From Heidi Ong
Age: 22

I have dedicated my life to and chosen the profession of being a teacher in the Family—where I feel is the best place for anyone who really loves their child to raise them. Why? It’s not because we are perfect, but it’s because we have devoted our time, hearts, sweat and tears to giving our children not only the moral, physical and academic training and support they need but also a foundation built on moral values, love, unselfishness, time and godly principles to ensure their spiritual, emotional and physical wellbeing.

I personally felt offended when I heard of the recent allegations that the Family is not the place to raise children, because I can say from the depths of my soul that not a day goes by that I do not pray with all my heart that I will have enough love, insight and understanding for the children that I help to teach and care for, whose lives I have been entrusted with helping to shape and mold. Not a day goes by that I don’t feel responsible for the lives that I am privileged to care for, and I give my very best to instilling the right moral mannerisms and foundation into their little characters.

Is it considered wrong to give everything to a child both physically and emotionally? Is it a crime to devote your life to creating an environment for children that is free from violence and a lack of moral values? Is it wrong to choose to teach children what it means to love God and others, to love others as you would yourself? Or, let’s take the educational aspect of things.—Are we at fault to want to give our children a head-start in their education? Isn’t that what society is all about—being the best? Have we forgotten what it means to be the best, to give things our best shot? Everyone has the right to choose what they do with what they are given. You are becoming who you are by the choices you are making today about what to do with what you were and are given, not because of what you have been given.

I’ve made my decision to give back to our children all the love and care that I was given as a child, to give them a chance to succeed as the very best. But I know that ultimately it is their choice as to what they become and what they do with their lives, as is the case with each of us.—The responsibility rests on no one but ourselves for the choices we make to give to others as we would want others to give to us.

Heidi Ong is a second-generation member of The Family International