Announcing a BRAND NEW Sound of Hope

For a while now we’ve known that in order to keep The Sound of Hope productive and successful, we needed to focus on improving our organization. As many non-profits do in the beginning, we had been “getting by” with free websites and print-work designed by friends. While we’re grateful for those “freebies” getting us this far, it just didn’t do our work justice. The children we serve overseas have INCREDIBLE stories, and we want to make sure people hear them, see them, and have a way to respond to them. So this Fall, we hired an amazing firm to make The Sound of Hope even better!

For the past few weeks, we’ve been working a lot of 10, 12, 15, and even 18 hour work days. But I’m thrilled to announce that all that work was worth it, because last week we revealed our BRAND NEW logo, website, and online store for The Sound of Hope

The team at Ideogram has worked tirelessly to create this awesome site for us, and we’re so excited to see it live! On our homepage you’ll find an interactive slider that shows each country we work in, our main video for that country, our latest tweet, and the projects we’re currently fundraising for. (Move the boxes with your up & down & left & right arrows.)

Click on the map (or the menu in the top right of the page) and you can visit 4 country specific pages. For the first time, you can see (in detail) where we work, how many children we care for, and exactly what we do in each country. You can also find our latest country specific videos, blogs, and fundraising projects. There are 2 brand new Feature videos too – check them out on our India & Swaziland pages!

There are several other new pages, but I’ll let you peruse the site and discover them yourself. I do want to point out one more INCREDIBLE addition though. Last week, we opened up our first ever online store for The Sound of Hope

For the past year we have been collecting merchandise from around the world to sell in our shop. We have so many beautiful, unique products from India, Thailand, Burma, and Swaziland – and I’m so excited to finally share them with you! There’s original art, handmade jewelry, silk scarves, handpainted brass bowls and MUCH more! And the best part is – every single purchase helps us provide RESCUE, PROTECTION, and HOLISTIC CARE to children in need.

So, what are you waiting for?! Go check out our new site and shop in our new store! (If you place an order by Monday night (the 17th), you should get it in time for Christmas.) And please help us get the word out by sharing our new site with your friends via email, blog, facebook, and twitter. ‘Tis the season for year-end tax-deductible gifts, and we need your help to finish 2012 strong!

Return on Investment

Lately I've taken an interest in the stock market. I find the whole thing just fascinating - understanding how the market moves, what forces drive a stock, earnings, price action, charts, valuation, etc.

I never knew it could be so much fun researching a stock, and I mean really digging into a company's balance sheet, income statement and cash flow report.  If you're looking for long-term investments, doing this type of "homework" is a must. Ultimately, what you're trying to figure out is what kind of return on investment (ROI) you can get from a particular company/stock.

Anyway, I've learned a TON about all this stuff, and it's made me think differently about The Sound of Hope. You see, we've got ADMIN donors - people who donate monthly toward our operating budget so that we can work full-time for orphans and vulnerable children in Swaziland, India, Thailand and Burma. Now, when I look at these donors through a stock market frame of mind, I see investors, or shareholders. So, recently I've been asking, "what kind of return on investment does my organization offer them?"

It's a good question, because rest assured "shareholders" in The Sound of Hope are receiving a return. It just looks a little different from Wall Street. Every monthly investment makes it possible for us to care for 200+ kids in FIVE children's homes and one carepoint. Our donors' financial investment returns physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual life to these children. Now that's a profitable investment right there, but that's not all!

Another way to look at our shareholder "ROI" is to ask this question. How efficient is The Sound of Hope at turning operating dollars into dollars released to our overseas projects? Well, let me tell you. So far this year we've generated $3.10 of charitable revenue for every $1 spent on operations.

"Charitable revenue" is the money we send our overseas partners, and "operations" is what the organization spends to operate - such as payroll, taxes, travel costs, media, office supplies, etc.

So lets say you support The Sound of Hope $10 bucks a month - that means we turn your $10 into $31 of charitable revenue EACH MONTH. That's a 310% return on investment! I promise you, finding that kind of ROI on Wall Street ain't gonna be easy!

So, do I have any buyers? I've got a great company here folks, doing amazing things in the nations. Consider this our IPO (Initial Public Offering). If you want to be a part of an organization that turns your money into changed lives, then you've found it. We take financial stewardship seriously, and we'll bust our tails to bring you a return on your investment.

Will you give The Sound of Hope an opportunity to put your money to work?

To become a monthly "shareholder" and get a tax-deduction, click the big obvious button below.

 

It's Official

This is a post from The Sound of Hope website. I just wanted to share it with my blog readers! Check out these happy faces!

In our last blog we shared the miraculous story of how the full $190,000 came in for the Asha Mission Land Fund. Well today, we are thrilled to report that the land has been purchased!!!

The Founder of the Asha Mission Children's Home flew to India a few weeks ago to buy the land and make sure all the i's were dotted and the t's were crossed. And now that it's OFFICIAL, the children are beside themselves with joy! They know that this means they are one huge step closer to a big, new, permanent home!

Babu, the Founder, took the House Dad and a few of the boys to see the land while he was in India. As you can tell by these pictures, they are really excited to see the place their new home will be!

I love how open this location is, and how lush and green the land is. Those are 2 things you don't see much of in this area of India!

To everyone who gave to this need - whether it was $5 or $5,000 - you have made an extraordinary impact on the lives of these little boys and girls! We are still so humbled and amazed by your support! We know this land will provide a safe place for children to flourish and grow for generations.  It is incredible to think about the hope this place will bring into the lives of orphans and vulnerable children in India - for years and years to come!

Next up is the building project! Babu met with some builders when he was in India and began the process of drawing up plans for the new Children's Home. We will all work together to be sure it meets the government requirements and becomes a healthy place for the children to call home. We are so excited to see this part of the project take shape! We'll keep you updated as Phase 2 begins!

A Proud Husband

I was never so proud to be Ericka's husband as I was yesterday.

Let me give you the quick back-story. My wife grew up doing pageants, and not just a few, but scores of them! She competed for 19 years - including two trips to Miss Alabama in 2004 and 2005. Now let me tell you, this is quite an accomplishment in itself, because only 48 girls get to compete each year for the right to be called "Miss Alabama". The experiences and friendships from those two years are a big part of who my wife is today.

So, fast-forward to a couple months ago...

At the time we had some extra money from some side work I had been doing, so Ericka comes to me with an idea. She wanted to create a $1,000 scholarship for a Miss Alabama contestant called the IMPACT Award. It would be given to the young lady who was making the greatest impact in the lives of those around her. I loved the idea and said go for it!

Well, yesterday at the Miss Alabama luncheon Ericka got a chance to share some of her story and then present the award. I felt like her words carried so much weight and influence. You see, Ericka didn't win Miss Alabama, nor did she finish in the Top 10. That will be the case for 38 of the 48 girls in that room. Yet Ericka stood there as an example of life on the other side of Miss Alabama. I was so proud!

I was also proud to see who won the award - Beth Milam. She just got back from a mission trip in Haiti 20 days ago. A fitting winner to an award created by my wife!

Beth Milam - 2012 IMPACT Award winner!

Miracle

It's very hard to describe what I witnessed over the last 5 weeks. The only word I can think of is "miracle", but even that seems to fall short.

$75,000 in 30 days seemed like an impossibility. Three weeks in, the need was still as high as $54,000, and the day of we were short $20,000.

Yet by 9:30 Sunday night - two and a half hours before the deadline - we were FULLY FUNDED!

Yes, this is a miracle, but it's the stories behind these numbers that tell of something more. Obedience and sacrifice - and without the two this miracle would not have been possible.

I believe God's purpose for our lives is simple - love one another as He has loved us. OK, so let's ask - HOW has God loved us? By giving us His son, Jesus, who through obedience, sacrificed his life for ours! OBEDIENCE and SACRIFICE gave us a NEW life!

Just as the OBEDIENCE and SACRIFICE of those who gave to our need in India will give NEW life to 33 children now, and more in the future!

During this fundraising process we had complete strangers give $1,000 donations - multiple times. One guy sold a car and sent us the profits! Another donor took money from his child's college fund so that these kids could have a better life. A girl mailed us a large check with a letter saying she couldn't sleep until she donated! We had a pastor reallocate $10,000 that was meant for his church's building fund. One family even donated their DOWN PAYMENT toward a new home!

These are simple, ordinary people who responded in extraordinary faith. They were OBEDIENT to God's call to SACRIFICE so that others may have a better life. THIS was the fuel behind the miracle.

And that's exactly what our kids in India were praying for, a miracle - and God provided one, through YOU!

So thank you to all who gave, and who sacrificed so much. Your obedience will echo into future generations of children in India.

Oh, as a VERY important side note. Clearly we raised the money is US Dollars - but the land will be bought in Indian Rupees. Turns out the Rupee has been losing value over the last few weeks - so what does that mean? We will have MORE than enough for the land - and what is leftover will give us a good start toward construction costs of the new home!

Asha Land UPDATE

Yes, this is another post about the kids at Asha Mission Children's Home and our URGENT fundraising need for land! I don't normally inundate my blog readers with constant updates like this, but we have never had a need this BIG or this URGENT before. And I am reminded of what Asha Mission Founder, Babu John, said - "I will get on my knees and beg for these children, if it keeps them from becoming beggars." AMEN. (For those of you who don't know - many orphans and vulnerable children in India are kidnapped and disabled on purpose (eyes gouged out, legs cut off, arms cut off, etc) to become more pitiful, more "effective beggars". It's disgusting. And we will NOT let it happen to any of the precious kids we care for!)

But the good news is, we have a pretty INCREDIBLE update for you today! If you remember, months ago we started this fundraiser needing $200,000. On Sunday I updated you that the need had dropped to $54,000. Well friends - it has been an AMAZING week! Our current total needed is only $24,500!!!

WE are completely blown away! The stories people are telling us about their donations are so humbling and encouraging. One church gave away $11,000 out of their building fund so our precious kids could have a home. A dad in Mississippi gave away $5,000 he'd been saving for his son's college housing fund. People are choosing to sacrifice their future plans for the future of these 33 little boys and girls in India. It has been incredible to hear how God is moving in the hearts of people all over the nation! We are absolutely watching a miracle in the making!

Just a reminder - these are the precious kids you are caring for when you give to this need! 

Asha Mission Brothers (above) and Asha Mission Sisters (below).

But friends - we are down to the wire! We only have until midnight THIS Sunday night (May 20th) to raise the last $24,500! So I am asking all of you - one more time - to get involved! Ask yourself what you can sacrifice for these kids. Will you donate part of your savings account? Will you give away your tax return? Will you ask your friends and family to give by sharing this blog, this link, or this video?

Let's make a miracle happen!

$20,000 Raised... $55,000 to go

We're getting there people, like the title says - we've raised right at $20,000 - we got TEN DAYS to get another $55,000!

I've been consistently humbled throughout this process! Many folks out there have given so generously, people we don't even know dropping off $1,000 donations! In fact, today we got a $2,000 check in the mail from a guy who SOLD a car and donated the profits to our kids in India!

If you are getting this, I'm asking you to give, to pray, to share this video! These kids deserve a permanent home, and that can't happen until we buy this land!

URGENT NEED :: Asha Land Project from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

10% of the way there...

Just like the title says - we've raised a little more than 10% of $75,000 we need to buy land in India.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about - check out this link here.

This is a good start, but we're still $67,280 away from our goal... and we need this amount by May 20th!

These kids deserve it - check out their story below ::

URGENT NEED :: Asha Land Project from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

Raise money online for Asha Mission, Delhi - Land Project

Calling ALL World Race Alumni

My fellow World Race Alumni,

Thank you for taking the time to read this blog post.

For those who don't know me, my name is Rusty Jackson, and I was on the 2007 and 2008 World Race. Some of you I have led, many I have served with and hundreds I've talked to by phone when you were deciding whether or not you wanted to do the race.

I'm reaching out because we share a unique bond. I know what you've seen and been through. I know you have looked into the eyes of the orphan, held the hand of widows, served the poor, and fought for the oppressed. You are not a people that sit idly by while others suffer. You are a people of action.

This is why I'm writing. We need your help.

My wife Ericka and I run a non-profit called The Sound of Hope. We raise funds and awareness for orphans and at-risk children in Thailand, Burma, Swaziland and India.


Right now we're trying to help our Indian partners - Asha Mission - buy land. Many of you know Babu John, founder of Asha Mission, and the kids in Delhi.

URGENT NEED :: Asha Land Project from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

You heard that right - we need $75,000 in 30 days!

We need a miracle. I'm asking you guys to BE the miracle.

Do you know every Friday these kids fast and pray for land so that one day Asha Mission can build a more suitable home for them? They have such great faith - it's humbling.

Can you BE the answer to their prayer?

The Facebook World Race Alumni page has 670 members. Imagine if every member gave ONLY a $100 - this thing would be nearly funded IN A DAY. And really, who doesn't have a HUNDRED BUCKS? This small amount will change a life FOREVER!

Or, would you be willing to host an event that raises money for these kids? For example, Jen Flavin raised almost $800 doing a chili cook-off. The possibilities are endless.

You can also share this video on Facebook, twitter, etc. I am convinced there are well-funded, Kingdom-minded people out there. We just need to connect with them.

These kids need your help - if we don't get the full $75,000 by May 20th Asha Mission loses the land, the kids lose a chance at a new, permanent home, AND the thousands of dollars used to hold the land will be gone as well.

HOW WILL YOU BE A MIRACLE TODAY?

URGENT Indian NEED - REVISED

Friends and supporters - we have an URGENT need.

Our partners in India recently put down a deposit on some land. This has been a big need of theirs for quite some time. Our Sound of Hope blog update explains that in more detail.

The bottom line is this - our partners cannot officially purchase the land until they pay the full asking price, which is due May 20th.

Friends, we need $150,000 more to buy this land, and we've got little time. Luckily, we've already got a $75,000 matching grant.

So here it is - we need $75,000 by May 20th. Can you help?

Please take a moment to watch the video below. If you are receiving this blog update in an email, then you'll need to click HERE to see the video.

URGENT NEED :: Asha Land Project from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

To DONATE - click HERE

Swaziland UPDATE

I've been terrible at keeping up this blog while here in Africa - for that I apologize. We run all our video updates and blogs through facebook, or The Sound of Hope website. However, I do realize there are a some of you out there who only follow our work through this blog. So, for you special few - I am posting this blog. In the future, I would encourage you to click on this link and enter in your email address so that you'll get updates through our SOH website. Ericka's much better at keeping that page up to date with the all the latest.

In the meantime, I want to share a some videos we put together over the last few weeks. The first two have to do with our Children's Library project. As some of you may know - our goal is to start a children's library in every home we serve. So that's two homes in Thailand, three in India, and our carepoint here in Swaziland.

Thanks to our generous donors - we were able to establish our first library here in Nsoko, Swaziland.

Nsoko Children's Library - Part 1 from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.


Nsoko Children's Library - Part 2 from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

To invest in this project and help us establish libraries in India and Thailand - give HERE.

During our time in Nsoko we also checked on two other projects we heavily invested in this past year, the community garden, and school fees.  

Last summer we made a rather large investment into a community garden project here at the carepoint. The vision for this garden is two-fold, we want families from the community to have an opportunity to grow their own vegetables to eat, AND sell the surplus in the market. So not only will this project provide food during a time when prices are high, BUT it will provide a source of income for families living in a community with 70% unemployment.

The second half of this vision involves the hundreds of kids who eat at the carepoint each day. Mostly all they get is maize meal, and beans. The garden will be a source of fresh vegetables, which is a big deal because a lot the children are HIV positive. So it's very important that they have a diet high in nutrition.

The field has been plowed, the irrigation system is in place and the seedlings will be planted soon. We got a ton of video and pictures and we'll be bring you an update soon. 

In the meantime, I want you all to see how excited the kids are to get fresh fruits and vegetables. One day we picked up some apples and brought them to the carepoint. It's crazy to see how excited the kids get over one apple.

an apple a day... from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

This garden project is a hand UP, not a hand OUT. To be a part of empowering people in Nsoko, Swaziland click HERE and give toward our garden project.

Moving on to school fees... 

During the first few weeks of this year we were fortunate enough to give a large donation toward school fees. In Swaziland, school is VERY expensive, and many kids and their families are not able to afford them. 

This year, thanks to a large year-end gift, we put 112 kids in school! It was amazing to spend time in the community and talk with several families and students who were impacted by this donation. We spent hours filming and documenting this story. Our goal is to set up a continuous fundraiser for school fees. As excited as we are to help so many go to school, we know that next year this need will still exist.

As you can see, we've had an extremely busy few weeks. The last couple days we have been taking it easy in Nelspruit, South Africa. We leave Africa Thursday and land in Atlanta Friday.

Again, I'm sorry for the lack of blogging, but I do encourage you to click this link and sign up for blog updates directly from our Sound of Hope website. If you have any problems doing this - simply send me an email and I'll get you set up!

Welcome to Swaziland VIDEO

We just uploaded this a few hours ago.

For those of you who get this blog update in your email inbox, please click on the link entitled "Welcome to Swaziland" to see the video.

Welcome to Swaziland from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

We Made it to Swaziland!

Written by Ericka

Just thought I'd share a quick post from Africa! After 3 days of travel time (including 18 hours on airplanes about around 8 hours in cars/buses) we finally made it to the beautiful Kingdom of Swaziland.

Our first night in South Africa, we met up with Will & Tara Miller for dinner one night and breakfast the next. It was so much fun catching up with them. It's always great to run into friends in other countries... makes the world feel so much smaller!

Ms. Tina - this picture is for you! :)

It's good to be back in Africa after being away for so long. Back to the land of rooibos tea every morning,  big white smiles on beautiful brown faces,  red dirt trails to carepoints, bars on all the windows and doors, and siSwati ringing in my ears!

Don't worry Mom - I'm not in jail! These are on every door here!

 

We're tired and struggling with some jet lag, but sooo happy to be here! We had a fun braai (Afrikaans for "grilled meat") tonight with some of our friends and tomorrow we are headed to Nsoko to get to work at our carepoint. We can't wait to see the kids and start setting up the library!

Be sure to "stay tuned" to our Sound of Hope blog, facebook page, and twitter account for updates. The internet can be kind of tricky here, but we're hoping to share as many pictures and videos as we can while we're in country! 



ps- We shared this fun video on facebook, but I realize all of you aren't facebook users. So, if you want to see our highlights from 2011 (in a fun, 90 second video) - check it out HERE.

pps - It's been raining here the last 2 days, and I cannot get this song out of my head! Fitting, huh?

Children's Library - Investing In Their Future

As Ericka and I get ready to head off to Africa next week I wanted to tell you folks about a new project we've got in the works. We have decided to start a library in each of our children's homes around the world, and the first place we're going to do this is in Swaziland!

Ericka posted a blog last week on the Sound of Hope page asking for book donations. In it, she talks about our passion for helping young kids around the world gain access to more books. Ericka and I both are firm believers in education, and we want to do our best to give the kids we support every opportunity to learn.

Unfortunately, as we approach our departure date it's too late to send books for our Swazi library, BUT you can still help out with the funding.

SOH Library Book Drive from The Sound of Hope on Vimeo.

To give - click on THIS LINK

BIG news... A MUST READ

I'm excited to share some great news with you guys! This was written by my wife and posted on her blog, but I wanted to post it on mine as well!

 

 WE ARE ADOPTING!

by :: Ericka

My heart is almost beating out of my chest and my hands are shaking as I type these words - I am just OVERJOYED and BURSTING with excitement! We are beginning the process of adopting a beautiful little girl from Thailand, and we couldn't wait one more minute to share the news with all of you!

Adoption has been something we have both felt called to since before we got married, and I have actually been saving money for an international adoption since the summer of 2007. I will never forget the night of our engagement, when Rusty was looking at some beautiful baby pictures on our wedding photographer's website and suddenly announced, "I think adoption just became important to me." With tears in his eyes he said, "How can these babies have parents that love them enough to spend thousands of dollars on pictures, when there are babies all over the world who don't have anyone?" And so, the very night we committed to get married, God gave us the same heart for adoption. He is always right on time!

Since then, adoption has been a regular part of conversation in our home. It has never been "if", but always "when we adopt". We both felt called to international adoption because of the work we do, but neither knew which country we would pursue. Then, when we were living in Thailand at the beginning of last year, Rusty told me how much he would love to adopt a little girl from there. I knew how much he genuinely loved Thailand - the people and the culture - but this was more than that. With the sex-industry running rampant throughout the country, he said, "I would love to know that we could rescue one little girl from that... to know that horrific industry would never touch her life." At the time, we were volunteering at Viengping Children's Home, and I found myself loving the children of Thailand just as much as I had loved the children we worked with in India and Swaziland. I prayed and rocked and cuddled as many little boys and girls as my arms could hold when I was with them, and I cried when I left them. Those beautiful babies had found a place in my heart. With my husband's suggestion, and my growing love for the culture and people of Thailand, I considered adoption from there to be a real possibility for "someday".

We have always thought we would try to have biological children first, and then pursue the adoption of one (or more) children internationally. But for some reason, over the past few months our feelings began to change. We joked that we weren't ready for children, and wondered aloud about whether or not we could continue our work with The Sound of Hope if we had a child to care for. But God was changing our hearts.... ready or not.

In October, when Katie Davis came to speak at Brookhills, something incredible happened. After she left the stage, a pastor came up to lead a prayer for adoptive parents and foster parents. He asked that anyone who was in the process of adopting or who had adopted or fostered children to remain standing. Because we were not pursuing adoption yet, I sat down. But it took all my strength to do so. For some reason I felt like I was supposed to stay standing! The thought scared me, but I could not shake it! Later that night, Rusty admitted he had felt the same thing!

During the prayer, there was one question that kept racing through my mind. "What if our child, the child God has for us, is already out there? What if he or she has already been born, and we aren't pursuing adoption yet? What if she is crying in a crib somewhere, without a mommy to hold her?" These difficult questions continued as the pastor prayed, and I sobbed.

When we got home that night, I explained what had happened to Rusty. I told him that I knew we hadn't planned to start a family yet, but that suddenly, I was wondering if our plan and our desires really mattered! We had our own selfish reasons for waiting - the truth is, it is easier for it to be "just the two of us!" There is no one to wake us up in the middle of the night, no one to take care of but each other, no one else to plan around, no one who is dependent on us. We have enjoyed just being newlyweds the past (almost) 3 years. "But those selfish reasons just don't seem like good enough reasons to tell a child, 'I don't want to be your mommy," I explained in tears. I knew that God was moving in my heart, and from Rusty's response, He seemed to be moving in his heart too! We agreed to pray about pursuing adoption for a few months, and discuss it again in January.

What happened next is hard to explain... but I can tell you it is nothing short of a miracle of God. He has confirmed to us - in some truly supernatural ways - that this is His plan for us. (If you ever want to know those details, I'd be glad to explain in person! :) We do not have one doubt in our mind that this is how God is leading us to start our family, with the adoption of a precious baby girl from Thailand!

I would ask that you please begin covering us in prayer as we pursue our daughter. Pray for wisdom as we begin researching agencies, and clear direction. Pray for favor over the process and open doors in both countries. Thailand is not a very common place to adopt from, so we are starting at square one. If you know anyone in America who has adopted from Thailand - please, please put us in touch with them! We have a lot of friends who have, or are adopting from other countries, but the process is very different for each and every country.

Please pray for us as we work and as we wait, but most of all, please pray for our little girl. We don't know if she is alive yet, or if she has even been conceived, but we are already praying for her. We are praying for her health - emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. We are praying for protection and for God to place the right people in her path to keep her safe and to love her well until we can get to her. I don't even know this baby girl yet, but I know that I already love her because I find myself in tears when I pray for her. God is already giving me a mother's heart... what a miracle!