The Life Changing Impact of CSC

Recently a wedding and a funeral wake reminded me of some of the ways that CSC has impacted individuals and families here in Cebu. We won't know the full significance of this impact this side of heaven, but I know that lives have been changed for the better and families given opportunities that they would never have otherwise had. Oh yeah, the wedding and the funeral.

E-Boy's wedding was a great even for the Martinez family. He is an employee of CSC, and has many family members who also work for us. In fact, three of his brothers, one of his sisters, two sisters in law and one brother in law all are on our payroll. His dad and another sister were formally working for CSC. Years ago, when we first arrived in Cebu, one of our neighbors in Bulacao told us of a baby boy who was dying in the government hospital. We went there to see him and learned that he needed some medicine and blood. One of our staff gave blood while others went and bought some antibiotics. From death's door little Jessie started to come around, and eventually he got better. Now he is 32 years old, and he is the brother of the aforementioned groom. Though assistance like this, and through the employment of many of their family members, CSC has had a huge impact on the Martinez family. They have risen up from destitute poverty to owning a small business in Bulacao. Family members have their own houses and families.

The other day we learned that our friend Erning Ochea had died. Ernie was formerly the caretaker of our land in CarCar and has been a friend of CSC for 30 years. One night in 1979 when we were making our rounds in the government hospital (before CSC had taken in any kids), we saw a lady crying at the side of a crib. He little girl was dying of pneumonia. She needed medicine that would have cost about $5. The family didn't have a penny to their names so she was standing there watching her daughter die. We bought the medicine needed, and found out that she had three more kids, just as sick, back in their little shack in a squatter village in Mandaue. Without thinking too much about what we were doing, another staff member and I comandeered a jeepney and went to their shack. We brought the kids and their father, Erning, to the hospital for treatment. Later, when the kids got well and the family went back home, we decided to move them out of that filthy slum to Bulacao, near where we lived at the time. Later, we gave them a job taking care of our property. When we eventually sold that land the new owners took them on, and we haven't seen too much of them for the past 15 years. When we heard that Erning died the staff went to their home in CarCar to see the family. It was an overwhelming time for us in remembering how God had brought us to this family, and to see how their lives have developed over the years. Rescued from sickness and despair they were given a chance to work and prosper.

There are big differences in the emotions of funerals and weddings, but both of these events provided an opportunity for me to see the ways that CSC has impacted people, quite apart from what we do with the children under our care.