We have been living and working in Cebu for 30 years. This is the only real job that I have ever had. One of the things about living away from the U.S. for a significant period of time is that I often feel culturally out of sorts in relation to America. I feel more and more estranged from the younger generation. The touchstones aren't there, I guess. I have never seen a single episode of American Idol or Dancing With the Stars. For that matter, I guess I'm out of touch with their parents, too, as I never saw Seinfeld or any of the popular shows of that era. I'm not on Facebook or other social sites. I'm not as informed politically as I need to be and I don't really know what is "in" and what is "so 90s (or 80s or 70s)." I'm more or less a dinosaur.
One of the practical results of finding myself out of touch is that I'm not at all sure at times what might interest people about CSC. I have to remind myself that the things that I feel are important, interesting or newsworthy might not be what turns other people on. As I think about items for the CSC website or newsletter I often wonder if I'm hitting the mark or not. What is it about CSC that makes people want to get involved? ? For people who have tons of information available at the click of a mouse, what is it that gets through to them and touches their hearts?
What chance do I have of reaching the younger generation and inspiring them to give?
Those are tough questions for a Monday afternoon. I'm glad that we have some younger people here in Cebu helping out with the ministry. They offer new perspectives on promoting CSC. They are used to getting their news and information on-line, for instance. They understand contemporary Christian music. They know how Americans keep connected. They can help us be relevant.
So we move on, faced with the questions that new blood brings to the ministry. Do we need to have a presence on Facebook, YouTube or Twitter? How should our new web site look? How can we present our message electronically but keep our supporters who are not on-line happy and updated? How can we best translate our work in the lives of these kids in Cebu into interest and giving from people in the U.S.?
These are some of the questions of the day. Thanks for reading them.
1 comment:
Hello! I've found and reading your blog via your main website via the Oprah show. The work you all do there is amazing.
I wanted to offer my opinion that it is VERY important to be on Facebook and YouTube. All of the seminars I've attended lately have stressed this fact to be very important for marketing purposes.
Allowing adopted children follow children still there and also the staff on Facebook would be a great way for them all to feel connected and also for contributors to feel connected in a more meaningful way than just writing a check. Videos of the children of YouTube would be a great idea.
Linking all of this back to your main site can allow a future contributor or adoptive family to do so much research and feel much more informed and connected. I know that I personally do all the research I can on something before I actually contact a person because I want my questions to be more pointed. Or put another way, I don't want to waste anyone's time so by allowing me more information upfront we can quickly move from suface information to the more meaty information.
I hope this one woman's opinion helps you in your future choices in some small way. I'm really enjoying reading everyone's blog and looking around at your website.
The online community is truly amazing in what it can accomplish and how giving it can be.
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