Mayah's Fund

The value of a life

2012-01-19T08:37:00.000-08:00

Lindsey, 9 months old

I have a shadow box that hangs on the wall in my bedroom. It displays a picture of Mayah, a cheap plastic bracelet made by a 5-year-old Meagan, a T-shirt that says "daddy loves me", and the stuffed lamb that came attached to a vase of memorial flowers. The question occurred to me the other day, "That's it? This little box encapsulates her entire life?" Which got me to thinking about what makes a life valuable. When Mayah passed away we received a lot of condolences, many of them comforting and helpful, a few of them not. Among the not so helpful was, "At least she died before you officially adopted her." (You might recall that she died 3 weeks before we were to travel. And we signed her 'confirmation to adopt' letter, ironically, the day before her death) That is to say, the emotional and financial expenditure of having a child who lived only a few weeks would not be "worth it." Do you remember little Lindsey (see above)? She was the child that Mayah's Fund sponsored last year. The last post-op report I received was that her lip had healed beautifully and that she was beginning to walk and talk and thrive in her foster mother's care. And the picture was of a bright-eyed chubby almost toddler. Oh, so undeniably worth it! Then I got an email that she passed away just before Christmas. She had contracted meningitis and died at home in the arms of her foster mother. Still worth it? I mean, to help heal her, only for her to die 6 months later? Well, as far as I'm concerned the answer is a resounding, "Yes!" All of the reasons why Mayah died will, at least in this life, be a mystery. But over the past 5 years I have discovered more than enough value in her short life. For instance, her life has taught me so much about God's character (seriously so, so much), about being sensitive to others who are hurting, about priorities, heaven, sacrifice, joy, and the list could go on and on. Lessons no one can even begin to put a price tag on. I'd say we got the better end of the deal. And so here we are again, ready to sponsor another child. Ready to paste some amateurish photos onto cards in the hopes of raising a few hundred dollars to brighten just one child's life. Hopefully for years and years to come, but maybe only for months, weeks or days. At this moment I actually can't think of a more worthwhile endeavor.

Lindsey post-op

2011-06-04T05:58:00.000-07:00

Thank you again for supporting Mayah's Fund by donating either your time or money (or both)! The surgery on May 24th went well, her repair looks beautiful and she was discharged back to the healing home earlier this week. Thanks for being a part of this miracle!

Lindsey to have surgery!

2011-05-21T06:41:00.000-07:00

Lindsey has completely recovered from her illness and is scheduled for surgery next week. Here are a few pictures of her taken just a few days ago! What a cutie-patootie!

Update

2011-04-26T10:09:00.000-07:00

Lindsey was hospitalized with an infection a couple of weeks ago, but is recovering nicely. Her cleft repair is scheduled for next month, so let's hope she can stay healthy until then. The good news...I am putting a check in the mail today for $1,045! This completely covers the cost of her surgery with a little extra thrown in for her nanny care. Thanks to all who contributed. I will be sure to post updates on her as I receive them.

2011-03-04T18:02:00.000-08:00

Meet Lindsey! She is a new baby at Anhui Cleft Healing Home and will be ready for her cleft lip repair in May.

This year, Mayah's Fund is proud to be teaming up with CaSondra Shim Photography and the result are some spectacular images for our spring fundraiser. Below is a sampling of the notecards. There are 8 all-occasion cards per set, arranged in a white gift box...perfect for Mother's Day gift giving or personal use. Please consider purchasing a set for $20 or make a donation in any amount. Every dollar raised will go toward helping Lindsey to get this life-changing surgery!

Shan is home!

2010-05-08T06:44:00.000-07:00

The Goodmans arrived home with their son on April 24th! They send a HUGE thank you to everyone whose donations helped to bring Shan home. As you can see, he is happy and adjusting well to mom and dad and 4 siblings!

We did it!

2010-03-21T15:08:00.000-07:00

Thank you for helping Mayah's Fund to raise over $1,300.00 for Shan's adoption expenses. In a miraculous turn of events, Shan's family was able to raise the total $17,000 needed to bring him home. Looks like they will travel the first part of April. Can't wait to post a picture of this family finally united!

2010-01-21T15:34:00.000-08:00

Meet Shan, an adorable 3-year-old boy. In spite of his limb difference he is otherwise healthy, happy and living in a foster home in Weifang, China. Shan was matched with an adoptive family 2 years ago and since that time they have been penny pinching, working odd jobs and applying for numerous grants in anticipation of bringing their son home. Unfortunately, they are still several thousand dollars short, and have only months before their travel approval will expire. Read more about his story HERE.

Help us to bring Shan home by purchasing a set of all occasion notecards. Cards feature original photgraphic images on brilliant white 3.5 x 5.5 cardstock. $20 for a set of 8. 100% of the proceedes will go toward Shan's adoption expenses. Thank you for your heart for orphans with special needs!

Miss Smiley!

2009-09-06T11:46:00.000-07:00

Gail was sent to the hospital for her surgery this past Monday. After two other failed attempts at doing the lip repair due to illness, Gail FINALLY received her surgery on Wednesday. This photo was taken the next day, Thursday and she was already smiling!

Thank you again to everyone who donated money or helped out with the fundraiser. You will forever be a part of this little girl's life!

2009-08-06T12:03:00.000-07:00

Hey, our little Gail made the news! Well...a post on LWB's blog, at least. Read the cute story they posted about her HERE

The grand total...(drum roll please)

2009-04-30T08:07:00.000-07:00

Thank you for helping Mayah's Fund to raise $1,165.00. I am writing a check today to LWB and will send out an update after Gail has her surgery (hopefully May or June).

Thank you for being a part of this miracle!

Update on Gail!

2009-04-23T06:36:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness....isn't she ADORABLE! I just received this updated picture of Gail and she is actually awake! We have nearly raised all of the funds she needs and LWB emailed to say that her surgery will be scheduled for NEXT MONTH! There are still some card sets available for purchase and we are still taking donations. Any money raised in excess of our goal will be applied toward another child in need.

Gail from Anhui

2009-03-24T16:13:00.000-07:00

This adorable baby girl is waiting in LWB's cleft healing home in Anhui Province for her lip repair. She is 3 months old. She will need $1,000 for her surgery and travel. Please help us to raise the funds she needs by purchasing a set of note cards. Gift sets include 8 cards (featuring 4 different photographic images) with envelopes, packaged in a decorative fabric bag. Cost is $20/set. Gail's life will be forever changed by your generosity!

Back Soon...

2009-01-24T03:19:00.001-08:00

With new images for purchase to kick of our 2009 fundraiser!

Update on Zhou

2008-09-30T02:37:00.000-07:00

I just received an email that Zhou is continuing to do well and recover from her surgery. She looks like the picture of health in this most recent picture....love the hair!

What a difference...

2008-08-29T16:37:00.000-07:00

Zhou's heart surgery was postponed several times due to recurring infections. Finally, in June, the surgery was scheduled and she traveled to the hospital to be prepped, only to discover that she had pneumonia. The pneumonia became a blood infection and for awhile, it didn't look like she would make it. Miraculously, she recovered from the infection, survived the heart surgery and was recently released from the hospital

before...

after...

Wen had been through a series of operations, including placement of a colostomy. Surgery was needed to actually reverse the colostomy...she didn't need it anymore because she began to gain weight as her body became stronger! The surgery enabled her to continue to grow and develop normally

before...

after...

***Shortly after receiving Wen's updated information, we were saddened to learn that she passed away. Here life was precious and we hope that the care she received brightened her final days.

Grand Total!!!

2008-06-02T18:19:00.000-07:00

The last of the money has been collected and the grand total is....

$1,526.53!!!

The last bit of the money went toward this little baby's heart surgery

Thanks again to all those who supported us. I recently got a "thank you" letter in the mail from LWB. It was addressed to "Mayah's Fund" I loved seeing her name in black and white and knowing that her life is still having an impact!

Baby Wen

2008-05-08T06:44:00.000-07:00

In light of the news about Han, LWB asked that we allocate our funds to another child. If this little one's smile doesn't melt your heart then I don't know what will! Here is a little bit of info about her:

Wen is now ready for her colostomy closure so she can continue to gain weight. There has been so much improvement in Wen over the last two months. Her color is great and she is putting on weight well. She is a very sweet baby full of smiles for anyone that talks to her. She has two small stuffed animals one blue and one red that she is always cuddled up to. She likes to play with their tails. We have seen such great improvement for Wen through the diligent care of our Heartbridge unit! She now needs the next surgery to maintain her weight gain and help with nutrient absorption.

It's so encouraging to know that we can help Wen to have a the great start at life that she deserves. Thank you again for your generosity!

A sad reminder

2008-05-08T06:10:00.000-07:00

I just got an email from the LWB staff that baby Han passed away. He was taken to the hospital for fevers and vomiting where it was discovered that he had a large brain tumor pressing behind his eye. I know that his caregivers are grieving deeply for this little guy. A sad reminder that though many of the orphanage staff love and care for their small charges to the best of their ability, their resources are so very limited. With access to better diagnostic tools, maybe Han would have made it...or maybe it was just his time. Only God knows. I hear a lot of talk about Chinese people abandoning their babies. A woman recently said to me about our youngest, "Look how precious she is...how could her mother NOT want her!" Another person commented, "I don't care what I was going through, I would NEVER abandon my baby". That's easy to say when we live in our spacious house with 2 cars in the garage, leftovers going to waste in the refrigerator and ample health insurance. Can we really be so sure of what we'd do when we've never even visited a country overwhelmed by poverty, much less lived in these folk's shoes? I know that in China, few people have the money even to visit the doctor for a cold. Paying for an expensive surgery for a sick or disabled child is absolutely out of the question. At our daughter's orphanage, 8 babies were abandoned in one day. All of them with serious heart defects. This happened one day after a news report that this orphanage provided heart surgeries for sick babies. It breaks my heart to think of the possibility that these mothers faced a choice no one should have to make.... Keep my baby and she will most likely die, or give her up forever to give her a chance to be made well. I'm not saying that there aren't women who abandon their babies because they are truly unwanted or inconvenient. I'm just asking that we think before we pass judgement. The bottom line is that these kids need people who will advocate for them, pray for them, and adopt them. Let's be part of the solution and leave the judging to God.

The check is in the mail!

2008-05-02T13:38:00.000-07:00

In case you haven't noticed, we totally BLEW OUT our goal (special thanks to a couple of very generous donors). When we first started raising money, we wanted to help baby Zhou, but God had another plan. Her little heart just couldn't wait and her surgery was funded right away via another source. I just received an update about her... she is holding her own and is scheduled to be moved to a hospital in Hangzhou for surgery later this month. Please continue to pray for her.

Baby Han from Anhui Province, the cutie pictured above, is in need of lens surgery on both eyes. We are now able to completely fund his surgery ($1,000) with the money that was raised! We pray that the surgery is a success and that very soon his paperwork for adoption will be turned in. Hopefully he will be able to see his new mama's face with his newly healed eyes.

There is still over $300 left and some money is still rolling in. Once it is all collected, we will see what other needs there are at that time. Again thank you for your hearts for these amazing kids.

Update on Baby Zhou

2008-04-20T11:25:00.000-07:00

Great News! LWB just emailed me to say that another donor stepped in to fund a large portion of the $4,500 that Baby Zhou needs for her surgery. It doesn't sound like she can wait much longer and our fundraising, although steadily increasing, was still a little slow. Praise God that he provided. Due to the ever-changing currency exchange rate, they think the total funds she needs will exceed the original estimate. As a result, our new goal is to raise $1,000 for the remainder of her costs. It is likely that there will be some left over that we can even contribute toward another child's surgery! We'll keep you posted. Thank you for the over $800 that we have raised so far!

Baby Zhou

2008-03-31T18:01:00.000-07:00

This adorable baby girl is currently featured on LWB's website. She is from Jiangxi Province and was born with a congenital heart defect. She is 11 months old. Her heart echo exam shows a VSD with a large left to right shunt. She is in need of surgery to close her VSD. The total amount needed to fund her surgery, ayi (nanny) care and transportation is $4,500.

Please consider purchasing a set of notecards to help give this little girl a new heart and a chance to be adopted. All proceeds will go toward baby Zhou's medical needs.

Unique photographic images are on 3.5 x 5.5 size, high quality card stock. Inside panel is blank for your personal message. Each set of 8 cards comes packaged in a delicate, handmade bag. Cost is $20.00 per set. A perfect gift for Mother's Day! View notecard images in the slideshow below.

To order, click the DONATE button to the right. We accept PayPal or credit card. Once you complete the payment, you will receive an email from me confirming your order and shipping information. Email me at jennreuter@hotmail.com to purchase notecards with a personal check. Checks can be made payable to "Mayah's Fund."

Thank you in advance for your heart for baby Zhou!