Miss Becky's Blog

Share a little SUNSHINE!

The purpose of The SUNSHINE Project is to bring SUNSHINE (light, warmth, happiness, hope and love) into the lives of deaf and disabled Chinese students by sharing our friendship, love and resources to help them gain education and training to become positive, happy, contributing members of society.

The SUNSHINE Project was started with the efforts of Nanjing University teachers and students, member's of Miss Becky's NJU 4-H Club and BYU Teachers; Richard and JoAn Criddle, and Ken and Becky Mitchell.

How we bring SUNSHINE to students of the Gao Chun Long Xiao School:

1. Provide money to pay the tuition and/or boarding fees for students whose parents can not afford to pay.

2. Purchase needed teaching equipment, such as scanners and printers for their computers, projectors to use in the classroom, provide Internet service, buy milk for all the children's morning snack and started a library of books for the children to use outside the classroom.

3. Nanjing University teachers and students will carry out a variety of fieldtrips and activities at the school with the children, sharing love, fun and friendship giving them experience with the outside world. Each semester at least one activity day is planned and carried out at the school. This fall, SMILEY's FUN RUN at the school will be that activity day. T-shirts for each child have been sent AND a bag of "smiley-faced" toys, candy, balloons and other surprises will be given to each child when they complete the RUN that day!

Here are the Teacher and Students Leaders of The SUNSHINE Project, from Nanjing University.

From Left to Right, Back row: Gao Fenghua; Jin Jian - the treasurer; Zhou Ying (Candice) student leader; and Weina Hua. Front row: Li Xin (Bola) student leader; Miss Becky and Jing Hong Yang. Picture taken at a planning lunch/meeting before we visited the School in the Spring of 2004.

These wonderful Chinese leaders have kept the Project going and growing since Ken and Becky Mitchell AND Richard and JoAn Criddle, BYU Teachers in Nanjing, returned to America, after working together to get the Project started.

Here is JoAn Criddle with some of the younger children the first day we visited the Gao Chun School. Richard and JoAn have continued to contribute money and support the project, just as Ken and I have, since we returned, because we know how important it is to these special children.

Richard and JoAn have been a great help in the Top Secret Adventure -- I could not have surprised Ken as we did without their help -- in fact it was Richard who brought Ken to the golf course where we started our FUN RUN. Richard and JoAn also sponsored a FUN RUN for the people in their Church to raise money for the Sunshine Project AND to promote good health and fitness!!! They are also the leaders of a great project where they take donated eye glasses to third world countries, conduct educational clinics and give glasses to those needing them... I'll tell you more about that project later on my blog.

The SUNSHINE Project is a project of LOVE. One who visits that school can really feel LOVE there. The director, teachers and workers REALLY LOVE the children and work hard to serve them well. The children LOVE being at the school where they have friends, can learn and have fun. On the wall of the school is this symbol.

This is the painting on one of the walls at the Gao Chun School. In Sign Language this hand sign says "I Love You". This symbol was on the back of the t-shirt that we used for the FUN RUN. I hope it will always remind us of the importance of LOVE.

Thank you for the LOVE you have shown by your participation in the Top Secret Adventure:

1. LOVE for the students and teachers at the Gao Chun Special School ...

2. LOVE for Ken/Smiley and giving him a Birthday surprise, never to be forgotten ...

3. LOVE for your own health and fitness

Your LOVE has added warmth and SUNSHINE to the world --- YOU have made a Difference!!!!

I LOVE YOU!!!

Miss Becky

P.S. "What sunshine is to flowers, smiles are to humanity. They are but trifles, to be sure, but scattered along life's pathway, the good they do is inconceivable." -- Joseph Addison

KEEP SMILING AND HAVE A HAPPY DAY!!!!