I'm dedicating today's post to a very special little girl. A girl who loves without boundaries despite her physical limitations. A girl who's joy is printed like a map and worn on on her face. A girl who is smart, innovative, intelligent and eager to learn. A girl who is growing up fast and desperately longs for a forever family of her own. Today is about a girl named, Charissa.
Charissa joined the SFCV family back in 2009, when she was just 3 and a half years old. From the start, Charissa's life was challenged, shortly after birth she was diagnosed with Hydrocephalus, Spina Bifida, posterior Meningocele and Cerebral Palsy. When she was a baby, surgeons placed a VP shunt to treat the Hydrocephalus and her Meningocele was removed. Since her surgery several years ago, Charissa has progressed wonderfully. Despite her inability to control her body from the waist down, she has become a very independent young girl with an excellent outlook on life.
Over the last 7 years, Charissa has touched hundreds, if not thousands of lives with her loving heart and joyous spirit. She is a lover, with a spunky and playful personality. She knows what she likes and will be sure to let you know what she doesn't. haha! Charissa is a leader in her class at school and at home amongst her housemates. Every time I go into Teacher Zhang's classroom, Charissa is always leading the activity, not controlling, just leading. Reading aloud so others can follow along, working diligently on her math and sharing answers with classmates, showing her classmates how to write characters, and suggesting and sharing creative ideas for art projects. This girl is going places, I tell ya, she's a natural born leader. At home, she's a helper and even though she can't physically help set the table or clear the dishes for meals, she still contributes and helps the nannies look after the little ones. She's a big sister to the little girls she shares a room with, she's a friend to most of the other children here and a blessing to all who know her. Do you know her? You should!
Philemon 1:7 "For I have come to have much joy and comfort in your love, because the
hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother."...or Sister...Charissa.
As her therapist, there are a million things I could say about Charissa, her positivity and her hard work ethic. I'll be real honest, she's the ideal patient - and I'm not just saying that. Whenever she rolls into the clinic she brings her smile that just warms your heart and brightens your day. Given her physical challenges, there is a lot that we work on with her: balance, core stability, independent mobility, lower extremity range of motion, fine motor skills, upper extremity strength, and a few others; however no matter what we ask of her - she complies. Some times it's hard or painful, but I've never heard her complain once. She has this internal drive to progress and gain more independent skills. One thing I love so much about her is her stubbornness. Most often stubbornness has a negative connotation, but not for Charissa. She really does NOT like being told that she's Can't do something. If I tell her that an activity "may be too hard," she insists on trying it even if she fails. This girl is determined. She's determined to succeed. She's determined to further her skills and education. She's determined to find a Forever Family...
This is where we come in. I've known Charissa for 3 years now, and I've had the privilege of being her therapist for the 18 months, and if there's one thing I know, it's that Charissa's heart desperately longs for someone she can call Mama and Baba. Like most 10, almost 11 year olds, she loves having her nails painted, coloring, doing puzzles, playing barbies, building with Lego's, and creating with clay, but the one thing she'd love the most is a family. I think I've said this in my other advocacy posts, but every child deserves a family. They all do. We were created to be loved and cared for by our families. While Charissa is receiving lots of love from her SFCV, her heart still longs for a forever family. On August 23rd, Charissa will turn 11 years old. This means that she only has 3 years left to find her family. Would you join me in advocating for this special girl, maybe together we can find her forever family. She's determined to find them....and so am I.
Spread the Word!
If you or someone you know has been touched by this post and would like to learn more about Charissa, her adoption paperwork, or adoption in general, PLEASE send me an email at: naomi.preedin@chinaorphans.org
P.S. PLEASE SHARE THIS POST! LETS GET THE WORD OUT AND FIND CHARISSA'S FOREVER FAMILY!!
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| Charissa and Jason are Therapy Pals :) |
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| Christmas 2015 with Santa! |
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| Fall Costume party with Tim Baba! |
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| Isn't she just so precious? Spread the word! |
I'm dedicating today's post to a very special little girl. A girl who loves without boundaries despite her physical limitations. A girl who's joy is printed like a map and worn on on her face. A girl who is smart, innovative, intelligent and eager to learn. A girl who is growing up fast and desperately longs for a forever family of her own. Today is about a girl named, Charissa.
Over the last 7 years, Charissa has touched hundreds, if not thousands of lives with her loving heart and joyous spirit. She is a lover, with a spunky and playful personality. She knows what she likes and will be sure to let you know what she doesn't. haha! Charissa is a leader in her class at school and at home amongst her housemates. Every time I go into Teacher Zhang's classroom, Charissa is always leading the activity, not controlling, just leading. Reading aloud so others can follow along, working diligently on her math and sharing answers with classmates, showing her classmates how to write characters, and suggesting and sharing creative ideas for art projects. This girl is going places, I tell ya, she's a natural born leader. At home, she's a helper and even though she can't physically help set the table or clear the dishes for meals, she still contributes and helps the nannies look after the little ones. She's a big sister to the little girls she shares a room with, she's a friend to most of the other children here and a blessing to all who know her. Do you know her? You should!
This is where we come in. I've known Charissa for 3 years now, and I've had the privilege of being her therapist for the 18 months, and if there's one thing I know, it's that Charissa's heart desperately longs for someone she can call Mama and Baba. Like most 10, almost 11 year olds, she loves having her nails painted, coloring, doing puzzles, playing barbies, building with Lego's, and creating with clay, but the one thing she'd love the most is a family. I think I've said this in my other advocacy posts, but every child deserves a family. They all do. We were created to be loved and cared for by our families. While Charissa is receiving lots of love from her SFCV, her heart still longs for a forever family. On August 23rd, Charissa will turn 11 years old. This means that she only has 3 years left to find her family. Would you join me in advocating for this special girl, maybe together we can find her forever family. She's determined to find them....and so am I.
praying this girl will lead many people to christ
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