Day 264: NPH International

Today’s give comes from a recommendation from a friend and generous spirit, Katie Riley, who does amazing work with She’s The First and Give Haiti Hope. Katie is a prime example of one person working to make an great impact. She recommended that I look into NPH International, based on her first hand experience visiting one of their clinics during a recent trip to Haiti. She was very impressed by what she saw and I value her opinion.

Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos International is a Christian mission that strives to provide a permanent family and home for orphaned, abandoned and other at-risk children who live in conditions of extreme poverty. Our programs provide quality education, health care and spiritual formation with the goal of raising productive members of their respective societies.

Amount Donated: $5

To support Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos International, please visit: http://www.nph.org and http://www.nphhaiti.org

Day 261: Mothers Without Borders

Today’s give comes from a suggestion on Facebook, while researching Mothers Without Borders, I was moved by the work of the founder, in 1996 Kathy Headlee, a single mother of five decided to step up and help the orphans of the world. For the past 15 years, she and her organization have been actively helping children in orphanages all over the world. It is a true testament to power of one person and how one person, like you and me, can indeed make an impact and change the world for the better. Mothers Without Borders is currently working in Zambia and raising money to build a school for the 53 children who are attending school in a cleaned out chicken coop. Thanks for the heads up, Michelle.

Mothers Without Borders was formed in response to the global orphan crisis. Serving children in orphanages in Romania, Mexico, Guatemala, Ecuador, Nepal and Bolivia and those living in the streets in Africa and India, it is our goal to send a message of hope and offer real solutions to the serious problems these children face. MWB supports the efforts of local communities and non-governmental organizations in addressing the needs of our world’s most vulnerable population - orphaned children. MWB supports community-based initiatives and develop partnerships with local organizations to find long-term, sustainable solutions. Mothers Without Borders is a child-centered organization that approaches the needs of orphaned and vulnerable children in a holistic manner. They address the needs of the whole child: physical, emotional, social and educational.

Amount Donated: $10

To support Mothers Without Borders, please visit: http://www.motherswithoutborders.org

Day 220: Warm Blankets Orphan Care

With the third world orphan population growing at a steady rate, either due to conflict or disaster, the need for more safe and nurturing homes is immediate. Today’s give goes out to an organization providing care to orphans in need, working mainly in Africa, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, and Thailand.

Warm Blankets Orphan Care is a non-profit Christian mission, dedicated to the rescue of orphans and widows through third world church planting and orphanage outreach. Warm Blankets Orphan Care International establishes indigenous churches and strategic systems to rescue kids who have permanently lost their family and community attachments because of armed conflicts or disaster. Warm Blankets Orphan Care International  partners with and supports other like-minded organizations to effectively carry out their mission to minister to the orphans of this world.

Amount Donated: $5

To support Warm Blankets Orphan Care, please visit: http://www.warmblankets.org

Day 135: Africa’s Children - Africa’s Future

Today’s give comes on a recommendation from another reader of the blog, Africa’s Children-Africa’s Future is a relatively young organization based in Canada. They are dedicated to investing in the future of the world: children. Their focus is on orphans and children affected by the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Africa. Through various programs, AF-AC works to provide education, awareness, and training to help these at-risk youth obtain a healthy and promising future and that is a wonderful mission.

AC-AF’s vision is a future in which all children have the opportunity to reach their fullest potential. We offer a wide range of programming worldwide that encourages empowerment amongst youth by providing the tools for them to increase and share their awareness of HIV and AIDS.

As a result of the prevalence of HIV and AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa, many parents die of AIDS-related illnesses before their children have reached adulthood, leaving many households to be headed by children. Children in these households are vulnerable to financial, social, emotional and health-related difficulties that contribute to a cycle of poverty. AC-AF’s Orphan and Vulnerable Children Support Programme (OVCSP) is designed to address all of these issues in partnership with local communities in Africa. AC-AF provides micro-credit loans to boys and girls in child-headed households so they can attend school. Youth participating in the programme also receive vocational training in which they learn valuable work skills which will in turn allow the children to secure jobs and financially support themselves and their families, through an apprenticeship programme. AC-AF also offers psychosocial support that will enable youth to become confident, happy and productive members of the community. All of AC-AF’s programming is equally targeted to boys and girls, ensuring gender equality. 

Over half of all new HIV infections occur amongst young people aged 15 to 25. In attempt to reach the demographic now most affected by the virus, AC-AF launched a creative youth empowerment programme called u+me=we in 2007. u+me=we works with youth aged 12-19 from around the world through a series of workshops that create opportunities for youth to engage in creative, skill-building and leadership situations and to explore HIV and AIDS related issues in order to increase both awareness and understanding. This program works with local health care professionals, artists and development specialists and encourages participants to launch a meaningful conversation about the realities of HIV and AIDS in both a local and global context.

Amount Donated: $5

To support Africa’s Children-Africa’s Future, please visit: http://www.ac-af.com

Day 111: War Child

The tragedies of war are an unfortunate reality of our world and being responsible humans working towards a more peaceful community is important to the future of our world. I know it’s utopian, but we have to have a dream and goal. In the meantime, it’s integral that support services are in place to take care of the victims of war and WAR CHILD is a group working towards helping children affected by war.

War Child is a network of independent organisations, working across the world to help children affected by war. War Child was founded upon a fundamental goal: to advance the cause of peace through investing hope in the lives of children caught up in the horrors of war.

As you read this, over 30 wars and conflicts rage around the world. Some fill our TV screens with appalling images of distress, emphasizing war’s brutalizing effect on man.

Many of these wars go unreported, often due to political expediency or lack of interest. They reveal a shaming pattern: Sixty million people have been killed in wars during the 20th Century. Over 80% of war casualties are now civilians - mainly women and children.

Children are amongst the first casualties of any armed conflict, always the most vulnerable and innocent of victims. In the last decade alone 1.5 million children have died in wars. Four million have been disabled and a further 10 million traumatized.

The severe psychological wounds that war inflicts on children can scar them for life, crippling the very generations that must one day rebuild their devastated countries. For the future peace of the world we must do everything in our power to help these war children.

Amount Donated: $5

To support War Child, please visit: http://www.warchild.org

Day 110: Keep A Child Alive

There is no doubt the impact that AIDS has on families, it becomes increasingly hard to ignore especially when it has reached the level of intensity as it has in Africa. When 14.1 million of the 15 million children orphaned by AIDS are in Africa alone, that is cause for serious concern and action. Sub-Saharan Africa is the most affected region in the world, and it is important that organizations like Keep A Child Alive are working to fight the disease and help the children and families affected by it.

Keep a Child Alive is dedicated to providing life-saving anti-retroviral treatment, care and support services to children and families whose lives have been affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa and India by directly engaging the global public in the fight against AIDS.

Keep a Child Alive focuses on:

Treatment: Anti-retroviral therapy (ART) has transformed the lives of people with AIDS in the West, returning them from sickness to health. But only 42% of the 9.5 million people who so desperately need treatment, have access to it. When children are infected, 50% die before the age of 2 and 80% die before the age of 5.

Care: Keep a Child Alive provides first class AIDS care through doctors, nutrition, testing, transportation, and treatment for opportunistic infections, which are all necessary for anti-retroviral treatment to be successful. KCA also provides the care and support to keep orphaned and abandoned children safe.

Orphans: 15.2 million children have lost their parents to AIDS. These children will face enormous risks in their struggle to stay alive. They will often be forced into sexual exploitation or enrolled as child soldiers. Keep a Child Alive supports the children’s extended family caregivers, and builds and sustains orphanages to keep the most vulnerable children out of harm’s way.

Amount Donated: $5

To support Keep a Child Alive, please visit: http://keepachildalive.org