ECFA Accredited!

Two Hearts for Hope Accredited by National Financial Accountability Organization

LEBANON, MO  – The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) announced today the accreditation of Two Hearts for Hope of Lebanon, MO.

ECFA accreditation is based on the ECFA Seven Standards of Responsible Stewardship™, including financial accountability, transparency, sound board governance and ethical fundraising.

           

Two Hearts for Hope joins a growing number of Christ-centered churches and ministries across America, supported by over 20 million donors that have earned the right to display the ECFA seal.  When an organization is accredited by ECFA, it demonstrates its willingness to follow the model of biblical accountability.

“We are pleased to accredit a ministry committed to provide basic needs and hope to the children in orphanages in Russia and Kazakhstan,” said Dan Busby, president of ECFA.

Founded in 2008, Two Hearts for Hope (www.twoheartsforhope.org) believe that by showing God’s love they are able to foster emotional and spiritual growth in children.  They believe that through their actions they exhibit the truth of the gospel of Jesus and with God’s guidance are able to better understand of the plight of orphans and provide the basic necessities the children lack.

To learn more about Two Hearts for Hope and their stewardship opportunities, visit ServantMatch®, ECFA’s program that matches God’s servants with the stewardship options of ECFA members based on ministry sectors and categories.  It is ECFA’s newest online feature that allows you to quickly and easily find giving opportunities.

ECFA, founded in 1979, provides accreditation to leading Christian nonprofit organizations that faithfully demonstrate compliance with the ECFA Standards pertaining to financial accountability, fundraising and board governance.  For more information about ECFA, including information about accreditation and a listing of ECFA-accredited members, visit www.ECFA.org or call 1-800-323-9473.

Where has the time gone?

Wow, where has the time gone?  It's crazy to see that our last blog post was in January!  2012 has been a very busy year in our personal lives and we neglected this blog.  Yikes.

We are excited for the way God has continued to work in our lives through Two Hearts and at home.  Three of our board members have started the adoption process this year; two from China and one foster care to adopt.  My family started the adoption process in January and brought our son home from Russia in June.  As anyone who has adopted before knows, the process is all consuming and leaves little room to concentrate about much else.

In our absence from this blog we have continued to do what the Lord has called us to do in Kazakhstan and Russia.  I woke up this morning to a wonderful email from our friends in Russia with news that the new playground we provided was installed and opened today. Two of my children were born in Volgograd and a huge piece of my heart remains there.  It's wonderful to see the babies be able to have such a fantastic playground, they had nothing but rusted out, decades old "equipment" before.

We are planning our 4th mission trip to Kazakhstan in May 2013 and look forward to traveling back to build another playground and loving on precious children.  http://www.twoheartsforhope.org/missiontrip.html

As the Christmas season begins we are planning on supporting the children in Russia again and hope you will too!  http://www.twoheartsforhope.org/christmas.html  

We hope to be better about keeping this blog updated.  In the meantime we do try to post to our facebook page more often.  You can find us here - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Two-Hearts-for-Hope/61621974704

Our latest project

We are excited to announce our next big project in Russia! Our goal is to raise $20,000 for a new playground at the baby orphanage in Volgograd. The orphanage currently does not have a playground, only a small area with a few Soviet Era structures. The children have little to no room to run around and exercise their bodies and brain.

A new playground would get the children moving and having fun at the same time. The children will have climbing structures to exercise their legs, bars exercise arms and shoulders and all together the equipment encourages children to run, giving them a healthy does of cardiovascular exercise.

Playground equipment has also been proven to help develop toddlers' brain, as they learn about the world through motor activities and sensory experiences. Brain development in the first six years of life is especially important, and the more the children exercise both their sensory and motor skills, the more brain connections are created.

Playgrounds not only have physical benefits but social and self-confidence benefits as well. Children learn how to take turns and exercise self-control through group interaction. Children also gain self-confidence as they master the playground structures which leads to an increase in self-esteem.

We feel it is essential for the orphans to have a playground that will aid in their physical, mental, and social well-being.

Please consider helping the children of Volgograd!

To make a donation please visit our website - http://www.twoheartsforhope.org/playground.html

Christmas for Chilik

Here are some pictures we received from Kazakhstan. This is the New Year's/Christmas party at the Chilik special needs orphanage. We purchased each child a new pair of shoes and a New Year's costume. They also received a small gift from Ded Moroz (Father Frost) and Snegurochka (Snow Maiden).

Enjoy!

The New Year/Christmas party for the children in Russia will be on January 6th!