Annabelle's Wish ... Providing Love and Basic Necessities for China Orphans

Annabelle's Wish is a non-profit agency that provides love and basic necessities to help the children in orphanages in China. Let me tell you all about this agency, with which I have been doing volunteer work for years.

EXACTLY WHAT DOES ANNABELLE'S WISH DO?

It's been more than TEN years since the Butler family began their work in China toward improving the lives of the many abandoned children in China who live day-to-day in orphanage homes. They are often asked to explain what it is-EXACTLY-that we do at Annabelle's Wish. And in attempting to answer this question, Jeannie Butler, the founder of Annabelle's Wish, must look back at all our accomplishments and start from the very beginning.

How The Orphan Crisis Began... this is Jeannie's story of Annabelle's Wish.

One of the first things I want everyone to understand about the Orphan Crisis in China is HOW and WHY it came about. I want people to understand this for one reason: so often I hear remarks that the Chinese people are "cruel" and "inhumane," and these are simply not things which I have found.

First, one must realize that China has an enormous land mass, is a Communist country and extreme poverty is the norm there rather than the exception. Next, one must take into account the GOVERNMENT MANDATE of "One Child ONLY." What this means is that a couple may have ONLY one child. Period. Third is a fact that many people don't know: China has no Social Security program for retirement. Boiled down, this simply means that a male child is expected to care for his parents in their old age. If a couple has no male child, they have little hope of being cared for in their old age, as daughters are expected to leave their families to be with their husband's family. In essence, then, having a healthy male child is in and of itself a sort of "retirement plan." Which is how the crisis began.

I cannot imagine how stressful and devastating it would be to be forced to hide a pregnancy until the birth because if it's a female (or an unhealthy male), one must give it up in order to provide for one's old age. Nor can I imagine the pain and sorrow that any Chinese mother must feel when placing her girl baby in a blanket on the street to be found and taken to an orphanage. But this is a simple fact that millions of Chinese citizens live with each day.

Where We Began

As many of you know, last fall we celebrated the tenth anniversary of Haley's adoption into our family. In anticipation of our adoption trip, we asked a thousand questions about the conditions we should expect, what the orphanages would be like, etc., etc. Also in anticipation of the trip, we began to solicit donations to take to Haley's orphanage as a gift for their taking care of Haley. In fact, our very first donation in the summer of 1995 came from Wynonna Judd, who gave us several dozen stuffed animals to take to the orphanage. Encouraged by Ms. Judd's generous donation, we began to seek many other donations, and were able to give several boxes of clothes, toys, and supplies to her orphanage when we adopted Haley. And Annabelle's Wish began to grow.

Obviously, we knew that we couldn't help ALL the children in China. But we began with a single thought: "No one can help everyone, but everyone can help Some One." And so we began... gathering basic needs items (like formulas, diapers, and clothing), along with other items that we in the United States often take for granted: vitamins, toys (to aid in the development of hand-to-eye coordination and motor skills), medical care. Currently, we help orphanages in MaAnshan, Xinmi, Xian, Ningxia, Yulin, Shizong, Pingliang, and two foster homes, Hope Foster Home and Starfish Foster Home, which receives at-risk (sick or special needs) children. As we are able, we also provide for cleft lip repair and educational expenses for dedicated students.

While some of the orphanages we have visited are fairly primitive, others are quite clean and well furnished. Even in the well furnished ones, however, the children are malnourished. Babies, for example, receive only one bottle of milk in the morning and one bottle of milk at night. For lunchtime, they receive a bottle of hot water.

For your information, an orphanage receives from the Chinese government an amount which would equal 11 cents per day for each child. An orphanage that houses 80 children, then, receives a whopping $8.80 per day in governmental support.

HOW CAN YOU HELP? Here's a list of the supplies we always need:

• children's chewable vitamins and infant liquid vitamins
• socks & shoes
• underwear (size 4 and up, young children wear split pants)
• baby blankets
• blanket sleepers
• baby clothes
• baby bottles
• pillows
• children's Tylenol
• toothbrushes and toothpaste
• bath soap (bars are best)
• neosporin or triple antibiotic ointment
• diaper rash cream
• fingernail clippers
• baby spoons & teaspoons
• cleft palate baby bottles
• toys, coloring books, crayons
• cloth diapers (prefolded style)
• plastic/rubber pants
• diaper pins
• children's clothes (winter & summer)
• hats, gloves, scarves
• twin flat sheets & standard pillow cases
• sanitary napkins (babies don't stay babies, they grow up!)
• baby bibs

Here are some of our additional needs:

We will soon be leaving once again to deliver the supplies we now have in storage. Right now, our most urgent need is for monetary donations: to finance delivering the items we have collected, to help with the cost of copying and mailing the newsletter, and a thousand other things, all of which have to do with getting basic necessities to the children who so desperately need them. NOT ONE PENNY of the money donated is used to pay salaries, as each of us volunteers our time. This allows for ALL of the money to be used to benefit the children in the orphanages. Please realize that even small amounts--$5 or $10--can help with the costs of photocopying and mailing. Larger amounts help in larger ways, but we appreciate anything you can donate.

We at Annabelle's Wish are also looking to grow and seek the following:

• Volunteers to help solicit donations of baby goods (i.e., from baby supply manufacturers, etc.)
• Volunteer pediatric medical professionals to aid in treating sick children on a trip
• Volunteers to help plan, hold and/or sponsor fundraisers
• Volunteer board members who are professionals in long-range planning, non-profit organizations, etc.
• Donation of copy/printing services
• Donation of web site creation and maintenance
• Donation of freight/cargo transportation
• Donation of office/warehouse space
• Volunteers to pick up, sort, label, pack and warehouse supplies for upcoming trips
• Any donations of free airline tickets, air miles, or cash to pay for much-needed supplies and transportation expenses

To make a Donation or for more Information, please contact

Annabelle's Wish, Inc.
P.O. Box 210003
Nashville, TN 37221
615-662-8159
or email Annabelleswish95@aol.com

We also try to recognize Kids Helping Kids - when a Sunday school class or school organization chooses to help the China orphans, we try to give a special thanks. This month we'd like to recognize Mrs. Joan White and the children of Burns Baptist Church, 2308 Hwy. 96, in Burns, Tennessee, who wanted to do something special to help the babies, and have collected 600 diaper pins. I know the parents are proud of each of these children! Thanks, Mrs. White and Burns Baptist Church Kids!