Eight Children On Campus, by New Song Director, Bob Schloss
By the grace of God, who works “all things together for the good,” eight children are now being cared for, educated, and profoundly blessed on the New Song campus. It’s a monumental and historic time at New Song—with children living in two homes on campus for the first time ever—and we are exceedingly grateful.
Lisa and I are the houseparents of three very active boys, Tavion (9), Keshawn (10), and Teron (12). And our girls’ houseparents, Dave and Laurie Hix, are caring for five girls: Avery (15), Lilli (13), Shawnia (13), Nasia (11), and Abi (7).
Six of these students enrolled in August and September, having been campers at the first ever summer camps New Song hosted in July. Their moms felt that our academic program and the holistic care we provide in a Christian environment would be a great opportunity for their kids, and so they courageously enrolled their children for the school year. Two more boys are waiting in the wings for enrollment.*
With eight kids now living in homes, working hard in the classroom, and enjoying all of the campus amenities like the outdoor playset, the basketball court, our new swing set, the creek and pond, and other areas on campus, New Song is fulfilling the vision that God inspired so many years ago.
The campus is such a different environment for our students. I’m very impressed with how well they are adjusting. With a lot of personal tutoring, the kids stay focused in school and are doing far better than they had in the past. They enjoy participating in all of the recreational opportunities we provide, both on and off campus. The kids receive our coaching and counseling well, they are attentive during our daily chapel messages, and our nighttime devotions are some of the most special times we have with them. In addition, most of the kids have really warmed up to the new relationships they have with their houseparents and their teacher, opening up their hearts to mentoring and discipleship. We praise the Lord for his abundant grace!
How did all of this come about? The Lord developed a new partnership with a very special ministry called Safe Families of Central Indiana through their director, Lanna Blanchard. With Lanna’s encouragement, New Song hosted two week-long summer camps in July for the children of some of the families Safe Families works with. The 14 campers stayed in the New Song homes during the camp weeks, enjoying the beautiful setting and all of the enriching summer camp experiences which were provided. After the camps, to our amazement, several of the kids urged their parents to enroll them at New Song for the 2020-21 school year!
You can imagine how tremendously blessed Lisa and I feel by all that is happening. We praise the Lord for the precious children we are now caring for on campus and the opportunities we have to love them, teach them about Christ, help them grow through our academic program, and just to be a part of their lives. We are also incredibly blessed and thankful for God developing this new partnership with Safe Families, and we appreciate so very much the new friendships we have with Lanna and her team, including Carissa Rouse and others.
Lisa and I have always sensed the sovereign care of the Lord for this ministry. He is good, trustworthy, and faithful. He is finishing what He began, and we praise Him for His provision for the ministry all these years. May Christ be exalted at New Song, and may children be blessed beyond measure!
For Christ and kids,
Bob (& Lisa) Schloss
Founders/Directors
*Before enrolling more children on campus, we are needing to hire additional help for our classroom. In addition, each new child on our campus adds $6,000 to our annual budget, as 95% of our students receive full scholarships to New Song. Please consider supporting our Children’s Scholarship Fund!