for the last time

today we went to my joint birthday party in the malate centre . i was sharing it with all the other people in the kanlungan projects who have birthdays in june. there were loads of kids there from the malate centre and the ODC and theymade a little program for us.
tomorrow we are going home at 11 and get back late on friday which is going to be wierd. ill se you all when i get back to the UK and the cold weather.

michael

Final Day

Today has been our last day in Manila. we leave here for the airport at 7am tomorrow morning and will arrive back in London at about 10pm on Friday evening UK time. That's 24 hours from now but it will take 31 hours. I'm a time traveller!

Today we met at the Malate house for a joint birthday party for all the staff and children from Malate house and the ODC who have birthday's in June (8 in total plus our Michael) It was a fabulous celebration with each group singing and dancing and it was sucha joyous occasion. It is lovely to see the children, particulary the children from the ODC who still live on the streets, really having fun and being part of a loving close community.

The children at Malate had made us a fabulous scrapbook and the children from the ODC had made Michael a birthday card.

We will have plenty of stories to tell when we get back but tonight has been a highlight.

See you all on the other side.

Love Helen

Icecreams and so much more.

To all of you who so kindly gave money for us to buy treats for the children while we are here I thought you'd like to know just what we have bought so far.

Apart from regular trips to the local icecream shop for bulk orders of icecreams we have also used your gifts to buy two electric fans for the girls bedrooms at Malate. A drum box for the residential house and a washing machine which was the request of the boys at the farm.

We also bought 16 sets of bedsheets for the new children who are about to be taken into the Malate House (Pink for the girls and manly stripes for the boys, chosen by Zac) it is exciting to think that another group of street children will soon be resident at the Malate House and sleeping in beds with their own sets fo bed linen.


Your money has gone a long way and everyone is very thankful for your help. If there is any money left over at the end of our visit we will leave it with Kanlungan to spend as they need.

Talk to you soon.

Helen

the thriller in manila

today we came back from porto galera and the boat stopped in the middle of the sea. fortunatly they sent another boat we kept going to batangas where ate sol and lito picked us up. then we drove back to the malate centre and then we went shopping for the things we needed to buy them. the shops were crazy because they were all jammed together. we went to this one bit were there were loads of speakers and amps and things so you would of loved it noel!
talk to you again tomorrow

michael

Filipino school day

Hi all

I really love it here but I wouldn't want to go to school here. The children at the Laguna children's home get up at 4.30 every day to have breakfast and tidy and clean their rooms. School starts at 6am until 12pm when they come home for lunch. Other children go to school inthe afternoon. I wouldn't want together up so early.

From Zac

mike found nimo

Yesterday we went snorkeling on a coral reef. Sadly our knowledge of tropical fish only runs to.what we learned from finding nimi but it was amazing and Michael did find nimo and we all saw lots of fabulous fish and corals. The downside was that I got motion sick and made a mess of the corner of their beautiful clear sea! That's a first, swimming has never made me sick before. It was well worth it though it was amazing.

Love to you all

Helen

toothbrushes

Hello Sutton road. Your toothbrushes have safely arrived in the Philippines. At the day centre where the street children go during the day there is a big jar of toothbrushes and each has a child's name written on the handle. Everyday the children come to the centre and clean their teeth in clean water. I have taken some photos to show you . Soon they will be using your toothbrushes. Thank you very much.

Zac

weekend away

Blogging on the phone is not easy for me but we have wifi at the moment so I'll do my best. We are having a family weekend in an amazing tropical island about an hours boat ride from the mainland. Palm trees and bananas and the bluest sea ever. But zac is working hard miss Beaumont he can now swim and breath at the same time and has mastered tumble turns. It's very different from the city but fantastic to get away and it is raining here now it's all Paradise. Just damp Paradise!!!

Love to you all

Helen

Numb backside but uplifted heart....

Today has been very long but very uplifting.

We've been out in the minibus (I was allowed to go in the front so I didn't get sick) to visit the Farm, the boys home and Laguna (The residential home in the suburbs). We've spent many hours in the van but it has been worth the discomfort.

At each stop we have been greeted by laughing and singing children and young people who know that they are cared for and loved by committed adults as well as being loved and accepted by their heavenly father. All the children are studying and have aspirations to make a life for themselves despite the start they have had in life. I have many individual stories to bring back with me to go with the 100's of photos.

Zac has been overwhelmed by attention being considered very white and very cute, although Mike was getting his far share of attention from the older girls at Laguna. I don't think I've seen any other white children in Manila at all!

The boys have been fantastic but it has been a lot for them to take in and we are looking forward to some family time for the next few days at the seaside!!..

Ate Sol is taking us to the ferry tomorrow morning (I don't think she trusts us to get therer by ourselves)

I'm sure we will find an internet cafe to blog from but we'll try not to mention the white sand beaches and the snorkeling. This is a mission trip after all.

God bless for now.

Helen

Highs and Lows

Today has, as usual been a day of extremes.

After visiting Smokey Mountain yesterday I had, kind of, assumed that everything else would be better! Then today we were taken to a bump site where Kanlungan have only recently started work. About 50 little shacks have been thrown together in a valley in the middle of a disused bump site (Closed because it didn't meet the city council's standards!) we visited as the rain was washing the mud and rubbish into the valley. Those of you who visited at Easter saw the other extreme of heat and dust. There is no power, water or sanitation and the community has been pretty much hidden from the world for about 8 years. Smokey mountain should not exist but at least there are signs of hope and regeneration there in the community. This place was so bleak. Kanlungan are currently feeding the 150 children twice a week but can not get permission from the landowner to build anything or do anymore. it's a start and something tells me that once Kanlungan gets teeth into the problem they won't rest untill things improve.

On the up side we visited the settlement which has been build for the community who used to live on the railway. It's a town of hundreds of identical little brick block rooms but there is a school and a feel of safety up there. We visited the homes of Tunasan children who have moved away from the railway and are now attending the school.

Spending time at Tunasan playing with the kids and watching the older boys at work producing Christmas cards was so encouraging. We've got a great selection of cards to bring back for sale in the UK. The income the boys get from the cards is going towards buying them shoes and school supplies for the coming term. They are so industrious, only stopping long enough to take part in presentation the whole group put on for us. We did another Adams family rendition of 'Shine'.

So it's bedtime now and tomorrow we do the out of town residential home, the farm and the boys home so it's going to be a long, long day.

love to you all,

Helen

more from the mind of michael

today we went to the tunasan center outside the main city with Willie. first we went to a sort of town like place where all the people who used to live by the railway have been relocated to. it was a bit odd but it was probably better than the railway they used to live on.then we went to this other dump site which was a bit like smokey mountain but worse. then we went back to tunasan and played basketball for a bit then we came back to the shallom.

michael

from the mind of mike

today we went to smokey mountain and saw all the people living on the rubbish. we went to the church on the heap which is just being rebuilt. we met the pastor and his wife who showed us around. it is weird seeing people do things on the rubbish. there are people sweeping up and doin there washing whilst surrounded by rubbish. now we are at the open day centre and we have done some songs and eaten a wierd fried banana thing.

michael

A Quick Update

Mark here with a quick update:

We went to Smokey Mountain this morning, which is always a difficult experience. Great to see the work that is being done there though ... and it is better there than the last time I visited. They have seperated the dumping site from where the families actually live, which is an improvement.

Then back to Malate Centre for lunch (which was delicious as usual) and we've spent the afternoon at the Drop in Centre. Its great to see how much this work has developed over the last couple of years. Oh ... and we taught them all the song 'Shine' as well!

Helen will update more later ...

Thanks for your love and prayers.

Mark

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaamen!!!!

We've only been here two days but we've seen and done a lot. Mike and Zac are doing brilliantly.

Yesterday we went to a swimming gala at which a number of NGO's brought children from across the city to compete for their teams. The Kanlungan children where from the drop in day centre who live with their families on the streets around Malate. Watching Zac swimming, play and have fun with this lovable group of children it was hard to imagine the lives they live and last night as I tucked Zac into bed knowing that he was the only child there who was sleeping in a house last night I didn't sleep very well.

Today we visited the residential centre which is very quiet as most of the children have been moved on to the Laguna centre ready to start the new school year. Running repairs are being made and new children have already been spotted by the street teams who may take their places in a couple of weeks.

This evening we walked the streets with Wilma and some of the older children gathering children together to sing, pray and play. We sang 'our God is Great Big god' and I taught them the 'Stepping Stones Amen' I will be leaving a little part of New Wine on the streets of Manila. The commitment to these families is just mindblowing and the way the team know everyone and are greated by everyone is amazing. It is hard but it is also uplifting to see the commitment and faith of the people who are dedicating their lives to these families.

Talk again soon.

Love Helen

Philippines by Zac

It's hot but it's 'cool'. Today we went to the Malate Centre then we went onto the streets to give out sweets to the children who don't have homes. We sang song with Kuya Wilma and prayed with groups of children. We sang 'Our God is a great big God.

On the way home we rode on a jeepnee which was so cool.

Tell you more soon

Love Zac

Arrived Safely

We've arrived! Its been a long flight but a good one. Cathay Pacific looked after us well and Zac and Michael were really good. Helen was grumpy most of the way but she blamed the travel sickness tablets. Ate Sol meet us at the airport with Ate Maricar and Kuya Leto.

Then on our ride into Manila, every time Zac saw a Jeepney he said ' Jeepney' ( they are a kind of extended Jeep that are used like buses - and there are lots of them!)

Then we had a meal at Tgi’s with some of the Kanlungan staff which was great, although Zac feel asleep while we were there! Then a good nights rest ( we woke up at 11:15!) and now in Starbucks for breakfast!

Going to see the children in a swimming competition this afternoon which should be fun!

Thanks for all your prayers and support

Mark, Helen, Michael & Zac

2 Days to Go!

Its nearly time to go ... in just 2 days Mark, Helen, Michael & Zachary Adams will be heading off to visit Kanlungan in Manila.

We leave Heathrow at 8:20pm on Friday night and are due to arrive in Manila at 6:30pm on Saturday (that's 11:30am Saturday morning UK time).

Just getting packed now, but its a bit difficult as Helen's Dad is having another hip replacement operation this afternoon. Please pray that all goes well.

We'll update again when we arrive, so please check back sometime on Saturday evening or Sunday morning!

Hi everyone:-) ,well here we are on our last night in Manila, we have had such an amazing time and God has been so good, yesterday we took all the children from all the kanlungan projects swimming (175 of us in total) what a joy to see the children enjoying the water and having so much fun. For the last twelve days we have had our senses bombarded and experienced many emotions of which we would love to share with you when we return home.
Thank you so much for all your prayers we have felt them

much love Mary and Averil xx

psalm 121

hi everyone its Averil and Mary here:-)

Another busy day today and really hot and sticky! We visited an ancient fort today and decided to take the children with us, because we could not leave any one behind we had to take all 18 which proved to be a bit chiotic but also good fun, we finished the afternoon of with ice creams and worship songs in the back of the van, God is good, please pray for Sol and all the staff as they continue to love these precious children

Take care we are missing you all xxx

Hello :)

Been here now for six days :)
Today (Wednesday 7th), we went to the boys home and the farm. Both places have come a long way since 2007-when I last went. It was really nice to catch up with the boys in both places, and seeing the places where they sleep and how they work. We saw one of the boys climb to the very top of a tree and cut down some coconuts. We then drank the milk. They also showed us around the whole site, where we saw the stream where they get washed, the peppercorns and all the fruit trees. We had a devotion time where we sang and prayed with the boys. We alson had some time where we prayed one-on-one with each of them. After this, we held some puppies that are only one week old!! Awwww!!

All in all it has been such a fantastic time so far and we know God's work will continue to blossom in all the children of Kanlungan.

Love to all :)

Jess and Megan

xxxxx

Hi, it's Averil.
Amidst all the hardship these people face I am amazed at how strong their faith is. Everywhere we have been Sol and her team share God's love, teaching the children about our lord Jesus. This afternoon we were privileged to be invited into a community camp of about fifty homes. These people live on an old dump site. They have no ammenities what so ever, not even water -things that we take for granted. Yet the children and parents smile and greet us warmly with christian songs and prayer. We had chance to play games with the children before Sol and her team distributed hot food to the children, someting they do twice a week to this community and also do teaching. Most of us were in tears at the end when the children had prayed and then sang "Give thanks with a grateful heart".

Please keep praying for the work that is being done and for strength for Sol and her team,

All my love,

Averil

Hi all, another very hot day in Manila. A morning spent with the street ministry team certainly shows the extent of the enormity of the problems faced by many people in this city. Some are fortunate to have what they call their house (we would call it a garden shed at best. Even these people are better off than thoes living in or on cardboard boxes including some as young as five days old! It's all very heart wrenching and you feel so helpless yet they keep a smile and their faith with God. One home had a sign which read "Keep God at the center of everything and he will keep you safe".

Love to all, please keep praying for Sol and her team

Richard

Day 4 in Manila

It has been so hot today!I mean REALLY hot! But we have had a good day and seen lots. This morning we visited Tunasan and was surprised to hear the railway community which i visited last time has been relocated and completely demolished. The Government have relocated them to the prison grounds which doesn't seem much of an upgrade to me! We visited a community that Kanlungan discovered a year ago. And they are already interacting with familied there and fetching the children to go to the Tunasan Day Centre. This afternoon we visited the Laguna Centre and had an amazing welcome. One little boy (aged 7) got plucked up the courage to sing us a song. And there wasn't a dry eye in the place! The presentation here was brilliant.

Love Mary, Averil and Jess

Hi everyone, its Averil and Mary here:-) sorry its taken so long to get in touch but we don't seem to have stopped yet !! It is SO good to be here again with the team from Milton Keynes and Mansfield. Yesterday we met the children from the Malate centre (there are 18 at the moment, 6 of them young boys). It was great to meet the children and spend time with them. Sol and the staff are still working so hard to give these children much needed love and security. They do such an amazing job in often very difficult circumstances. please pray for them as they are sometimes quite unsettled (particulary the young boys)
Hi its Averil here, When I first arrived at the Malate centre I was a little nervous not knowing what to expect, but I needn't have worried as the children and the staff were so welcoming, it was a bit overwelming really. They did a presentation of singing and dancing which made it hard to believe the situations they have come from. We had to learn a song for the children (the holy washing machine!!) which we performed for them much to their amusment. Went to smoky mountain yesterday to say I was shell shocked was an understatement even though I had seen all the pictures, however I was even more overwelmed by the friendliness of this community and the smiles of the children. From smoky mountain we went straight to the largest shopping mall in Asia! quite a contrast

Been to Church this morning and played with the children this afternoon, lots of love and hugs from them

Happy Easter to you all we will keep you posted!

ps Mary,s not so happy because twice already the children have asked me if she is Mother!!

2010 Visit has begun!!!

Well ... the Streetlight Blog is back with a new team travelling to Manila.

Ian & Jess Herbert, Malcolm Gale, Deb, Megan & Olivia Ridout, Kim & Helen Wilkinson and Tim May have travelled from Bletchley. Mary & Jess Lane and Averil Wilkinson have travelled from Mansfield, while Richard Hames is from Enderby just outside Leicester.

I've just spoken to them and they've arrived safely. Hopefully we should hear from them on this site soon ... probably when they have had some sleep!

Please pray for them ... and check back here to see what they are doing.

Thanks

Mark