Hite family helping special needs kids in Lebanon

All purchases in this auction will help to fund our family's participation in this amazing project. Through Engineering Ministries International, Preston will work with the Lebanon Society for Educational and Social Development (LSESD) to lead the design of the new school building for SKILD (Special Kids with Individual Learning Differences), a school for children with special needs. Janelle and all three of our boys - including our two youngest, who both have cerebral palsy - will have the opportunity to meet with, play with, and encourage families of children with special needs who will be impacted by the new school.

Together, we will share the joy and beauty of our special-needs kids, and spread the message of hope we have been given through their amazing lives! We believe that our joy and hope will help others discover the same kind of joy and hope in the face of special needs.

For those of you we have not had the privilege of meeting, I would like to take a minute to explain why this trip is so significant to us. Preston and I are the parents of four children. Logan, our oldest, is 6. Nathan and Owen, our two surviving 24-week-gestation triplets (Mia is in heaven), both have cerebral palsy, and Nathan has bilateral cochlear implants and a right hand amputation. Our boys — typically-functioning Logan as well as Nathan and Owen with their special needs — all bring so much joy and love to our lives. We are so excited to share our love with the children with special needs in Lebanon and their families. We hope to be able to connect with them on a very deep level since we have a mutual passion and love for children with special needs and an understanding of the daily challenges. From birth, our children have had the privilege of having amazing therapists in wonderful facilities. Preston interviewed all of our contacts to understand the best way to design a facility for children with special needs. This allows him to design a state-of-the-art special needs school in Lebanon, which will be quite unique in that cultural context.

Engineering Ministries International (EMI) is a non-profit Christian development organization made up of architects, engineers and design professionals who donate their skills to help children and families around the world step out of poverty and into a world of hope.