Many of you in our community are aware of the crisis happening in the state of Manipur, where Angels' Place is located. The orphanage is currently protected by guards and the children are safe but the violence in the district of greater Chruachandpur continues to escalate. Here is a brief summary of what we know…
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Spring 2023 Update: News from Angels’ Place
Computer rendering of new health care facility
As you may know, Jim Ice and I were finally able to visit Angels’ Place after the pandemic restrictions ended. We each wrote lengthy reports of our visit which are posted on this web site. (click here to access the article with reports.) Please give them a read. They are lengthy but comprehensive descriptions of the wonderful work our great staff is doing there.
We also listed what we must accomplish to continue to advance our mission to help the needy orphans of India. That list is long and expensive to accomplish, so, we have begun to raise the funds to make Angels’ Place even more wonderful.
Our first project is to fund a new water purification system to supply potable water in our faucets and fountains for all our kids. We are optimistic that we can secure the needed funds in the near future with a grant from a corporate partner. We have made this project a high priority because water borne diseases are an ever-present danger to our children and the bottled water we have relied on is increasingly expensive.
Location of new health care facility
At the same time, we have begun work on building a health care facility where our pediatrician and nurses can work. We will equip the facility with all the necessary devices and space to treat all first aid needs plus sufficient space for isolation of children needing long term care. The hospital in Churachandpur is simply not adequate for the needs of our children. We must provide this building for all future health care eventualities. Our experience with the pandemic proved this need for us. We were blessed to survive the pandemic with only one child showing symptoms, but we had to isolate 16 girls and one boy who tested positive but were asymptomatic. We must be prepared for such problems that may arise again. Included with this report is a photo (above right) of the vacant area in the corner formed by Lydia’s House and the vocational education building plus the computer rendering (top of page) of the new health care building prepared by Siam, our resident supervisor.
We are also working to fix our roads, our basketball court, our soccer field and our playground equipment. We have 170 kids to nurture, feed, educate and entertain with sports and play and all the things healthy kids need to grow.
We also have been blessed with wonderful, generous patrons and we trust that blessings will continue to come so we can fund this work. If you would like to make a contribution please do so securely on this website or by mailing a check payable to James Connection to PO Box 751, Monroeville, PA 15146.
I treasure the privilege of doing this work and I hope you do too. Surely, God has shown us what can be accomplished if we keep praying and moving forward.
In Him,
Jan Swensen
Executive Director
Fall 2022 Update: Jan Swensen and Jim Ice Visit Angels’ Place
In October, James Connection Executive Director Jan Swensen and Board Member Jim Ice traveled to Angels’ Place. These regular trips have several goals that center around maintaining a safe, healthy, and nurturing life for the children. They both kept a full schedule during their week-long stay, and their activities included: meeting with the children; meeting with the staff in order to review operations, programs, and financial management of Angels’ Place; reviewing the educational progress of the children and their medical care; and assessing the facilities for maintenance and capital needs.
Jan had a special intention for this trip, which was to meet with some of the recent graduates of Angels’ Place, and his report underscores one of our most important goals for our work. Angels’ Place exists not only to take care of the children but also to prepare them for their lives as adults. Jan’s report contains many heartwarming stories of how these precious children have grown into young adults who are making their way in the world. As for Jim, he has been working for several years on developing the vocational programs at Angels’ Place. During this trip, he devoted significant time to reviewing curriculum, mentorship, and facilities. He is pleased to report substantial growth in the program – another effort to ensure that the children become productive and self-sufficient when they enter adulthood. To read the full reports, click the links at the end of this article.
By both accounts, the children are doing well and the staff at Angels’ Place are providing good care for them. Please see Jan’s and Jim’s summary reports below for more detail. We thank you for your ongoing support, for you have made Angels’ Place a nurturing home where children can count on a brighter future - one that they would not have had without you.
Sponsor News: Staying in touch after Angels’ Place
Second grade teacher Ann Smith and systems analyst Todd Smith have made room in their family for many children at Angels' Place, but the first one - Chinsanglem - holds that special place.
By: Leslie Swensen
Most of our sponsors choose to pay monthly by credit card and, inevitably, that credit card expires giving me the opportunity to contact that sponsor. Often that contact results in gratifying testimony. Such was the case recently when I talked to Ann Smith of Scott Depot, West Virginia.
Ann and husband Todd have been sponsors since 2008 when they learned about Angels’ Place from a presentation at Pine Grove Church of Christ. They have sponsored four boys through the years and graciously welcome a new child each time we ask.
When I asked Ann if we could count on their ongoing support of the children at Angels’ Place she responded, “We absolutely will continue to support the wonderful work you do. I’m in frequent contact with our first child, now a man, through Facebook. He loves that he is the first person to tell me Happy Mother’s Day due to the time difference.” He also provides practical advice: “When I was stung by a hornet, he was the first to offer an Indian homeopathic pain alleviation and it worked.”
Chinsanglem was ten years old when he came to Angels’ Place in 2006. He studied hard and qualified to attend Rayburn College for grades 11 and 12. Because he got a late start at school, he was 21 when he finished grade 12. He left Angels’ Place in 2017 to study at the Imphal School of Preaching and then to study hospitality at Imphal University. Upon his graduation, he found a job in retail sales. He supported himself and helped his siblings as well.
“When the pandemic hit, we saw how bad it was in India. I had to ask – he wouldn’t volunteer – but he lost his job in retail when everything closed,” said Ann. “I asked him if he was okay for food and money. He assured me that he was. He had enough beans and rice for a week and one week’s salary saved.” When the Smiths offered to send him money “he adamantly refused, saying we had given him enough when he was at the home as a child, that he was an adult who could figure it out, and …. he had plenty of beans and rice.”
Eventually and at their insistence, Chinsanglem accepted help from the Smiths until “he told us he had gotten a job and didn’t need it. I was humbled that he waved off the money as soon as he had a job.”
“He’s working again in retail, I believe. I’m not sure how their system works, but I do know that the work you do at Angels’ Place gave him far more opportunities for his future than he ever would have had. We are thrilled to be a part of this work!” says Ann.
James Connection committee member Jim Fields noted, “As I listen to Ann’s story, I am obviously struck by her love for Chinsanglem and by his desire to be self-supporting. But I am also struck by something else! Angels’ Place does so much more for the children than provide food and a place to sleep; they promote Christian values like honesty, hard work and integrity. Chinsanglem is certainly a shining example of that!”
Many sponsors tell us they wish they could maintain relationships with their sponsored child after he or she leaves Angels’ Place. With improved access to social media around the world staying in touch becomes a real possibility now. Although the James Connection cannot facilitate that ongoing communication, sponsors are free to invite it themselves. Simply include your social media information in the letters to your child and he or she can reach out to you when they are able to if they so desire.
Says Ann, “I won't forget the first time we used FB Messenger to video chat. He and I both cried buckets. He is on my FB background with my son and grandsons. He is a part of our family and always will be.”
REMINDER: Letters are due postmarked by August 1. Please write to your child today!
