New Dawn for the Next Generation

On the brink of moving from childhood to becoming a woman, Dawn was devastated by the death of her adopted father. Emotionally it was an extremely difficult time for the not-quite-teenager. Following his death she'd moved from relative to relative, but they simply couldn't provide Dawn with the care she needed.

Dawn came to live in our small group home for teenagers when she was 11 years old. She quickly adjusted to life at Xining Children’s Home and learnt to love her new brothers and sisters. She was enrolled at a local school where she continued her education, hoping to enter the military, a highly sought after career choice in China.  She developed an interest in languages, and picked up a smattering of Japanese and Korean in high school. Unfortunately her final exam results did not qualify Dawn for her dream career. Her future role would indeed be in service, but not in the military.

Surrounded by severely disabled children, Dawn realized that Christian Action invested a great deal in training the child care workers at Xining Children’s Home and she decided to study to be a healthcare worker, specializing in rehabilitative care work.  She decided she wanted to be someone who helped usher in a new generation of childcare workers, professionally equipped to care for China’s orphaned and abandoned children!  Two years ago when Dawn left for Changsha University, her brothers and sisters missed her terribly, even though  they knew she would come home for all the holidays.

Now, ten years after arriving at Xining Children’s home, Dawn is completing the final year of her studies in Changsha!

My hope for children like Dawn is that they will return to Xining Children’s Home to care for succeeding generations of orphaned and abandoned children. Though she is not aware of my vision (I have never shared it with her because I don't want to pressurize her) Dawn is on her way to fulfilling that vision.  I am so grateful that we have instilled a culture of serving the weak and lost in China’s future generation, some of whom have seen firsthand that love is the basis of our care.