Kingdom of Tonga: An update from the Mango Tree Respite Center.
In the first week of January, Jeong-Seok and I attended a forum in Melbourne, Australia, regarding children with visual impairment. Representatives from Australia, Tonga, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Kiribati came together to discuss and set up an action plan for 2015 – 2017.
Many children with impaired vision who live in Tonga are neglected by their parents and teachers at school, and eventually leave the school entirely due to bad grades. Saddened by this, we recently began helping visually impaired children.
William is a six-year-old visually impaired boy. Due to genetics, his father and most of his siblings are already losing their eyesight. Hino, William’s older sister, is learning Braille at our centre.
We decided to enroll William into an English speaking primary school. This is because it is difficult to learn Braille without knowing English. Thankfully, with the active help from the principal, William was able to enroll into an English speaking Christian primary school, and he was also greeted by a warm-hearted and helpful teacher at his assigned class.
William’s school fee is funded by the students from a college in New Zealand. We have made a tilted desk for William at our centre, and a reading desk that helps him read books at a closer distance by changing its height. We have also been providing him with transportation so he can safely go to school.
Every morning in our van, William happily says, “Good morning. Thank You.” When he arrives at school, his friends from his class come running out to welcome him.
Our vision is that through this assistance, William will grow up to become a warm-hearted young man who knows how to love and take care of others, but most of all, knows and accepts the love of our Lord and Savior. – In-Kwon Kim
Please continue to pray for the ongoing ministry of the Mango Tree Respite Center, those who are ministering, and those who are being ministered to. May the Lord be known by all who enter this center of Hope and Compassion.
**** Follow this link for more information about the Mango Tree Respite Center.
