As you’ve likely seen in the news over the last few days, the Philippines were hit by Typhoon Haiyan, the strongest typhoon to make landfall in recorded history, with winds in excess of 200 mph, resulting in thousands of lives likely lost, and hundreds of thousands displaced from their homes. Our thoughts and well-wishes go out to everyone affected by this devastating natural disaster. CNN has a page on its website listing many ways in which you can help the survivors of Typhoon Haiyan. We urge you to help any way you can. Thank you.

This is our 2011 Year in Review video, showing how your support has helped the children of Bacoor. Thank you all!!

The video was put together by Brad Rossini. Thanks, Brad!

Thanks to everyone who attended our Year in Review event last week. It was great to see you all and get a chance to show you how your support has helped the children of Bacoor. Special thanks to Bob Avery and the Million Dollar Round Table Foundation for their generous grant in the amount of $5000. We’re excited to see what the next year brings! Thanks again for all your help and support!  Read the official press release below:

August 5, 2011— Robert L. Avery, II, CLU, ChFC, of Denver, Colorado, secured a $5,000 grant from the MDRT Foundation on behalf of Children’s Hope Fund. Avery, a 26-year MDRT member, is an active supporter of Children’s Hope Fund and nominated and endorsed the grant application. Children’s Hope Fund (http://www.childrenshopefund.org/) is a nonprofit organization that provides support so that impoverished Filipino children can attend school, better their lives and break the cycle of poverty. The MDRT Foundation grant will support the organization’s programs.

This year, the MDRT Foundation will award more than $850,000 USD in grants to more than 100 charities. Representing the MDRT Foundation, Avery presented this grant to Children’s Hope Fund on July 26, 2011 at the organization’s “Year in Review” event, held at Forest Room 5 in Denver, CO. At the event, Children’s Hope Fund’s Board of Directors reported the organization’s activities and achievements for the past year, including a Board member’s visit to Bacoor, Philippines in June 2011 to distribute school supplies. Avery presented the check for $5,000 to Rhezy Davis, Founder and President of Children’s Hope Fund. In his presentation, Mr. Avery said, “It is not easy to change the world, but [through organizations such as Children’s Hope Fund] we are able to change someone’s world.”

The MDRT Foundation was created in 1959 to provide MDRT members with a means to give back to their communities. Since its inception, the Foundation has donated more than $26 million in 80 countries around the world and in all 50 U.S. states. The majority of these funds were raised by MDRT members from MDRT members. The MDRT Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Million Dollar Round Table, The Premier Association of Financial Professionals®. MDRT is an international, independent association of more than 34,000 of the world’s best life insurance and financial services professionals from more than 80 nations and territories. MDRT members demonstrate exceptional product knowledge, strict ethical conduct and outstanding client service. MDRT membership is recognized internationally as the standard of sales excellence in the life insurance and financial services business.

We would like to thank everyone who supported our free meal program in November.  Hot meals were delivered to children in Tramo, a village in Bacoor, Cavite. There were over 300 children who attended the meal program, some of these kids in this area frequently skip meals or eat too little. Fried chicken, rice and juice was served.

This activity was conducted by volunteers who unselfishly shared their time and effort in the preparation and distribution of the meals. Thank you to all who made it possible for these kids to enjoy a much needed meal. I would also like to thank the people of Bacoor who volunteered their time to help facilitate everything. Please check out the pictures on our Facebook page so you can see the children that you’re helping.

“Everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love”. Martin Luther King Jr.

We are searching for dedicated individuals to serve as volunteer committee members. Children’s Hope Fund has an ambitious agenda for the next ten months and we need you to help us reach our goals! We’re planning on holding a meeting once a month to discuss fund-raising ideas, supply drives, social media and community outreach. There are opportunities for all who are interested in serving. With your help, we can achieve our goal of providing every child in Cavite province with the educational necessities they need to become successful students.

As Dr. King said, everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You have something valuable to offer and I would like for you to consider partnering with me and Children’s Hope Fund, to promote the education and well-being of impoverished children in the Philippines. I am confident you will find the experience rewarding and fulfilling. We need your help in order for Children’s Hope Fund to have the greatest impact and help as many children as possible.

This past Sunday we boxed up the donated backpacks, school supplies, toys, clothing and much more and made arrangements for them to be shipped to the Philippines. We are pleased to announce that we reached our goal this year – over 300 students who would have missed this school year were sent to school smiling, each with a new backpack filled with a complete set of school supplies, and a school uniform. To these children who rarely receive nice gestures, simply having an opportunity to go to school with the necessary school supplies and knowing that someone, somewhere cares enough about them to help them attend this school year is sufficient enough. They do not take things for granted.

Thank you to everyone who helped make this possible from our donors to our volunteers and those who helped get the word out about our cause.  People like Valerie Lunka from CASA Advocates for Children who generously donated 75 backpacks and clothing, Amy Stanwood who donated the proceeds from the Shop for a Cause Silpada jewelry party, Abe and Jing Adriano from Forex Colorado, Ken Ebuna, Jackie Savoie, and all the friends, family, colleagues and everyone else who have supported Children’s Hope Fund. Your generous donations gave a lot of children a fresh start, you have every reason to be proud of the part you play in bringing about a more just, fair and compassionate world. Education is an effective route out of poverty and having the opportunity to help children from disadvantaged backgrounds is a gift!

I also wish to thank Marlene, Maryann, Annie, Erin, and Hamra for your generous donations of your time and effort and for your ongoing support of our cause.

We are very excited to announce that we have officially obtained 501(c)(3) status with the IRS. This is extremely exciting news for Children’s Hope Fund.  Thank you so much to Justin Pless and Pless Law Firm for all their assistance with the process.  This means that we can now receive donations that are tax-deductible for those giving.  We are dedicated to raising funds to help improve the lives of children living in poverty in the Philippines.  Our goal is to give children who aspire to improve their lives access to education – it’s their best chance for a better future, a chance to escape poverty.

We are grateful for the fantastic amounts of support we have received from our friends, family and colleagues.  Thank you to everyone who helped and supported us.  We are so excited for the possibilities and opportunities to help even more that this provides us, and we’re looking forward to the rest of 2010 and beyond!  You can help.   Support us.  Get involved.  Once again, thank you!

This holiday season, as we’re dashing across town buying presents celebrating with friends and family, let’s remember to take some time out of our hectic schedules to make the season a little brighter for those who are in need. Wondering where our next meal is coming from is something most of us never have to worry about. However for many children in the Philippines it a constant concern. Thanks to everyone who has supported this cause, this past Sunday, December 20, 2009 hot meals we’re given to over 250 hungry children at Tabing Dagat, an impoverished area of Cavite. By providing warm meals during this holiday season we are bring hope to those who are struggling to survive. The activity was conducted by the Baranggay Captain Evez Delacruz along with volunteers who unselfishly shared their time and effort in the preparation and distribution of the meals.

Thank you to all who made it possible for these kids to enjoy a much needed meal. I would also like to thank the people of Bacoor who volunteered their time to help facilitate everything. Please check out the pictures so you can see the children that you’re helping.

Children’s Hope Fund, Inc. is our official name. Although we are incorporated we still have not finalized our 501(c)(3) status. Getting qualified as a non-profit organization is expensive, time-consuming, and difficult, but luckily we found a wonderful lawyer who is helping us through the application process pro-bono. There remain a few details to iron out, but we’re making good progress.

We’ve accomplished many of our goals. The next big one is getting our 501(c)(3) status, and we’re working diligently on making that happen. Thank you to all who have supported us in this endeavor. We are extremely grateful for those of you who helped us out monetarily, as well as with your time, so far and we hope that you will continue to do so in the future.