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ABOUT US  "Where there is no vision, the people perish" (Proverbs 29:18) Proverbs 29:18 evokes the highest vision any individual or group can ever claim regarding the pursuit of any advocacy, including education. This is because it grounds the vision on compassion. "And of some have compassion, making the difference: (Jude 22). Compassion is a virtue and value that becomes a vehicle of change when acted upon. These verses compelled the Woodleys to answer the call to missions. The vision of planting a mission church in the Philippines came to the Woodley Family in 1998 while on vacation. Carol is a Filipino National and Chris, who was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, served in the U.S. Air Force and was stationed at Clark Air Force Base (1983-1988) in Angeles City, Philippines. They have two sons: Christopher, who was born in the Philippines in 1987, and Emmanuel, born in Michigan while Chris was in Bible college in 1989. Both their sons served with them for seven years until it was time for the to attend college in America. The 1998 vacation was a re-encounter of the Philippines, the Filipino people and a revival of a first love for a country they left years ago. The Woodleys kept this experience close to their hearts and in January of 2001 finally returned as missionaries sent by Dr. Mike Mayfield of Cornerstone Baptist Church of Stockbridge, GA. On July 11, 2005, Cornerstone Baptist Deaf Academy (CBDA) was founded. It started as a mission school that first taught individualized tutoring to only three uneducated deaf. Three years later, it obtained a SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) permit and welcomed more deaf children into its home school teaching program. In 2010, the Department of Education recognized 10 "Completers" of different levels from CBDA. In the same year, CBDA obtained a permit from the Department of Education to operate as a school. in 2012, it obtained full recognitionas an academic institution and saw 8 deaf students graduate from the full elementary program. It now offers a full preschool and elementary education. Cornerstone Baptist Deaf Academy is the first academic institution for the deaf within the greater Bamban area, including the neighboring town of Capas and Conception, Tarlac. |
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