What a Year It Has Been!
Dear friends,
It is hard to believe that 2019 is coming to a close. It seems like only yesterday we were ushering in the new year. One thing is certain, 2019 was one for the record books.
We proudly began this year watching our oldest daughter, Emily Chapman Richards, take the helm at Show Hope as Executive Director. Emily certainly was ready for the challenge as orphan care and adoption advocacy have been deep passions of hers since before she could drive! It has been a joy to SEE her grow throughout this year, strategically leading Show Hope with much humility, grace, and faith.
In April, Show Hope celebrated its fourth 20/20 Campaign, and with your prayers, support, and generosity, we raised $358,210 for our Adoption Aid program—Show Hope’s cornerstone and where we began more than 16 years ago. With those gifts, we are able to fund 71 grants for waiting children and families, and for that, we thank you!
Also in April, Show Hope hosted its Empowered to Connect Conference and Simulcast. This year, we saw 291 participants at the live event in the Dallas area, and we had 582 simulcast host sites in 47 states, six Canadian provinces, and seven countries. Unbelievable and so grateful that our efforts in Pre+Post Adoption Support are literally reaching across the globe!
We quickly followed April with an epic event Memorial Day weekend here in Franklin, Tennessee. More than 720 known adoptions have taken place from our Care Centers in China, and on May 24 and 25, more than 70 families from across the country, who have welcomed home a child once under our care, joined us for our second-ever Show Hope Care Centers Reunion. It was an unforgettable event as we celebrated all children from our Care Centers and honored our sweet Maria Sue Chapman, the namesake for Maria’s Big House of Hope—Show Hope’s flagship Care Center in China.
As spring gave way to summer, members of the Chapman family, Show Hope staff, and dear friends journeyed with us to Maria’s Big House of Hope (Maria’s) in Luoyang, China. This year marked 10 years since the doors opened at Maria’s. To reflect on these past years is incredibly hard and painful for us, but at the same time, we are thankful for how God has sustained us and for how our sweet Maria Sue’s beautiful yet all-to-short life continues to shine on through the love and care given at Show Hope’s Care Centers.
After the jet lag passed, all of us at Show Hope threw ourselves into our 16th annual Fellowship Weekend and Fundraising Banquet. This November, we celebrated the Deeper Roots of the Show Hope tree—roots that have grown stronger and reached further than we could have ever imagined. And because of your love, support, and generosity, we raised more than $2 million that weekend! Honestly, it is staggering that so many have locked arms with us as we work to care for orphans by engaging the Church and reducing the barriers to adoption.
So, friends, please know that you are beyond appreciated and loved. Without God working in and through you, the tree that is Show Hope would not still be here today. Please enjoy this year-in-photos from 2019, and we do hope and pray that the year 2020 is the best yet for you and your family.
Happy New Year,
Mary Beth & Steven Curtis Chapman
