From May 9 to May 18, 2008 a group of students and faculty from Charleston Southern University visited the Chifeng Social Welfare Institute in Inner Mongolia, China. The following is a recap of the trip by one of the professors. Enjoy!
CSU Psychology Missions Team
Ministers to Orphans in China
By Myrna Nicolette
Seventeen CSU students and 3 faculty members partnered with the organization Visiting Orphans to travel to Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, China from May 9, 2008 – May 18, 2008. The experience was part of the CSU Psychology course, “From Abandonment to Adoption: The China Experience.” The course examined the effects of abandonment and neglect on the emotional and intellectual development of children. The CSU students learned about the Chinese culture and the social, political, and spiritual conditions that result in the abandonment of infants.
The Psychology Mission Team students were: Danielle Alexander, Cat Bellamy, Travis Bowe, McKenzie Byrd, Laura Camp, Austin Campbell, Emily Fish, Meghan Gerrity, Mimi Grace, Nicole Harper, Jillian Lybrand, Lindsay Nanna, Lauren Robinson, Jessica Ware, Emily Wells, Ellen Whitley, and Sarah Zeigler. The faculty members were Glenda Nanna, Myrna Nicolette, and Jan Walker. In addition, Dr. Harold Nicolette, a family physician, accompanied the team.
The visit to Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, generated excitement both inside of the orphanage and also in the local community. Chifeng is a large city of approximately 4.5 million people. The CSU Psychology Team was one of the first groups of “foreigners” to visit to the city, and the staff of the orphanage and many of the residents of the city had never met anyone from outside of China before. When the CSU Team brought their smiles and donations to the Chifeng SWI, they were noticed! The Team was enthusiastically welcomed by the Directors, staff, and residents of the orphanage. Local newspaper and TV reporters covered the visit. They interviewed several CSU students and took many pictures. The CSU students visiting the orphanage appeared prominently on the front page of the Chifeng daily newspaper. In addition, the CSU Team appeared on the local TV station daily news!
The warm reception at the orphanage included a luncheon at the orphanage. The students and faculty were invited to help make Chinese “dumplings” with the orphanage staff and the children. The Team, the staff and the children all sat down together to enjoy the freshly made dumplings. The Team was surprised and pleased to be joined at lunch by the orphanage Director, Deputy-director, and even the City Manager (mayor) of Chifeng. The warmth of the reception was overwhelming but customary in the hospitable Chinese culture.
Donations from the CSU Psychology Missions Team included clothing, toys, games, baby bottles, and stuffed panda bears. While visiting the orphanage, the CSU students painted the orphanage dining room. They designed colorful splashes of blue and green patterns, which created a more cheerful atmosphere. In addition, the Team was pleased to donate four much needed large heating/air conditioning units to the orphanage at a cost of approximately $4,000. The Director of the orphanage selected the units that would best meet the needs of the children. These units will allow the orphans and staff to use therapy rooms which can become very hot during the summer months and extremely cold during the winter months.
In addition to visiting the orphans at the Chifeng SWI, the CSU students were invited by a local English professor to spend time at the Chifeng University, mingling and talking with the Chinese students. The Team members were very surprised to have several hundred Chinese students greet them upon their arrival at the University! Some Chinese students performed a traditional Mongolian welcoming ceremony for the CSU Team members and gave them each a beautiful, handmade, Mongolian scarf as a gift. Many of the Chinese students had never met Americans before and were really excited to talk to the CSU students and faculty! Several of the Chinese students asked the CSU students and faculty about why they came to China and the CSU Team members were able to honestly share about their Christian beliefs.
The CSU Psychology Missions Team touched many lives while visiting the Chifeng SWI. The children in the Chifeng SWI orphanage were chosen by the CSU Psychology Missions Team because they were underserved and many of the children had “special needs”. The Team found that the orphaned children had many problems including: cleft lips, club feet, hearing impairments, mental retardation, and various other physical and mental disabilities. The orphanage children were very excited to receive the unconditional love, kisses, and hugs from the CSU Team members. The Team got permission to take some of the special needs students outside to play for the very first time! The next day, the Team was excited to see that all the children had been brought outside by the orphanage staff to greet their bus! The CSU students had brought a large parachute, CSU basketballs, bubbles, and sidewalk chalk for the children. There was much excitement and laughter in the orphanage courtyard that day!
The Mission Team sang worship songs to the orphans and staff. The Team taught the orphans songs and how to play the game, “Duck, duck, goose.” The orphans were then given presents: a book about God, crayons, coloring books, and DVDs. Many children had never seen crayons before and had to be shown how to use them. The Team became very attached to the beautiful children of the orphanage! They were encouraged by the progress that some of the children made in just a few days. For example, the Team was told that one little girl could not speak. However, when the Team was leaving, she said “I love you” in Chinese!
In addition to bringing love, games, songs, and attention to the children in the orphanage, one day the CSU Team brought some of the orphans to the local Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant in town. Afterwards, we took the children outside of town to hike in a park known as “Red Mountain.” The Team also visited a local Mongolian Village with the orphans. The children were so excited and had such fun leaving the orphanage and taking trips into town for the very first time in their lives!
Many thanks to the friends, students, faculty members, and family members who offered support, donations, and prayers! Because of the support of many, the Psychology Mission Team members were successfully able to express Christ’s love through their actions by ministering to the abandoned children of Chifeng. For more information about the trip, please visit the website www.joyshare.com/sites/CSUChina for an overview and pictures.
