. Thousand of people suffer without food and water. More than 22 thousand of people died. There may be some more.

It hit very bad. The wind also blew some of the roof of Grace house away. My wife is working with 5 orphanages and we visited them and their houses are destroyed. One of the boy's dormitory is collapsed.

Update from Rhema Orphanage

This morning we received the following email from Rhema Orphanage in Yangon:

Dear brother David,

I would like to inform you about the storm in Myanmar and about our houses. I am very thankful that God is with us. There is no casualty in our place but there are a lot of damages. Many houses are falling down. There are many people without house. I am roaming here and there to see the situation. I help many households. But not many but only just a few [have] money for food, their critical need.

As for us, three roofings are blown. The children are put to Gospel for Asia Bible College. We are praying for renovation.

I hope all of you are in good health under the protection of God. Thank you so much for all the things that you have done for us.

Update from Shalom Orphanage in Yangon

Shalom Orphanage in Yangon reports that they are well, but their building was damaged:

Dear Charity,

How are u? I am greeting from Yangon Shalom Children Home. As you know we faced hard weather. But by the grace of God we all are fine. Only our bamboo house and campus are broken. Thank for your prayer for my children and my country. God bless you. Please pray for us.

Sincerely,

Shalom Children Home

Yangon

Update: We have received more information on Shalom Orphanage from our contact there. She writes that the children of Shalom are all fine, but that their temporary bamboo house is "broken." We were almost done with the construction for a new building for Shalom orphanage, and we were happy to hear that the new building made it through the storm.

Update from New Heritage in Yangon

This morning we received a report from New Heritage Orphanage in Yangon (pardon their broken English):

Dear Charity,

First of all I thanks to God. We are good health and God protect from very very strong Cyclone in Myanmar. Many house decay and destroy all the things but we are refuge from this, God bless us and protect us and be with us Hallelujah Jesus is alive.

Now I secondly requested please pray for us and kindly please help our house decay and destroy because of Cyclone. We are praying for you. You can see scan photo house attachment. May God bless you.

Much love in Him,

New Heritage

Update from Victoria Orphanage in Yangon

Early this morning we received an email with photos from Victoria Orphanage in Yangon. Their thatch kitchen was blown over, but their orphanage building is still standing. Praise God that there were no reports of injuries!

Report from Northern Myanmar

We just received this email from one of our orphanages that is in Northern Myanmar. Apparently the internet is now working there.

Dear Sis Charity,

Thank you for your mails and concern towards to us (Myanmar). 

Here I reply as soon as the free mail has in the right way.

Every one in [Northern Myanmar] are keeping well. Whereas in Yangon, many houses and people were died and collapse. Right now in Myanmar everything price has been increasing, even salt, tea etc.

Do continue to prayer for us.

Yours in Him,

[New Eden Orphanage]

Pray for Myanmar

As most have already heard, a cyclone hit Myanmar on Saturday. Many of you are writing to ask if we have heard anything from our orphanages. The majority of the orphanages we support are in Northern Myanmar, and they have been unaffected. We have been receiving emails from them, and as far as we can tell, everyone is fine there.

We also have about 10 orphanages in Yangon (closer to the coast), and we have not heard from any of them yet. According to the news reports, the power is down in Yangon. Please keep them in your prayers! When we hear anything we will post it here.

We just got this letter from one of our Burmese friends who was not in Yangon at the time of the cyclone:

I am writing to you in the most precious name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

It is so sad to hear that the devastrating cyclone on last Saturday killed at least 4,000 people and over 100,000 people are left homeless and are without drinking water and food in Rangoon [Yangon] and Arrawaddy Delta regions, Burma. All the power lines and telecommunications are cut off. Several houses were destroyed. The area where my parents live and where I did the evangelic ministry in Rangoon [Yangon] is one of the lowest level and of the poorest living conditions. I could not contact my family thus far. I'm so concerned and worried about the family and thousands of our neighborhoods in the area. This natural disaster could be the worst within the last 50 years in Burma. I can't help but my spirit cries and my souls groans for our people. Please do pray for our poor people in Burma.

From Trinity Orphanage:

"Warmly greetings to you... Hoping that you are fine there with your family. We also fine here and all the children also fine here by the love of God and through your prayer. And most of our children also passed their examination this year. But one of sister Miss Ni Hlei Chin fails her examination.

...We Thank you so much that your helping us for new latrine. Now, I sent you the photo of our new latrine to whom we have received from you. We thank you so much. May the Lord bless you and your ministry activities continuously. We thank you so much for your helping us."

El Shadai Orphanage

The new dorm for El Shadai orphanage is nearly completed! 

Life Orphanage Building

The foundation has been laid and the walls are going up on the new building for Life Orphanage! We'll be glad when their new building is done and they can move out of their rented building and not have the expense of rent any more.

New Heritage kids learning crafts

The Director of New Heritage sent me this today:

We are praying for you good health.
I send to you New Heritage Kids learn
Hand Craft during Summer.You attachment
the photo. Thank You.

Life Orphanage

Today we received the following email from the director of Life Orphanage in Myanmar (pictured above with the children in his orphanage):

Dear Sis Charity

Greeting you in Jesus name.

I hope you are keeping well.

We at Life Orphanage are also keeping well by the sake of your praying and helping. Sis Charity I beg your pardon for informing about our hardship livelihood now and then. It is because there's nothing I can do except informing you all our livelihood hardship. And it is because we only depend on you in all our livelihood our house-rent for Feb, Mar-08 is not also paid up to today. More over I hope you can see we are monthly in debt for our daily livelihood. We only depend on you and our gracious Lord God. We are praying for you and your family.

Thanks you so much.

A few sponsors had to drop their sponsorship of Life Orphanage children for various reasons, and now only 10 of their 21 children are sponsored. So they are in need of more sponsors so we can increase their monthly "livelihood!" If you want to help Life Orphanage, go to OrphansTear.org, choose "Myanmar," and then if you go to the last page you will see some of the Life Orphanage kids that are awaiting sponsorship.

Orphan's Tear Blog

Thanks for checking out the new Orphan's Tear blog! We've created this blog so that you can stay updated with what's going on in the orphanages. Every day we receive news from the orphanage directors, and now we are passing on some of that to you!