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SPFAM (Fostering & Adoption)

God created families and designed for every person to be born into one to receive love and nurture. However, the fall had caused families to breakdown and children uncared for or neglected. We want to show them the love of Christ by taking them in and providing them with a safe and loving family.

For my father and my mother have forsaken me, But the LORD will take me up.
Psalm 27:10
Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
James 1:27

Full Interview with Cadence

1. What motivated you to start/join this ministry? 
God first planted the seed in my heart when Jacky and I had our first child, KJ. After becoming a mother, I started noticing a lot more child neglect and child abuse articles in the news. This made me extremely sad and angry and I wondered if God might use me in this area. So when PSam felt like God was moving SP to start an orphan care ministry and asked me if I’d like to join, it was a no brainer! 
Time flies when you’re having fun and I’ve been in this ministry for 7 years now! 
 
2. What is your vision for SPFAM?
I think God has a big vision for SPFAM and SP’s role in caring for orphans and widows in Hong Kong. Not only are we to be Jesus’ hands and feet in caring for orphans and widows, but I believe that we are to lead by example and inspire other Hong Kong churches to get into this ministry. My hope is that one day, we would even be influential enough to make systemic changes in Hong Kong for the orphans and widows so Hong Kong will know the love of Christ. 
 
3. What is the most difficult part of your ministry? – How do you overcome it?
I think the most difficult part of the ministry is to push yourself out of your comfort zone and serve when it’s most inconvenient. Hosting a child in your home is a 24/7 commitment until he/she leaves. To make it work, there’s a lot of preparation that needs to be done like getting your whole family (including helpers) on board, rearranging the kids’ schedule, forgoing some social activities etc. There might also be some sleepless nights which could be exhausting. However, when you see a child flourish and thrive because of the love you’ve poured into him / her, it makes all the challenges pale in comparison. In the midst of the trial, my anchor is this:
 
Isaiah 40:29-31
29 He gives strength to the weary,
And to the one who lacks might He increases power.
30 Though youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous young men stumble badly,
31 Yet those who wait for the Lord
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired, 
They will walk and not become weary.
 
4. Can you share one of the happiest moments or something worth celebrating in SPFAM?
There are so many! It is truly a ministry where we are able to see that the Lord ” is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us,” (Ephesians 3:20) because we have so little control over the situation. 
One of the happiest moments is when we are able to keep in touch with the adoptive parents and see a foster child thrive after they transition into their forever home. Another time was when we saw a single mom encouraged and able to care for her child again after a season of our Safe Families volunteers walking with them. There are so many! It feels like a wrong has been made right. 
 
5. Can you share some encouraging words to those who are interested in helping out at SPFM?
We are often bombarded with statistics and information on  how bad the orphan crisis is. However, God does not expect us to “change the world for them ALL; it does mean however, you can change the world of at least ONE” (Jason Johnson). Not everyone is called to foster or adopt but everyone is called to do something for someone. It could range anything from prayers to supporting a foster family to mentoring a single mom. 
 
If you feel called to explore the SPFAM ministry, I would love to have a chat with you. Please get in touch with me at [email protected]!
 

Situation in Hong Kong

  • Shelters taking in Hong Kong’s abused children are constantly full to the brim. This means that children facing abuse and neglect at home cannot be moved to a safe place in time. (Source SCMP, 2 May 2016)
  • Due to the lack of government or private placements, babies who are born and whose parents have relinquished their parental rights have no place to go but to remain in the hospital. However, this means that the babies are not receiving the necessary cognitive stimulation through consistent one-on-one interaction with a primary care giver. Thus their cognitive, physical and emotional developments could be stunted.
  • According to official statistics, 892 cases were reported to the Child Protection Register in 2016, compared with 874 in 2015 and 856 in 2014 . (Source SCMP, 14 January 2018)
  • Just in the first 9 months of 2017, the Hong Kong Social Welfare Department handled 704 child abuse cases. This averages 78 cases per month. This is an increase compared to an average of 71 to 74 cases per month in the preceding years. But this does not reflect the true picture of child abuse in Hong Kong as many are hidden cases that remain undetected, especially those that involves mental or verbal abuse rather than physical harm. (Source SCMP, 12 January 2018)
  • The reasons for child abuse or child neglect could be multifaceted ranging from drug abuse to poverty to the inadequacy of Hong Kong child protection laws to a lack of day care services for working parents (the list goes on).

 

How does SP respond?

  • SP responds to the situation in Hong Kong by raising awareness within the church body.
  • We want to be examples of Christ by opening up our homes to foster children in need.
  • We also work with various NGOs to organize information sessions on foster care, invite guest speakers to preach about the orphan issue and let the Holy Spirit work in us.
  • At the moment, we have 7 approved foster families and a few more which are in the process of being approved.
  • There are generally 3 types of foster families which you can consider:
    1. Ordinary foster care – this is a longer term placement where the average duration is 6 months or above
    2. Emergency foster care – this is when a child needs to be in a foster home urgently. This means that the foster family is put on shorter notice but the placement duration is also shorter. The average duration is around 6 weeks and extendable upon review.
    3. Relief foster care – this is when an ordinary or emergency foster family are unable to foster for certain days, the relief foster family will step in. The average duration could range from a few days to a few weeks.

For more information, please email [email protected]