David Ryan of LST Group had planned to be living on the waterfront, with a yacht and a sports car, enjoying the benefits of a successful signage business, when he sensed a calling that led to him setting up Heart For Kids, a not-for-profit group that has helped hundreds of orphans and children living in poverty across China, India and Indonesia.
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| David Ryan of LST Group with a sponsored child |
Founder and CEO of Sydney's LST Group, Ryan has been connected to the engraving and sign industry for most of his life - first managing the family engraving and letterbox business Ryan Signs and Letterboxes, then starting LST Group (originally David Garfield Pty Ltd) when computers began entering the industry. In the 1980’s, he introduced the first desk-size laser engraver to Australia.
These days, he believes businesspeople have a huge opportunity to re-write futures in much greater ways than simply signage.
“Village children often live in extreme poverty in homes we would find extremely confronting,” he says. “But the children who live in these homes often love learning, they just lack the resources to continue. When given the opportunity, these children and young adults often flourish. Our goal is to help these kids re-write their life stories through education, 24/7 child care and mentoring programs.”
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| A village home (photo - Heart for Kids) |
Chen was a young man not able to enter university because of poverty, but Heart for Kids (H4K) stepped in and offered help. Now Chen has graduated and is employed in the railway system with a secure, long-term job.
Li, a young woman H4K helped through education, now has an internship as a trainee nurse with long-term plans to become a qualified nurse. To her sponsors she wrote: “Thank you for your unwavering support in the past many years. Without your support it would not be possible to be where I am now. I have hope because this opportunity has been given to me. I will always be thankful and remember what you have done.”
Ryan says: “My plan was not in this direction, but purely about business. It was about living back on the waterfront, having the yacht and sports car and enjoying the fruits of a very busy company life. Nothing necessarily wrong with that, but I sensed a call that took me in a faith-based direction.”
Following his first trip to China in 1996, Ryan founded the organisation now known as Heart For Kids, with a passion to help kids.
Coming from the business world, specifically engraving, signage, laser and 3D arenas, gave Ryan an insight into how those skills can benefit others, he says.
“Businesspeople have the ability to plan, strategize, lead and draw together others to help make long-term differences.”
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| Heart For Kids founder David Ryan and wife Beth, founders and owners of LST Group |
H4K serves in China, India and Indonesia through a broad range of activities including educational sponsorships for children living in poverty, foster and child care homes, and programs for children and adults with physical and intellectual challenges. Recently, the group celebrated the 44th child being adopted from Doves Wings, its foster home in central China.
H4K’s educational sponsorships come from individual donors – and volunteers from many countries come on short teams to serve. Special skills (like medical training) aren’t required, Ryan says, only a heart to serve kids in a team environment, allowing them to feel safe and secure, loved and special.
Visit the H4K website to learn more.
For details of how to get involved, visit here.
LST Group, based at Punchbowl in Sydney, offers Laser and 3D solutions for use in additive and subtractive manufacturing.
