Harmony Outreach

The Kaifeng Deaf School was Harmony Outreach's very first inland project and remains one of our most significant.  When we first visited the deaf school in 2006 we were struck by the deplorable conditions in which the children and staff were living and working.  The deaf school is also a boarding school for children, and so it is the de facto home for approximately 40 children.

Receiving a mere pittance of income each month, the school’s only affordable housing was an abandoned and dilapidated factory compound.  Making the best of the situation, they grew much of the food they ate.  And despite the difficult conditions, the children were healthy and full of love and laughter.  This was testament to us of the loving care provided by Headmistress Zhanghong and her staff who did their best to shield and protect the children and provide them a nurturing environment to grow and learn.  In private, however, Zhanghong's brave face would melt away and she would often cry as she described her struggle to care for the children.

Harmony adopted the Kaifeng Deaf School and quickly set about to bring them encouragement and help.

·         We relocated them to new facilities which we have remodeled.

·         We purchased them their first vehicle—a small van—shown above in the slideshow.

·         We have provided new furniture, bedding and appliances.

·         We have given the staff much needed salary increases.

China, unlike the U.S., does not have a comprehensive strategy for helping the deaf to overcome their disabilities and function within society.  Most of the children's parents are poor farmers or migrant workers.  Not knowing how to deal with a deaf child, many families virtually abandoned their children or made them feel valueless and unloved.  Our goal is to provide the children a nurturing environment where they will be loved while they are taught how to overcome their hearing disabilities. 

For these children, graduation is when they have been sufficiently prepared and equipped to go to regular public schools and/or to function in society.