tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11637487132220909392024-09-10T12:13:48.529-04:00Friends of Touch is a Christian ministry dedicated to giving children an opportunity and a voice. Our mission is to show Orphaned and Vulnerable Children (OVC) the love of Christ in a tangible way - to nurse, equip and release them to be leaders and professionals, and to equip them to reach their God-given potential.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger57125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-72088128787806478042011-11-10T08:21:00.008-05:002011-11-10T08:55:18.629-05:00

“I want to go where you are,” she said and I knew she meant she wanted to go home with me. My first thought was, This is a result of the children calling me Jaaja (grandmother). They now think I am their grandmother and I’m here to take care of them.I had spent the entire week at the ‘Children's Healing Camp’ with my small group of children, 6 in all, and she was not one of them. In fact I

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-20257270491623679502011-05-26T14:38:00.002-04:002011-05-26T14:43:32.399-04:00

Earlier this month, I attended the Orphan Summit in Louisville, Kentucky. As always, Summit was filled with great information and resources for foster care, adoption, and global orphan care. An added plus - I got to see a lot of my Facebook friends in person. Through a late change in scheduling, I ended up traveling to Summit alone, driving ten hours each way with just me and God and my mp3

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-29747730401980777362011-05-26T13:21:00.001-04:002011-05-26T13:21:01.678-04:00

Mega Yard Sale - May 28th Date: THIS SATURDAY, May 28th Time: 8 a.m. - 2 p.m.Lighthouse Worship Center, 4299 George Washington Mem. Hwy. in Ordinary (Gloucester County, 6 miles north of the Coleman Bridge). Lots of great items! An Evening with Friends at Tuscany's Coffee House - June 4th Enjoy good food - wraps, coffee, tea, etc. and a vision for the children of Uganda! We'll celebrate

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-2537241936418522132010-12-25T13:46:00.000-05:002010-12-25T13:48:40.030-05:00

The anticipation of Christmas can make a kid out of the oldest adult. The shiny wrapped gifts, the brilliant lights it brings back many fond memories of childhood. What is in the package? When can we open them? What a joy to watch that same anticipation in my kids and grand kids. My grandson spent the night with me the other day and he knew that the next day would be our family party where

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-10212414601108459752010-11-29T19:17:00.003-05:002010-11-29T19:59:27.575-05:00

How November 30th Became Our Birthday It was a beautiful morning, on the 30th day of November 1984, when my precious mother brought me into this world. This Day has been so special to me, and each year, I hold special memories of it. A few years back,while working with TOUCH, I had an opportunity to move around my community with a questionnaire, and the purpose of this was to identify needy and

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-20032555282653586172010-10-20T05:37:00.001-04:002010-10-20T05:37:00.345-04:00

Thanks to Deanna Jones of Mother the World for making this video for us!

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-86154405233782606022010-10-18T11:32:00.001-04:002010-10-18T11:36:42.672-04:00

Today is the halfway point in 40 days of prayer for the orphan. As a part of these 40 days, and as a part of our commitment to care for children in Uganda, we are praying for each child in the TOUCH program by name. We are also praying for their caregivers and siblings. The method doesn't change. Each Wednesday, we pull out printed child profiles and spread them out across the altar at

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-69397945990561928042010-10-04T07:55:00.000-04:002010-10-04T07:58:35.784-04:00

I have a young friend who loves the Lord.  She works in the world of television and media, and recently I had the chance to collaborate with her on a project to benefit orphans.  The radio spot turned out great and I hope it will stir many hearts.A few days later, my friend called me to say she had had a revelation after we left her production studios.  She said she was listening to the script

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-12379438727309356042010-09-29T14:28:00.004-04:002010-09-29T15:49:40.716-04:00

Today we begin 40 Days of Prayer for Orphans. We are asking God to break our hearts. We are asking Him to let us see with His eyes and to love with His heart. These 40 days are not only for the children, but they are also for us. If we are not changed over the next 40 days, then we haven't really prayed. A Broken Heart When the Lord breaks your heart, it breaks in all the right places. You find

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-66438060862548549612010-09-17T13:18:00.002-04:002010-09-17T13:25:54.993-04:00

@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 10pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }a:link, span.MsoHyperlink { color: blue; text-decoration: underline; }a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed { color: purple; text-decoration: underline; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } Join us for 40 Days of prayer for orphans and for the

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-53289290082095732822010-08-12T13:13:00.002-04:002010-08-12T13:18:41.968-04:00

I was amazed to hear of the recent incident involving an airline steward and his irate behavior on the plane he was serving. Everyone has a different way of looking at this incident, a different perspective of his motives, his attitude, the attitude of the other passengers involved, and it reminded me of another story I heard once. There was a man on a train holding a small child who was wailing

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-67801865289621278052010-07-27T14:36:00.001-04:002010-07-27T14:36:44.667-04:00

Apologies to anyone who has been trying to call us. Our old phone number, 757-272-0979 isn't working. We have a new phone number: 804-684-1790.Basically,  our phone carrier switched their business model around and decided not to do phone service any more. We started the process to move the number, but services ended before the move was complete. It's frustrating to us, and I'm sure it's

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-67534107266319085842010-07-25T22:52:00.001-04:002010-07-25T22:52:16.836-04:00

Tuscany's is a wonderful coffee house on the corner of Route 17 and Denbigh Boulevard in Yorktown, VA. Locals will know its location as "across the street from Pop's."Join us there THIS SATURDAY, at 6pm for an evening of good food, great coffee & tea, and wonderful friends. Hear about changed lives and God's faithfulness, and learn how easy it is to really make a difference in Africa.$10 in

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-78518319862955115312010-07-14T22:31:00.001-04:002010-07-14T22:34:53.809-04:00

This Sunday in Kampala, Uganda, 76 people lost their lives when explosions tore through crowds watching the World Cup final. The explosions were within just a few miles from the school. "You remember the coffee house your team liked so much?" asked Sara when I called, "The rugby field is just beside that." All of the TOUCH children, staff, and volunteers are okay, and the church is working to

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-77820608003721339542010-07-04T12:59:00.000-04:002010-07-04T13:03:27.647-04:00

It was one of those days. The weather was perfect after weeks of hot, humid, stay inside weather it had cooled down enough to open the windows. I sat quietly under the shade trees smelling the clean fresh air. The sun was shinning, a cool breeze caressed my face, and no humidity. I just closed my eyes and breathed it all in catching a whiff of Honey Suckle blossoms. It’s amazing to me how a

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-20315231971904137582010-06-22T03:01:00.000-04:002010-06-22T03:02:52.160-04:00

Have you ever tried to help someone and they just didn’t get it? Less than two years ago, we found that even though children were receiving food and aid from TOUCH, many of them were hardened against the gospel of Jesus Christ.Of course, Sara and the staff at TOUCH love and care for the children no matter what their background or beliefs. They continued to serve faithfully and to pray that God

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-36472885590541564742010-05-07T15:58:00.000-04:002010-05-07T16:01:51.614-04:00

There are people I know who seem to love to hate. They have a list of grievances against someone and they always look for new items to add to it. Even if a person is totally innocent and has no idea that they have offended, the hateful person records the insult and files it in their head. Whenever the person who insulted them is thought of or mentioned in a conversation, out comes the list

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-55971499163765878852010-05-03T20:46:00.002-04:002010-05-03T20:46:55.550-04:00

On June 5, we will join with others on this World Weekend of Prayer for Children at Risk. We come together to pray that children all around the world would know the love of Jesus in their everyday lives, and be able to claim for themselves God's incredible offer of abundant life. We also pray that as a result of our prayers more people will be mobilized to manifest the love of God to this

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-68951318908499388012010-03-28T15:04:00.001-04:002010-03-28T15:07:10.033-04:00

On America’s Funniest Video last night, a man was filming his kids. He turned the camera on and his son about age 3 or 4 was sitting on the couch next to his other son about age 2 or 3. The first thing I noticed is this look of concern and confusion on their face and I thought what are they afraid of?The older boy asked his dad “Are you going to tape us together now dad?” His dad in the mean

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-55070606186561161702010-03-23T06:41:00.002-04:002010-04-01T16:48:51.762-04:00

One in eight people in the world does not have access to safe water, and 2.5 billion people worldwide live without a toilet. In the neighborhood where we work in Kampala, 83% of the families lack sanitation, and 28% lack access to safe water. The system below is one of the improved water access points in Kitintale:

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-71173695548546103162010-03-16T17:49:00.001-04:002010-03-16T17:51:01.321-04:00

There are no potted plants in my grandson’s house so he was thrilled to find dirt and green leaves to play with when he came to Nana’s house. After moving him away from the plants several times I finally did the smart thing and redirected his attention by setting him in the kitchen with a large pot and several utensils so he could bang his little heart out. The distraction worked and he totally

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-85348211939501225582010-01-20T22:47:00.001-05:002010-01-20T22:50:00.283-05:00

As the world responds to the earthquake in Haiti, our thoughts are focused on the immediate needs of food, water, medical care, and rescue efforts. But there is another disaster looming for Haiti's children. As if worry over food and shelter wasn't enough. As if the trauma of all they have seen and experienced in this week was not enough. Children in Haiti face a danger that is only rarely

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-11831503028868812542010-01-14T15:47:00.001-05:002010-01-14T15:48:50.152-05:00

We're really thankful for our donors, and we want to treat you right. Recently we're getting phone calls asking about year-end statements. We mailed them out today, so you can expect them in a day or two.Again, we are grateful for your giving. It's been a rough year for so many, but we've seen so many of you dig in your heels and refuse to give in to recession. You've been determined to help, and

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-2129594996171324732009-12-20T14:55:00.002-05:002009-12-20T14:55:49.792-05:00

As I look around at all the shining Christmas decorations and the colorful wrapped presents sitting under the tree I smile with anticipation of spending time with family. It is very difficult during this time to be frugal. I see all the wonderful gifts available and all the great prices and want to buy everything and give everyone I know a present so they will feel special and loved. I made it

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163748713222090939.post-7788216498720242982009-12-08T12:28:00.000-05:002009-12-08T12:28:29.167-05:00

I thought it would be nice to let you hear how much the children appreciate what you do for them - in their own words: I am fine and now living a very happy life because of the Grace of God he has put upon me through you . . . I truly appreciate your support, love and care towards me and may the good Lord reward you abundantly. - Margaret I am doing fun, schooling enjoying each day I step at

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0