Advertisement
Published: September 2nd 2010
Edit Blog Post
Mercy
Mercy is SO happy to be at HOREC orphanage with her siblings! When Americans hear the term “Lost and Found” they may envision a place where there are perhaps books, jackets, a notebook, an old pair of tennis shoes and odds and ends that someone has misplaced. The possession may have been missed and usually the owner is glad to have them back. That is what I used to think of when I heard the term.
Now that I live and serve in Kenya the term has a much broader meaning…It comes to mind where I hear stories like that of Mercy, Pinky and Obama. These are siblings that got “lost” when their mother started deteriorating due to cancer. Children in the Masai village where they lived are not allowed to watch a parent die. During her sickness the children didn’t go to school. With no father around Mercy, age eleven, was quickly becoming the caretaker; cooking the meals, washing the clothes, going to get water, being mommy to her three year old sister and one year old brother as well as caring for her mother. Then, when the mother was close to death the children were taken to be “cared” for by their drunk grandmother. These were children who suddenly lost
their home, their mother and their basic necessities.
HOREC came to the rescue. The kids were found and now Christine and her staff have taken them in. They have food, clothing, shelter and love. Mercy runs around with a smile on her face and told me she is VERY happy to be there. She no longer has to run a household but is allowed to be a kid.
Behind Spring Valley School (SV) there is a single mother of a malnourished 12 year old, 8 yr. old and 3 1/2 yr. old. The mother, an alcoholic, often leaves the children to fend for themselves. It is not uncommon for the kids to sit outside the local pub at 10 p.m., in the dark, hoping that no one will harm them and that someone will drop a few shillings into their hands. The children come to Spring Valley to get food on a regular basis. When they didn’t show up for a few days someone went to look for them. They found the kids locked in the house where they had been for a number of days. The mother had left, padlocked the door from the outside and apparently
Obama
One year old Obama is the baby brother of Mercy and Pinky. forgot she had kids inside with no food or facilities. They were dirty, stinky, hungry and heartbroken. Thank God they were found. SV is now working on a solution to this problem.
Maggie, who is now 18 and in her Junior year of high school, is happy that she was found at age 14. She was being cared for by her aunt who made about $1 a day. The aunt told Maggie when she finished the eight grade that she had to “get out” because she was a burden. It was too much on the aunt to feed herself, her daughter and Maggie. Maggie felt lost. That is when we found her. She has lived with me the last four years when she is home from boarding school. She just spent two weeks of her school holiday with Johnny, Jonathan and I and she tells me how happy she is to have a family…to have us.
These are just three stories out of probably three thousand just in the Nairobi area. We can’t help all the children but we can help the ones we find. Since Johnny and I are not able to take in these lost children
New Computers!
Spring Valley school was tremendously blessed with the donation of new computers from Pinellas Community Church. we are so grateful to be able to assist Spring Valley and HOREC as they find the kids. Over the last three years of partnering with these organizations they have found many children. HOREC went from providing a home for ten children to being home to 30 kids. Spring Valley has gone from feeding 200 to now feeding 300 children daily. Those are a lot of kids very happy to be found!
If you want to aid in the process of helping care for the lost and found these are some projects by which you can do so:
International Treasure House Ministries a. Monthly support that enables us to be here on the ground working with the local ministries and teenage girls that we support.
b. $1500 to finish an irrigation system in our Giving Garden. We are able to give a couple hundred dollars worth of fruit and vegetables each month from our garden to help feed the children of HOREC orphanage. Once we get in an irrigation system our supply of veggies will increase. It is our desire to help feed many more children!
HOREC orphanage a. $500 to complete the structure of a
Spring Valley School
SV serves 300 children; educating them and feeding them on a daily basis. They truly are changing a whole community with the gospel, love and provision for these children. new kitchen…as the kids increase the need for a good place to prepare food increases.
b. $7,000 to build a new dorm that will house the boys, provide space for a library and enable Christine to take more children.
Spring Valley School a. Phase I of a new dorm-$4,177 to dig and pour the foundation.
The dorm will be used as a medical clinic, offices, library and housing for up to 80 girls that are considered high risk for sexual abuse (many times infecting them with HIV/AIDS), servitude and a number of other obstacles.
If you would like to help please make a tax-deductible check out to:
ITHM 23223 S. Warmstone Way Katy, TX 77494 Thanks to all who have supported ITHM in any way over the years. Bellies have been fed, children have found a home, others are being educated and much more has been done by our work together! We are so happy to welcome our South African sponsors on board...thanks for caring!
Thank you and God bless,
Jennifer, Johnny and Jonathan
Advertisement
Tot: 0.219s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 13; qc: 60; dbt: 0.0794s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
Betsy
non-member comment
Hi from Alabama
Hey Girl, Wow!! So much going on over there. I got an email from Alecz saying she wanted to come to Kenya and visit you and Johnny and the gang. That would probably be very good for her. She is well and working hard. I love your emails and photos keeps the dream alive to come and visit one day. Love little Jonathan what a cutie. He is getting so big already. You look so happy. Love the goats. What would it cost to buy a couple for the orphanage so they could have a bit of milk and maybe later a couple of other little goats? Blessings my friend!!