Eagles’ Wings Homes
Since COAT is now COAT Inc, some changes in administration have occurred to fit in with the COAT Inc constitution.
Each of Eagles’ Wings family homes has a head ayi who can keep the household running in the absence of a foreign volunteer to act as house manager. At the moment, Jenny and Sylvia are overseeing all four Eagles’ Wings homes with the help of the head ayis and our management team. This is a huge job and we thank Jenny & Sylvia for it.
However we don’t want to kill the willing horse, so we are “hoping” in two more sets of volunteers. We have an applicant going through all the hoops to be ready to come in early next year, and that is a huge answer to “hope”.
So if any of you feel drawn to love children on a larger scale than your immediate family, please click here and complete the form and upon receiving your email I will talk to you more about that.
Eagles’ Wings II opened in July 2008. The first baby we brought in was Tong Tong. She was then eight months old and she is blind. But she is thriving here and we have added to the family several other babies and all the older school children. There are five older school children who have been able to shake off the orphan stigma by living away from the orphanage and live in a school district where the school has an excellent reputation. I have bought the boys, Hong Wei and Fu Xing second hand bikes to tear around the estate on until they are proficient in riding. I don’t want them on the main roads until they are proficient, but in the estate where Eagles’ Wings I and II are, there are safe lanes for them to ride. The two primary school girls, Yuan Yuan and Liu Er have cp issues, so instead of a bicycle, I bought them a tricycle. They take turns of peddling and sitting in the back. It means they can go all over the estate here and make friends down at the lake or in the playground or just riding around the lanes.
Jin Xiang Hua Yuan is a lovely walled estate and the gatemen don’t let strangers in unless they are recorded, so our kids are safe in the estate. Every morning, there are grandparents everywhere walking their grandchildren and they sit on the lawns and let the children play. The trees and grass are lovely and our boys even caught a yabby in the lake and brought it home for a pet. It is in a tin bowl in the babies’ bathroom and still alive and kicking. For the first week, they were nicking tiny bits of meat from the fridge, but the ayis caught them and forbad them... so now the poor yabby is stuck with tiny bits of tofu. I don’t think it will survive much longer.
I often sit and watch our older children and am amazed at their present situations in Eagles’ Wings. It gives me such joy because I knew many of them as tiny babies in the old orphanage and I ask myself what it took to give them a loving family in Eagles’ Wings. It took dreaming and hoping and loving and giving and crying and mentioning it lots to our Dad.
He gave us the resources to lease one home, then buy two others, then man it and equip it and provide for all our needs. Then I stand amazed at all He has done. Two people today asked me to take them off my mailing list because I send too much information. Many people live their lives and don’t want to know about orphans. If you have read this far, you are not one of those. Thank you for loving children you have never met. COAT is a big family now and if you are not a member of this family, it is easy and no contribution is considered too small.... and it doesn’t have to be money.... your time, your talent and your “hoping” is all that is needed.
Eagles' Wings I currently has 14 children, Eagles' Wings II has 16 children, Eagles' Wings III has 20 and Eagles' Wings IV (which opened in early 2009) has 10 children, these children are the severely disabled children, also known as the 'helpless and hopeless'. What we need are more ayis fully sponsored before we can bring in any more children. We currently have more than 50 staff members and many of these do not have any sponsorship at all.
I know I am too wordy and some people hate the longevity of my notes, but others hang on every word. If you are one of those, our Dad has quickened you to care and you are willing to be quickened. Then you are someone who wants to make a difference and make your life count.
With love from our Dad, Linda
