We are blessed here at Emmanuel to be able to provide a home to many children and young adults with a variety of special needs. Our special needs population is about 50, and they range in age, gender, and ability. One thing that is true about every single one of them is that they are dearly loved by their Creator, and we feel honored that He has placed the care of their precious lives in our hands. Honduras is a country with a higher-than-average prevalence of disability (due to poor pre-natal care, poverty, malnutrition, little access to proper health care, etc.), and children and adults with disabilities are extremely vulnerable to segregation, discrimination, exploitative work, and abuse. What we have seen in our experience though is that our 'disabled' population has a special ability to touch the hearts and souls of all those they meet. It is amazing to see how well-loved they are by staff members, volunteers, visitors, and the other children here. Our prayer is always that every person who walks through Emmanuel's gates experiences God's love here and that they take that and show it to somebody else. Our special needs children, even though they are often considered the 'throw-aways' of society, have an incredible ability to let God's love shine through them to everyone they meet.

We had another fun-filled and exciting celebration of Honduras' Independence Day on September 15th! Every year, children are selected from their respective classrooms based on grades and behavior, and they practice for over a month to participate in a traditional march. The kids and teenagers all have a few days of vacation from school and then have the opportunity to cheer on their classmates as they march through the campus. Emmanuel was filled with pride and smiles on this special occasion!

The most highly-anticipated day of September is without a doubt Día del Niño, or Children's Day. On this day, children are celebrated with gifts, games, and candy. Emmanuel was blessed to host two different groups from Honduras to celebrate this special day. One group celebrated with us with pizza, piñatas, activities, and candy, and the second group hosted a Minions-themed party where they danced, played, sang, and ate (and ate and ate and ate!). The day was filled with laughter and smiles, and all left very full and very happy!!

There is still time to participate in Christmas at Emmanuel! If you are interested in getting involved in any way, please email Sarah at emmanuelhonduras@gmail.com. Some ideas about how you can help make this Christmas special for all of the children of Emmanuel include:

You can also check our website for updated shipping and packing instructions.

Due to a new regulation in customs in Honduras, if your inventory lists any food items, you MUST include the expiration date on the inventory. Failure to comply could delay the entire Christmas shipment.

Christmas container locations and deadlines:

Dr. Don Reynolds

4611 Hixson Pike

Hixson, TN 37343

Deadline: November 1st 2017

Ron and Sherri McCollum

2008 Rockledge Circle

Opelika, AL 36801

Deadline: October 22nd, 2017

The Sponsorship Program is our primary source of funds for caring for all of the children here at Emmanuel. It also allows sponsors to establish a personal relationship with an individual child. Sponsors may select a child or we will assign a one. The children at Emmanuel come from difficult circumstances. Some are orphans, some abandoned, abused or come from extreme poverty. Once at Emmanuel, we joyfully assume responsibility for their care - including nutritional food, comfortable and clean clothing and living quarters, as well as educational, medical, and general developmental needs. Most importantly, we strive to give the children strong spiritual guidance.

If you are interested in becoming part of a child's life at Orphanage Emmanuel, please feel free to contact our sponsorship coordinator, Sarah Schuenemeyer, at  emmanuelhonduras@gmail.com  for more information!

Over the years, Emmanuel has had the blessing of receiving literally hundreds of volunteers from all over the world. We provide a safe, purpose-filled environment in which many young people have discovered unknown talents, tested their skills, and matured in their walk with Christ. Many of our staff members began as volunteers, and most volunteers find themselves coming back again and again to visit or volunteer. We feel blessed to be a part of so many people's journey of faith.

Our volunteers help in all of those everyday tasks that when caring for 450+ children pile up quickly - we always have dishes to be washed, laundry to be hung up, medicine to be given, babies to be cared for and cuddled, cows to be fed and milked, broken pipes to be fixed, soccer games to be played, hair to be braided, and many other tasks and activities to keep a volunteer occupied. All of that mixed in with a generous amount of hugs makes for a great volunteer experience!

If you feel God calling you to be a part of the lives of His precious children here at Orphanage Emmanuel, please feel free to contact our volunteer coordinator, Morgan Worch, at  volunteeremmanuel@gmail.com  for more information on how to apply.

Every single day, hundreds of children go to school, receive medical treatment, and have their needs met at Emmanuel. The following items are those currently needed most for daily operations: 

Medical clinic : Ibuprofen (liquid and tablets), acetaminophen (liquid for children and tablets), cough medicine for children, antibiotics (suspension and tablets), pedialyte, fungus cream, hydrogen peroxide, gauze, craft bags (clear, small bags), address labels, Q-Tips, cotton balls, latex gloves (sizes small and medium), adult sinus cold medicine.  

School : one subject spiral notebooks, pencils, pens, glue bottles, markers, colored pencils, wide-ruled paper, construction paper, copy paper, pencil erasers, small pencil sharpeners, coloring books, rulers. 

Office : Toner (Brother TN450), drum unit (Brother DR420), standard white copy paper, letter-sized manila file folders, plastic key tags, HP 60 ink (tri-color and black), hanging file folders, Return address labels, address labels 

General operations : shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, tennis shoes, jeans, diapers and wipes, skirts, sheets, blankets, socks, underwear (girls and boys)  

Physical donations of above items can be sent to Dr. Don Reynolds at 4611 Hixson Pike, Hixson, TN 37343. If you would like to contribute financially to any of these needs, you may send a designated check to Orphanage Emmanuel at 715 Moores Mill Drive, Auburn, AL 36830. If you sponsor or contribute through direct deposit, you may email Rick Tabor to request a one-time donation increase for the purchase of a designated item.