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Responding to Ethiopia’s ongoing famine and the government’s urgent appeal for emergency aid to help 6.2 million people facing starvation, Compassion International is sending $1.4 million to the beleaguered nation.
Since March, Compassion has sent funds to the people of Ethiopia to address the acute issues of food source insecurity; the distribution of more funding is planned before year’s end. While the money will be used for direct food relief and medical supplies, a portion of the funds will also be used to help develop small businesses in the Ethiopian communities hardest hit by the food crisis.
“In these communities that are continuously dealing with food source issues, we are helping individuals to withstand and perhaps even avoid food crises in the long term – not just by helping them in the short term but also by supporting small business enterprises,” said Mark Hanlon, senior vice president of Compassion International, USA.
Compassion began its work in Ethiopia in 1993 and today serves 77,544 children at 321 child development centers. Compassion’s work in Ethiopia is part of its global effort to tackle the unforeseen barriers to a child’s healthy development. In some areas of Ethiopia where Compassion works, the food that registered children receive at the child development centers is all that sustains them.
“More than 25,000 children under the age of 5 in the developing world die every day of preventable causes such as dehydration and malnutrition,” said Hanlon. “Compassion’s mission is to release these children from poverty through a holistic approach that teaches them and their families to thrive, not just survive. This is what we’ve been doing in Ethiopia for the past 16 years.”
Compassion International is the world’s largest Christian child development organization that permanently releases children from poverty. Founded in 1952, Compassion successfully tackles global poverty one child at a time, serving more than 1 million children in 25 of the world’s poorest countries. Recognizing that poverty is more than a lack of money, Compassion works holistically through local churches to address the individual physical, economic, educational and spiritual needs of children, enabling them to thrive, not just survive. Charity Navigator, America’s largest charity evaluator, has awarded Compassion its highest rating – four stars – for eight consecutive years.
Jeff Foxworthy’s Daughter Helps Save Children from the Ravages of Malaria
Laughter is a way of life for the Jeff Foxworthy family, but after a visit to Africa by his now 17-year-old daughter Jordan, the Foxworthy’s dinner table conversations became deadly serious.
During her trip to Kenya three years ago, a then 14-year-old Jordan saw first-hand the devastation caused by malaria, a preventable, curable disease that kills more African children than does HIV/AIDS. With the support of her parents, she decided to bite back against the mosquitoes that typically carry malaria.
Jordan teamed up with Colorado-based Compassion International to develop the BiteBack Campaign, an initiative that raises money and awareness for the fight against malaria. Mobilizing an army of young people, the BiteBack Campaign challenges teens to donate $10 to purchase a mosquito net that could save the life of a child at risk for contracting malaria. To date, Jordan’s efforts have raised nearly half a million dollars for the BiteBack campaign.
“We can’t sit back and wait for someone to fix this. We are the ‘someones’ who need to fix this,“ said Jordan, a high school junior in Atlanta. “I believe that giving $10 to buy a mosquito net is a tangible and affordable way for kids in the United States to help make a difference in the lives of needy kids around the world.”
Jordan is using a number of strategies to raise support for the campaign. At her urging, her Atlanta-area school has taken on BiteBack as its fundraising project. Jordan also enlisted local restaurants to host BiteBack Nights, where a portion of the evening’s sales were donated to the campaign. She is also using a Facebook group page to help get the word out. In recognition of her efforts, Jordan was invited by the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives to participate as a panelist in their Compassion in Action roundtable last December.
“Jordan Foxworthy is showing us that even in these tough economic times, giving a little can have a big impact on a child living in poverty,” said Mark Hanlon, senior vice president of Compassion International.
Compassion International tackles unforeseen barriers to a child’s healthy development-including widespread health epidemics such as malaria. Compassion’s Malaria Intervention Program provides mosquito nets, malaria prevention education and access to medical treatment for children in malaria-affected areas.
Compassion International is the world’s largest Christian child development organization that permanently releases children from poverty. Founded in 1952, Compassion successfully tackles global poverty one child at a time, serving more than 1 million children in 25 of the world’s poorest countries. Recognizing that poverty is more than a lack of money, Compassion works holistically through local churches to address the individual physical, economic, educational and spiritual needs of children-enabling them to thrive, not just survive. Charity Navigator, America’s largest charity evaluator, has awarded Compassion its highest rating-four stars-for seven consecutive years.
I am back home in Nashville and still in recovery mode. I appreciate Chris, Elizabeth, and Brian for their contributions to the blog while I was away. It feels like I was out for a month, so forgive me if it takes me a while to get in the blogging groove.
Yesterday was the first day in two weeks I have seen any news. I have not watched TV, listened to any radio, read a newspaper, or surfed the net at all. Other than scanning for important emails, I had little idea of what was going on in the world of news and events. And I am one who likes to be aware of things, but to be honest, I find myself in a better place not knowing what was happening.
Now that I’m back, I don’t want to hear anything about Obama, McCain, or the Presidential election. I could care less what ‘disastrous peril’ or entertainment the media outlets are peddling as genuine news. My books and ipod have kept me good company for the last two weeks. I am slowly catching up with what is happening, but it is via online. I tried watching TV news last night, but just couldn’t do it.
Certainly I want to be aware of what is real and truly going on that impacts me and my loved ones, but this trip was not about me at all. It hasn’t been about what the world thinks is important or what the media wants me to believe is imperative. That has been refreshing.
The truth and reality is what we witnessed and experienced in Ethiopia and Rwanda. This is what’s really going on. I am thankful to have put my hands on reality for a change. I’ll try to hold on to it.
Thank you Chris for your guest blog from Tuesday. You don’t know how timely that was since Amy and I had the fortunate opportunity to visit Sisters of Rwanda on Monday in Kigali. An inspiring place and an amazing group of women. A sanctuary that offers redemption and hope.
SOR is really just in the foundational stages, so I can’t wait to see how it develops and the lives that will be impacted. Through a contact in Rwanda that Amy has, we met the women and watched them hand make the Keza beads and purchased many of the finished work while there, and I would encourage you to do the same online. They make unique and beautiful gifts (art as Chris rightly put it); but the real gift will be how you would make a direct difference in the lives of these women and their children.
I will be sharing more on this and other remarkable people and astonishing moments we have encountered along the way. As soon as I can figure out how to put it all into words.
There will also be photographs to help with the telling.
As we are set to wrap up our trip to Africa, I hope this finds all of you well!
Since Mike and Amy are spending some serious quality time in Afrca, I thought it would be fitting to share with you the story of the Sisters of Rwanda, a non-profit organization that is focused on helping the poverty stricken women of that country escape the slavery of the prostitution trade.
This cause, this purpose, is a great one, but let’s face it: There are a lot of organizations doing great work in Africa. What makes SOR really interesting is how they’re going about accomplishing their specific goal. They’re not relying on traditional fundraising, having realized that simply throwing money at a problem is never the answer. Instead, they’ve created a sustainable business that has in turn created jobs for these Rwandan women; Jobs that offer them a real alternative to prostitution and a real opportunity to become financially independent.
The business is Keza. Pronounced “kay-za,” the meaning of the word is “beautiful.” It’s a fitting name, because Keza is a gorgeous line of beaded jewelry that would look right at home on display at any high-end boutique in America. From their website:
KEZA Beads are handcrafted from old calendars, posters and paper scraps collected from around Kigali, Rwanda. The women of Sisters of Rwanda cut, paste, varnish and string the beads to make vividly beautiful jewelry. Each bead is one of a kind. KEZA exists for those searching for the best in quality, class and socially conscious fashion.
There are other benefits for these women beyond the financial. As they develop their skill, their art, they begin to recover a sense of self-worth that the sex trade has typically removed from them long ago. They start to remember what it feels like to be valued; What it feels like to have a purpose in life. They learn that God can use something as simple as a bead to restore them to the place He meant for them. They begin to believe that they can be, and that they are, loved.
God bless Keza.
Learn more about Sisters of Rwanda and Keza here. And if this strikes a chord in you the way it did in me, feel free to drop me a note. I’d love to talk to you about an idea.
Chris Thomas is the ad guy for The Dave Ramsey Show, and he personally blogs at ChrisThomas.tv.
I will be out for two weeks as Amy and I go with a small group to Africa. Access to internet is uncertain, so I have prepared a few blogs which I have pre-schedule and some good friends of mine are going to be contributing as guest bloggers. Each have unique and enjoyable blogs of their own, so please give their posts a read and go visit them. I appreciate their willingness to help a brother out.
If I can manage to get connected while in Africa, I will attempt updates here regarding our trip. If not, I will most definitely be catching up with details when we return.
This weekend is of preparation and packing. The 16 hours of flying time await us on Monday and Tuesday and then we begin in Ethiopia and eventually travel to Rwanda.
Thanks to everyone who has encouraged and supported us in so many ways! Also to those who are house sitting, dog sitting, taking care of the garden, giving us a ride to and from the airport, and the individuals who have been to Africa and have given us travel tips and recommendations.
ANDIAMO!
I am a walking vaccine now. Within the last month Amy and I have received vaccinations in preparation for our trip to Africa. Check out the list that appears on our International Certificate of Vaccination:
- Polio
- Typhoid
- Meningitis
- Yellow Fever
- MMR Booster (measles, mumps, rubella)
- Hepatitis A & B
- Tetanus
- and we must take a malaria pill each day we are in Africa
And our arms have become so numb we are planning to WILLINGLY get juiced up with B-12 before we go. What’s another needle, right?
Amy and I will be traveling to Africa on a mission trip coming up on July 7th. We are going with a group from America World Adoption and through the organization Visiting Orphans. And that’s exactly what we are going to – visit orphans in Ethiopia and Rwanda.
There are over 143 MILLION orphans in the world. In Ethiopia and Rwanda alone there are over 6 million orphans. When you think of such things, it puts your own problems and trials into perspective. While it will be daunting to be thrown out of our comfort zones, there is an aching need we both have to do something more meaningful and bigger than ourselves; to do something that brings hope to those who have very little. Even if it’s just 15 minutes of painting a picture with a young girl, or playing soccer with a boy in the street… to know that we may have brought a little joy to an orphan’s life would be an amazing thing.
On this trip, our mission team of 12 we will be spending a couple of days in an HIV orphanage with children who have been diagnosed with HIV and have no hope of ever being adopted or having a family. We will also be spending time at America World Adoption’s transitional home with the older children, taking them to the zoo or to swim. Things they’ve never done before. Our group will be handing out shoes, painting a mural on another orphanage’s nursery or schoolroom, and playing soccer with the street kids who have been abandoned and live under tunnels or in the sewage system. We will also visit a Mother Theresa home in Rwanda where hundreds of orphans and widows live. Another orphanage we will visit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia is one from a ministry called Kingdom Kids. We will help one day with the care and feeding of the babies in two or more orphanages. There’s much work to do and Love to give out to even make a small dent in this orphan population.
I will be mentioning more about this trip in the coming weeks. We also have a blog devoted fully to the trip: ANDIAMO. If you are interested, check it out.
Since I will be away for almost two weeks, I’m looking for a few guest bloggers to contribute while I am away. If anyone is interested in offering something up, please let me know.
