Hope Peddlers

Hope Peddlers
As you read this I’m flying home, here is a note from guest and partner, Paul Buchanan.
 
I’ve read that “the absence of hope brings despair and ultimately death”. If we can ignite just a spark of hope into someone’s despair, we can literally breathe life into them. Then that breath of hope can change their direction, which can change their family, which can change their community, which can ultimately change their nation and the world (or at least theirworld). 
 
(Paul with the heart patient funded by his mom)
 
That thought became very apparent to me as I visited the girls home in Cambodia. Each of these girls have a different story with different circumstances, different pasts. Each of them came to this home broken, wounded, and desperate. No matter what path brought them here, the common thread among these girls was their need for hope. As young girls, each of them had dreams for their lives. But many of their dreams were stolen at a very young age. Some dreams were shattered by extreme poverty along with physical abuse, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, or all three.  For some, their own family betrayed them. For others it was a means of survival. But no matter their circumstances, each came to the home with a desperate cry to be rescued from their hopelessness
 
As I spoke with the girls, I asked what they want to be when they “grow up”. Delighted, their eyes filled with expectation as each one described her future: one wants to be a flight attendant; another a housemother (like those who care for her every day); a doctor; an accountant, a teacher; a mom with a loving husband, and children… Their dreams were different but the hope in their hearts was the same. Each girl talked about her future with confidence and great expectation, envisioning herself fulfilling her dream. GIBTK has restored their hope, and consequently, their ability to dream.
 
(Dino - the girl in white shirt wants to be a flight attendant)
 
 Each day, I watch Robert move through the different GIBTK programs. I watch him offer hope to each of them. He literally has the words “HOPE PEDDLER” on his shirt. At first, I thought it was a cool tag line. But the more I see, the more I realize that HOPE is what we are funding. DREAMS are what we are paying for. And the need will NEVER go away…not as long as there are people on this earth. We know that “the poor will always be among us”, and we are called to “care for the widow and the orphans”. 
 
As I contemplated the heaviness of the never-ending needs, I heard Robert say, “I can never raise the funds on my own. It will take more people to fund the need because, every day, we have more need that must be funded.”
 
  I realized that Robert has resolved himself to do what he can, (which is keep peddling hope), and trust that more donors, with generous hearts, from all around the world, will join together, share whatever they can, and TOGETHER WE CAN JOIN GIBTK in the endeavor to PEDDLE HOPE around the world. 
 
(Paul with one of the heart patients he funded)
 
That’s why I’m here. I can never fund them all.  I don’t have enough resources. But I do have a heart full of love and compassion. I am an encourager. I have influence. And, I have a voice.  So, I too have resolved to do what I can do. I will reach out, tell their stories, become an ambassador for the needs at GIBTK. I will peddle hope while I’m here and I will recruit new “HOPE PEDDLERS” among my sphere of influence. I will encourage our team of family and friends to keep praying, keep giving, keep encouraging, and help us deal this life-saving drug called HOPE. Then, as we join forces and pool our resources, we will make an impact and leave our footprint of HOPE on the hearts of the GIBTK family. 
 
(Paul with some heart patients funded by his family )
 
Blessed to be here, 
Paul Buchanan
“Recruited Hope Peddler”
 
"We highly appreciate you and thank you for transforming lives"
 
Sincerely,
 
Robert Kalatschan
Giving it Back to Kids

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