Charlie: The Story So Far…

Four years ago Charlie came to a Bring Me Hope camp for the first time and spent a week with a family group. During that week Charlie told his life story and it was one that shocked all who heard it.

When Charlie was around 3 years old, his mother had a love affair and left her family for another man and Charlie was left in the care of his father, who was very poor. Charlie’s father managed to remarry with a woman who treated Charlie alright and she also bore a new baby sister for Charlie. But there was no love in his life. When the stepmother also left, Charlie’s family was destitute.

One night after eating in a restaurant Charlie’s father was unable to afford the bill, so he left Charlie’s infant sister as payment. Charlie didn’t understand until later that night that his father was not playing a joke but had really left behind his sister behind.

Soon after his father was at another hotel with Charlie and once again could not afford to pay his debt and planned to use Charlie as payment. This time the manager of the hotel called the police and Charlie’s father was taken into police custody while Charlie was sent to his orphanage. He was eight years old.

In the years after his abandonment Charlie suffered many disheartening events in his life including being teased because he was put in Kindergarten despite being such an advanced age. He was also mistakenly identified as mentally handicapped due to his mistaken placement in such younger classes.

In 2006 Charlie came to Bring Me Hope after being spotted by one of our workers who was visiting his orphanage. Since then he has become a repeat visitor and this year we were lucky enough to have Charlie visit us here in Yantai for a week. He was placed in a family group with Logan, another boy from his school, Crystal his translator and Marina, a volunteer from Canada.

While Charlie is shy to start, he is also very obviously curious about what is going on around him and there is no concealing the brightness in his eyes. The very first day he was one of the last of the kids to join in on the water-park, but once he got on and began to enjoy himself he was also the last to leave. During our trip to the indoor water-park Charlie was swimming and playing with all the kids and even picked a few different volunteers and translators to take turns riding down the inner tube slide with him.

Tuesday night the family groups were asked to answer a few simple questions: What do you hope for, what do you want to be when you grow up, and what do you worry about. Charlie’s biggest worry is much the same as any child his age: his future and his education. While most kids wonder about how they will succeed once they reach adulthood, Charlie’s worries are more close to his heart due to the fact that he was placed so far back in school and as a result he has fallen so far behind in his studies.

His idea of what he wants to be in the future reinforce the fear of his eventual ascension to manhood: he has no clear idea of what he wants to be, only that he wants to be rich and successfully. He does know that he does NOT want to be a beggar or a cleaner.

Despite these harsh realities that face him, Charlie’s heart is never far from others and that is part of what makes him so astounding. Despite the life he has led and the evil he has witnessed and suffered, he is a boy full of love. When asked about what he hoped for, his answer was simple: For the Bring Me Hope camps to get better and better.” When Marina asked him why, he said “So more kids can come and enjoy the camps and experience love!”

One of Marina’s highlights for the week was the trip to KFC on Thursday. The boys had ice cream and then got to have some chicken sandwiches and while they were eating Marina went shopping for some snacks and goodies for the boys to share. As everyone was leaving the KFC Charlie took Marina’s hand, looked up at her and said “I am very happy.” On the bus ride back to camp the other orphan in his family group, Logan, lost one of his treats and without hesitation Charlie shared his treats with Logan.

Charlie’s story is ongoing, as are the stories of the other hundreds of kids that have come through our camps. Their lives are hard and their needs are great, but hope is out there for them, as it is for everyone. Here is just a sampling of Charlie’s goodbye letter to Marina, a glimpse into the heart of a very strong and joyful young man.

“I know there is a long distance between Canada and China. I am very happy we are in a family.”

“It’s hard for me to say goodbye, I hope time can be frozen.”

“You are like my mother that love and care me. This is the most beautiful memory that I have ever had. What’s more, thank you sharing your story. I was inspired a lot. I believe on day I will be a Christian.”