Published Friday, April 20, 2012
For just $20, you can buy a backpack full of school supplies for a child!
To do this, simply click on here and write in your amount, specifying 'backpack' in the project field. Our goal is to raise $6,580 in the next 30 days – that would fully fund buying each one of our new Angels a backpack in time for the new school semester.
Our team will be personally delivering the bags this June to each of these deserving children.
Thank you for your participation in changing a child's life!
-the Angel House team
Published Thursday, March 29, 2012
This Summer, Angel House is doing something remarkable in India! Last year in 2011 we set out to do more than we had ever done before- to have more impact, to raise more money, and to rescue MORE children than ever before. In 2010 we opened our first home for 50 children, but in 2011, we were able to open 11 rescue homes! At the end of the year, we had 369 beautiful Indian children living in our homes.
We are SO excited to announce that we have just broken ground on 12 homes to open this June! We will journey all throughout the states of Bihar and Andhra Pradesh to open these homes for over 400 beautiful, deserving children. We can't wait to shower them with love, move them into their homes, and give them a week to remember with our team of 120 young people from all over the United States!
Although the fight isn't over yet, we are so excited about the momentum that is taking place. Our goal for 2012 is to build 20 homes, and we are well on our way!
If you would like to be a part, please visit our "give" page and make a donation!
-the Angel House team
Published Monday, Decemberber 19, 2011
This Christmas was something we will truly never forget. The Angel House staff, as well as 20 team members from across the US, journeyed all over Andhra Pradesh India to open 6 brand new rescue orphanages. Each home was so unique and each child will never be forgotten. Here is a brief update on each home opened:
Kaithala Puram, India: This Angel House opened for 18 of the cutest kids you have ever seen! Because it is near to the main city of Hyderabad, most of the kids spoke English, which was so fun for our team to be able to freely communicate. We spent the afternoon playing games and singing songs like "If you're happy and you know" and Christmas carols. Each child also stood up and announced what they wanted to be when they grew up, which was so precious. Answers ranged from a doctor to an engineer...we even had a "hero" in there!
Peeramcheru, India: This Angel House was for 12 amazing kids, each with an amazing story. It was on the outskirts of Andhra Pradesh and in a more poverty-stricken area. A handful of the kids had been rescued from a nearby village that had its own language entirely. We were able to work with some of the children who were just getting adjusted to learning their new language of Hindi. This day was so special because we had a HUGE surprise for the kids (literally) -- we brought in a camel for camel rides! The kids' eyes got SO big with excitement as it walked up to greet them at the house. Each child took a turn with one of our Angel House team members and we had such a fun and memorable day celebrating!
Bethapudi, India: Opening this Angel House was SO much fun. 50 girls got to have the kind of Christmas that every little girl should have! They were showered with love and gifts and we played all day and listened to Christmas carols! We even got there early enough to eat a traditional Indian breakfast with the girls before the day started, which was a huge honor for our team! It was surreal to see where these girls had been temporarily living before the Angel House was built. It made this day even more special as the girls jumped and played on their brand new custom made beds!
Guntur, India: This Angel House is one of the most unique ones that we have been able to open. Because of its proximity to a local private school, each of the girls got to show off everything that they had been learning all year in school this year! These are some of the most ambitious, driven and blessed little girls. Their favorite gift to receive was the brand new Angel House backpack full of new school supplies. It was especially neat to be able to practive speaking English with the girls! They had a blast showing us all of the Christmas songs they had learned in English!
Hyderabad, India: This Angel House was so special as it was built in honor of one of our team member's best friends who tragically passed away from Cancer in 2009. Ashley from Sterling Heights, MI spent the day with these children teaching them the importance of friendships! It was so fun as the children intently listened to the stories and showered Ashley with smiles and hugs! It was a very special day for all of us.
Muravakonda, India: The final Angel House of Christmas in India 2011 was so memorable. We had a CELEBRATION! These were some of the neediest little girls I have personally ever seen. Seeing the paper-thin mats these girls had been sleeping on before we opened their home was heartbreaking. Showering them with gifts in their brand new beds was an experience of a lifetime!! We had so much fun spending the entire day with these 51 beautiful little princesses.
We want to say a huge thank you for each and every person who gave and supported Angel House in the Christmas in India 2011 campaign. It was a HUGE success and Angel House has now officially rescued 369 orphans from the slums of India. 369 children who had no home, no family, no education and no love are virtually living a beautiful life thanks to the sponsors of Angel House.
If you would like to help Angel House but don't know where to start, please consider becoming a monthly partner! On the giving page, you can choose any amount and choose to give monthly. Constant support is the #1 way that Angel House can continue to grow and rescue children all year round. In the last 12 months, we were able to virtually rescue a child a day. In 2012 we would like to go over and above!
Merry Christmas from all of us to you!
-Lindsay and the Angel House team
Published Friday, September 23, 2011
If you haven't seen it yet, we urge you to go check out what Milestone Church in Texas is doing for Angel House. They created an entire campaign called "15for50" where they urged all 300 of their students to get 15 people to give them $15 to build a home for 50 orphans. Pretty simple, right? Not only did they reach their goal ($67,500!) But they kept going! They are now working on raising funds for their second orphanage that will open in June 2012.
Awesome job guys!
-The Angel House Team
Published Thursday, September 22, 2011
We are so excited to get back to India this December! If you are interested in joining us on this life-changing mission, make sure to visit us on our "Trips" page and apply - we have 4 spots left!
Below is a list of the cities in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India where we will be opening 5 brand new Angel House rescue homes.
Bethapudi, India: 50 girls
Devarakonda, India: 50 girls
Miyapur, India: 6 boys and 6 girls
Izzath Nagar, India: 6 boys and 12 girls
Guntur, India: 50 girls
We would like to say a huge thank you to our sponsors for this December: Robbin Sullivan, Life Church in McAlester, Oklahoma, The Horst Family, Friends and Family of Daniella Saveski, and Community Christian Church in Sterling Heights, Michigan. 180 children are getting a brand new start at life because of your hard work, dedication, and heart for the children of the world!
Published Wednesday, March 9, 2011
I literally just got off the phone with our Angel House director who is on the ground in India and he began to share with me the heartbreaking story of this amazing group of girls. Our team literally rescued these little girls from a pig farm where they were living for shelter. They slept on the ground, had no one to care for them, and were living off of scraps and unclean water. Our director said their conditions were "devastating to behold" and it brought tears to his eyes.
These girls have literally been brought from the slums to safety. They are all living together in a temporary home until June when we officially open their Angel House! I can't wait to get to Patna to love on these beautiful little girls.
This is a miracle story and ANTIOCH CHURCH you should be proud of how you are impacting these girls' lives! Thank you from the bottom of my heart!
-Lindsay
We are so excited to announce that 5 NEW HOMES are currently being built all over India, which means that we are over half way to our goal of 9 homes in 2011!
The Angel House team will journey from city to city this June to dedicate all 5 of these orphanages. We have two 12 children homes, two 25 children homes and one home for 50 boys!
We want to say a special thank you to those who made it possible to build these homes. On behalf of the children, we want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts. With your help, all of these will get a new life and a chance to have all that children should have - food, a loving family, an education, and plenty of food! If you or someone you know would like to be a part of sponsoring an Angel House Project, please visit our give page - "because every child deserves a safe place to call home."
-The Angel House Team
Day 2 with the orphans was equally as memorable, emotional and exciting as the first. This was the day we would surprise the kids with gifts and a day that they would never forget.
They were so excited to see us that next day, since we had already begun bonding with them. They started calling us by name as we got off the bus, and even called us 'uncle' and 'auntie'!
After we ate breakfast the kids wanted to show us the American games they'd learned. We all started to laugh as they started to sing and act out the Hokey Pokey, or as they called it, the "Hookie Pookie". They were so proud that they'd learned a song in English, and we all danced and sang together. We then took them outside to play soccer and we taught them Duck Duck Goose, which was hilarious as they tried to mimmick the words. Pretty sure it was the best game of "Juck Juck Goose" I have ever played!
After the church was clean from breakfast we went back inside for the big surprise. We had all the kids line up on the floor and told them we had Christmas gifts for them. It's customary in India that Christmas gifts usually consist of a new outfit, and maybe 1 new toy. These kids were in for a treat as our team began to hand to each child a backpack full of everything they could imagine. We counted to 3 and the kids began to tear into the bags to see what they got.
This was one of the most special moments I have ever seen. There aren't words to describe how elated they were as they began yelling to their friends to show them what they got. The smallest of gifts meant the world to them, and as they kept digging and finding more they could hardly contain themselves. You could automatically tell which gifts were each kids' favorite. To some it was the water bottle that they could take to the well and fill up to drink. They would hold it up and point outside to the well with a huge smile. To others it was the toy cars and they began to drive them around and make car sounds.
The smallest girls held onto their stuffed animals and kissed them over and over like they had a new best friend. To others it was the art projects and the huge box of crayons and coloring books. Each child was so happy and they kept shouting "thank you SO much!" over and over!
The day was just getting started, although I'm sure the kids would have been fine to sit there on that cement and play with their new toys all day. We then loaded all 50 on the bus for their next surprise - a trip to the market! I don't know if you've ever had the experience of taking 50 kids shopping, no less 50 kids who have never BEEN in a store and don't speak your language, but you can imagine we were in for a treat! We could hardly get the little ones past the fish tank at the entry door!
Each child was measured and got to choose the outfit they wanted. The girls of course went for the most sparkly and colorful dresses as the boys got new jeans and button up shirts. They all wanted to try it on and model for all to see. Two of our team members decided that the kids not only needed Christmas clothes, but also Christmas shoes, so when we told them their jaws dropped. For most of the kids, this was their very first pair of shoes.
After surviving the shopping trip we had yet another surprise for the kids. The house mom told me that this was the most special of all. We took all 50 children to do something they had never done before - we took them to eat lunch in a luxury hotel. As we walked inside the kids were spellbound as they felt the cold marble under their bare feet. A harsh difference to the dirt and rocks they were used to. They were as quiet as I had ever seen as they took in the reality of this huge building. Kids like this, no less 'street kids' would never be allowed into a place like this. The manager of the hotel was excited to have us, but told us that nothing like this had ever taken place in his hotel. The kids kept running up to the house parents saying "Mommy this is SO beautiful!"
Each kid was handed a real plate and headed up to the line to be served. Never had they received so much food and so many options! They went up for seconds, thirds and fourths until their little bellies were so full they just lay back in their chairs and smiled...until we brought out the ice cream, then they were suddenly hungry again!
Being able to give these children not only a Christmas that they had never had, but a Christmas they deserved was the greatest experience of my life, and I am so forever grateful for each person who took part in this historic event.
-Lindsay
The whole 24 hours leading up to the grand opening and dedication of Angel House was surreal. I was filled with so many emotions - excitement, disbelief, and every other emotion you could imagine.
As we boarded the bus, I knew the 15 minute ride would feel like 3 days. But as we started up the hill and I could see it off in the distance, everything emotion disappeared and I just started to cry. There up on the top of the hill stood the answer to so many prayers, and I was overwhelmed.
I could hear the kids singing as we got closer and closer. They all lined up outside the doors and their faces were priceless. Each one was filled with so much hope and gratitude. We stepped off the bus and were greeted with flower garlands that they hung on our necks and we proceeded to the front doors for the ribbon cutting ceremony. As we walked through the lines of kids they threw handfuls of flower petals on the team and shouted in English "THANK YOU!" That's when I lost it and started to cry. Each face represented so much to me. I had studied their pictures so many times, I recognized them all. I began to say hello, calling them by name, and their face lit up like you wouldn't believe that someone knew them by name. They weren't just a nameless face on the street, but a loved and known child of God.
I will never forget cutting the ribbon and walking into the front door. So many months, days and hours spent campaigning for this single moment. As we walked into the front door the kids rushed in behind us like a wave and we took pictures in front of the dedication plaque.
The kids were jumping up and down, popping balloons and cheering as we moved toward the bedroom. We cut the ribbon for the first bedroom and the kids rushed inside and each jumped on one of the bunk beds. Not only was this the first time the kids had a room of their own, but it was the first time any of them had ever sat on a bed or seen a pillow.
Beds for Indian children, let alone orphans, are very rare, and hardly any Indian adults own a pillow. These beds are the nicest available in the whole country and were custom-built for each of these kids. Some of the kids jumped on the bed, while others lay down on their new sheets. Others clung to their pillows like they'd never let go and neatly began to fold the corners of their sheets - they were taking care of it like it was worth a million bucks. As the house mother entered the room behind us they began to shout to her (in their native language Telegu) "Mommy look at my bed! It is SO BIG!" and "Look mom is this just for me?" As she assured them that they were home and it was all theirs, they began to celebrate even more.
That was the moment that I knew every second of this journey was worth it. The look on their faces when they realized that they had a new home, and they were family, was a moment I will never forget.
- Lindsay
Angel House Rescue Orphanage / 877.369.4532 / 4840 N. Adams Rd., Suite 418 / Rochester, MI 48306 / info@angelhouse.me
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