On May 21, the worst storm Andhra Pradesh has seen in14 years slammed into in southeastern coast of India. 60-80 mph winds, heavy rains and 9 foot tidal waves forced the evacuation of more than 50,000 people from coastal and low-lying villages. 23 people have been confirmed dead and another 55 fisherman are missing.

Andhra Pradesh is home to one of Bright Hope’s job creation programs, Emmanuel Handicrafts. The women of Emmanuel Handicrafts make lace products, which they are able to sell at local markets to help offset the devastating conditions of local poverty.

Bright Hope’s Partnership Developer, James Das, was sent $5000 to bring immediate relief to the disaster zone. We’d like to send more, if you can help please donate here.

The official numbers aren’t public yet but the HopeOutLOUD blog is the place for insider information.

Here are the numbers we heard in staff meeting this morning: We had 1,419 people participate at all four sites which is almost 200 more people more than last year! We were all excited by the turnout. Josh is sitting in the meeting room, head down, crunching the numbers, processing our last big batch of donations, so far our total is $107,344.47! That deserves a round of applause.

For the kids we help this race means they get to start eating two meals a day instead of one! It’s life changing. Thank you for running, walking and fundraising. Your hard work is appreciated and all that money raised is being put to work making a huge difference to thousands of children around the world. We had a good time!

Check out pictures from each of our site at RunForHungryChildren.org 

Bright Hope hasn’t stopped focusing on the Haiti Earthquake ever since January 12th. Our efforts are making a huge impact and we wanted to update our readers with detailed information!

As of last week, through Bright Hope:

The most recent shipment contained: Food, 240 Tents, 2 Large tents, Hope Packs and Med Packs.

Thank you to everyone who has given financially, started fundraisers, or just spread the word to others in how they can help Haiti.

Haiti’s rainy season is here. Our goal is to send as many tents as possible to our partners for distribution. To donate a tent click here. 

Together - we are making a difference!

Before the earthquake, the town of Pignon (Bright Hope’s main project in Haiti for the past 15 years) had a population of 40,000, according to Jephthe, Bright Hope’s Project Developer, there is now over 100,000. The Pastor’s Association of Pignon (POA) estimated the pre-earthquake church attendance at 15,000 people is now 50,000. Even through hurt and destruction, the openness to God is more than any other time in Haiti’s history!

For the first time in Haiti’s history there was a national day of prayer granted by Haiti’s President! Most people in Haiti participated in the 3 day event and an estimated 90% of Pignon involved. Most businesses were closed and over 5,000 people at Jephthe’s church alone took action (that is over 6 times the normal attendance!). This event is a shining example of how the attitude of the people has turned toward God instead of blaming Him.

Now is the time to pray! The next 6 weeks leading up to Easter will be a perfect time for Haitians to become more open to the Gospel. The more people we can help through the local church the more people who will be ready for the wonderful story of redemption at Easter.

To find out more about what Bright Hope is doing in Haiti right now click here!

The lives of 2 million Haitians hang in the balance as Port-Au-Prince and outlying areas suffer the affects of a 7.0 magnitude earthquake.The split-fault quake occurred Tuesday afternoon about 10 miles west of the Port Au Prince and could be felt as far away as 300 miles.

As the sky turned gray with a choking dust the infrastructure of city lay in rubble. Destroyed were buildings including the hospital, the National Palace, commerce center, government buildings and many homes. It was a long, dark, frightening night as Haitians searched for survivors. Many are missing or feared dead.

The Bright Hope Response

We are in touch with our church network in Haiti (Jepthe, our Project Developer in Haiti, is pictured here) and currently assessing how our assistance can best help save lives and glorify God.  I spoke with one Haitian leader who said “the best built buildings in Port-Au-Prince have been destroyed, imagine what has gone on throughout the city.”

We will have two immediate responses:  Distributing food, water, clothing and temporary shelter (immediate needs) and secondly to supply Med Packs (personal hygiene and First Aid kits) to needy families.

All our relief efforts are accomplished through churches. It will take days to know the full impact. Communications have been difficult as services have been interrupted.As we hear from our partners, we will update our website.

I need your help in four ways:  Pray, Network, Act, Give

1. Pray! Pray! Pray! Please pray now and in the upcoming days for the Haitian people, our Partner Developers and the Churches and Pastors we work with to provide relief.

2. Network:  Could you recommend Bright Hope to your friends on Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and email to help in Haiti? Please forward this letter and our website BrightHope.org to those in your network.

3. Act:  We need groups to fill 5,000 Med Packs — a project for churches, Sunday school classes, scout groups and homeschoolers. Order in minimum quantities of 20 at $15 each ($300) or you can sponsor a pack and we will fill one for you for $30. To order a box of Med Packs ($300) call 224-520-6100 and speak with Joy. To sponsor a $30 Med-Pack visit our website.

4. Give:  As God would lay it on your heart at our website  www.BrightHope.org

Thank you for sharing and praying for those in most urgent need in Haiti.

Click here to watch!

Thank you to all who came together for the incredibly successful Hope4Haiti Event!

 More than 1,300 people volunteered. Collectively we packed 270,864 meals.

Exceeding Our Goal!

You can still get involved by Clicking HERE!

New Pictures are up now in our New Photo Gallery!

Bright Hope is Tweeting!

You can follow us by searching for: @Bright_Hope

What were you doing on September 12, 2009?

Laurie Teper was competing in an Ironman Competition for Bright Hope! Through swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles, and running an entire marathon (all at once) she raised over $900 for Bright Hope! Through nine months of training, Laurie finished after 13 hours 15 minutes and 6 seconds.

Congrats to Laurie in her valiant efforts on helping the less fortunate through Bright Hope!

 There is still time to donate to Bright Hope through Laurie’s Ironman Competition by Clicking Here!

A team from Hope Community Church in Springfield, IL just returned from an 8 day trip to see our partner in Mathare Valley, Kenya.

Team Member: Rebecca Harbauer (pictured here) returned with these words…

“Abject poverty abounds in Mathare Valley. No combination of words are picturesque enough to describe the sights, sounds, smells and surroundings one experiences as she walks through the slum valley being greeted by tiny extended hands and staring into toddler eyes that still cling tightly to hope. Sounds of loud music…children laughing…visions of grilled entrails…children bathing in small plastic tubs…jagged tin jutting from the roofs of 8 x 8 rusted, tin shanties…mucky water running through the streets….this is how I describe Mathare Valley—not a place one desires to call home.

It would be so easy to return to the United States after eight days and forget what I saw and be thankful that I do not live like this. It would be so easy to remain a tourist in a foreign land snapping pictures and forgetting the names of the people who crossed my path. But, I can’t. And I won’t. I want to etch the experiences into my memory so that God can use me as a vessel of faith, hope and love. And I want to etch the names of the people I met into my heart so that we remain connected.

Visiting the slum and the orphanage had a profound effect on me. But, what touched me to the very core are the stories of the people I was privileged to spend time with. The individuals who run the various churches around the area, the teachers who work in the schools and at the orphanage, the women who are the strong support for their pastor husbands, and the people who have hopes and dreams and aspirations no different from mine. These are the stories that will affect lives…the lives of those in Kenya and the lives of those here at home.

What did we do while we were there? We brought hope and a future as it states in Jeremiah 29:11 through one God…through unity of the Spirit. We did not come with western ideas to fix the African world. We came with a humble spirit and allowed them to teach us what relationships are truly about. I have learned what profound faith is truly about.”

To read more about what Bright Hope is doing in Mathare Valley and for opportunities to Donate: CLICK HERE!

Are you ready to make a direct impact to stamp out hunger?

You can really help!

To expand on National Hunger Awareness month, Bright Hope is spanning the globe to combat hunger. As you receive this email, Bright Hope staff is readying our warehouse to accommodate over 1,000 volunteers, over 4 days to pack 270,000 meals. These meals will feed 2,550 hungry children in 17 schools in Haiti.

Can you imagine knowing that your own child, brother, or sister was going to school every day to learn their ABC’s and 1, 2, 3’s but learning was crowded out by hunger pains?

In Haiti, they have a saying - ‘a hungry stomach has no ears’. This is the reality for many children and families in Pignon, Haiti.

Together, we can change the lives of the Haitian children. We can stop those hunger pains to make learning at school possible. When you feed a child, you provide essential nutrition for the mind, body and spirit.

You can make a difference! See you October 22 - 25th!