Bethania

I am thankful for Bethania kids. They fill my heart with so much joy and love, and they live half a world away. Mission statement: "Bethania is a Christian mission bringing wholeness and hope to poor, abandoned and disabled children in India, equipping them to share God's love." My family has a long history -- nearly 50 years and three generations -- with South India. In the late 1950s, my Grandma and Grandpa Hennig took my dad and his two brothers and sister to a little hill-village named Kodaikanal. They were missionary school teachers there from the time my dad was in fourth grade until he graduated from high school. After they returned to the States, Bethania started as a means of supporting our dear Indian friend, Dayavu, who would care for destitute children in her home. My grandma and parents continue to serve on the Board of Directors, and my brother and I have now become active on the Board of Advisors. I am working specifically with our "Sponsor a Child" ministry. Our website is www.bethaniakids.org, and while that site only gives a glimpse of our ministry, I really encourage you to learn more about these absolutely precious children.

I lived in India in 1995 for six months, when I was a sophomore in high school. My family spent a semester studying at Kodaikanal International School, my dad's alma mater. At the time, I was desperately homesick and completely culture-shocked. They were difficult months in my life. For a long time, I thought I wanted nothing to do with India. But it's terrific how God works: In Kodai, I met student teachers from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN, and they got me thinking about attending there. I had an amazing time at Olaf, and my education furthered my interest in the world and foreign cultures. After graduation I spent a year teaching English in Japan. My brother did a similar program in Korea and then continued traveling around Asia. He made it back to India, and his experiences really inspired me to give India another shot. Now I am in love with these Bethania children, and I am so encouraged to see how it's grown in the past 20 years.