Today our little Gladys is the center of attention in House of Hope 2 where she and her siblings live. “Aa-a-ah, ee-e-eh…Makofi ya juu, makofi ya chini…” are the words to a popular song among the jovial children in House of Hope 2. This song simply means clapping high and clapping low in the air. It is usually accompanied by hand clapping and little Gladys Nyambura is always ready to participate. She is barely two years old making her the youngest child among all the children in the project at Molo. While singing, her miniature hands are hardly manage to meet above her head for a high clap but that does not stop her from imitating the other older children. Indeed her great spirit bring great joy to the home.

Baby Nyambu, as commonly called by her housemates, always brightens the room with her dazzling smile. Her expressions while playing warm and touch the soul deeply to create a mixed feeling of gratitude for the little we have in life and empathy for the uncertain future of an earthly angel surviving by God’s grace. This innocent heart and ever alive spirit knows no boundaries. Her active participation in singing and dancing clearly depict that little Gladys is destined for greatness in the entertainment industry as she is already an entertainer at a tender age. This tiny angel expresses love and reflects Jesus’s love to everyone she meets.

“Every one of us gets through the tough times because somebody is there, standing in the gap to close it for us.”

-Oprah Winfrey, O Magazine.

It is through the kindness of a sponsor’s hearts that Gladys will one day grow to say these words or better yet be a living testimony to bear the meaning of the very words. Those who stand in the gap within Gladys’ life to make her existence possible are a revelation to mankind that God works in mysterious ways. Her future is entirely for God to take care of and man to trust.

Jeremiah 29:11 _For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

The present economic hardships in the world have made life to be one of survival for many. Africa has been greatly affected with many families living below one dollar a day. This has forced governments to choose great levels of debt which is ultimately passed on to the citizens in the form of high taxes to repay such loans.

Martha Wangeci and her grandmother Wamuhu Wa Njoroge have not been spared. Martha who was orphaned at a young age lives with her aging grandmother at Moto Kiambaa village in Molo. Their only source of income was their small farm. With the old age and poor health of her grandmother imparing her to farm the land, their farm can no longer sustain their livelihoods.

By and large, the family is now relying on the feeding program by Project 82 Kenya as a means of survival. Through all these hardships, Martha still keeps a brave face that clearly indicates that she is not giving up anytime soon. Being in her final year of primary education, she is burning the midnight oil to ensure that she will excel in her exams which will permit her to attend Secondary School (equivalent to our high school). For this will be a step closer to reach her dreams of becoming a teacher.

There are many children who still need to be defended from eminent hunger. This can only happen if each one of us is involved in trying to make a difference in the lives of children in the world to stop surviving in a life of struggles and start living a life of abundance. It is never too late to do something to help put a smile on a child’s face. Our prayer is that may God grant Martha divine wisdom and knowledge.

“Struggle is the food from which change is made.”

-Danny Drayer.

Mary’s life in a nutshell can be coined as a story of resilience and hope.  Despite all the challenges surrounding her , she presses forward as a soldier for Christ with a brave smile. At a tender age, she was forced to play the role of a mother to her siblings, after her mum’s death. She now assumes the role of managing their home ensuring that her siblings are in perfect health, food prepared in good time, and the daily responsibilities that need to be carried out in her home.

Despite all these challenges, she emerged as a top performer on her national entrance exams for acceptance into Secondary School, the Kenyan equivalent of U.S. High School.  Given her overwhelming responsibilities for her siblings, she exemplifies dedication and commitment. Her teachers applauded her efforts and commended her hard work in all that she does. Everybody is proud of her and she has remained to be an epitome of hard work and resilience in the community at large.

She promises to work extra hard in high school to emerge among the top students in the country. Her future is very bright. What an incredible encouragement she is for the other children. With her soft spoken voice and her radiant smile, she whispers “I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, a life characterized with poverty and disillusionment is about to be over!”

Join us in praying for her continued success and God’s guidance in all her endeavors!

If you would like to learn more about how you can help Mary and other children in our communities, please explore sponsorship opportunities on our website.

www.project82kenya.com

January marks the beginning of the first term of schools in Kenya. Children move to the next class and they are usually very excited. Our children in Bewomi were happy to start their year differently. They all had new school uniforms shoes, socks and bags. They had all the books they needed and other school supplies. It was an exciting moment for them as they hurried to pack their food and rush to school. For the younger ones who were joining primary school for the first time, it was a different feeling all over. They were not left behind. They were soon going to get used to waking up earlier than usual. All the discomfort that comes with moving from a comfort zone did not seem to affect them, school was much more exciting. They all had great smiles on their faces and when I looked at them I could not help but thank God for giving me an opportunity to share this phenomenal moment with them.

Munaini Primary School Children – Kenya

The mornings are a usually a beehive of activities everyone running around trying to locate their shoes, their bags, taking breakfast etc. The matrons prepare the very little ones. These children however share this amazing bond; the older kids help the little ones with some things like tying their shoe laces and locating some of their things.

Munaini Primary School Boys

The children made a commitment to prepare New Year resolutions. They will make them in duplicates where they will indicate what they intend to achieve at school by the end of this year and they should also indicate how they are going to achieve that. I will keep one copy and they will keep the other copy. We will keep evaluating the progress. This is to help them improve on their studies and make sure that they remain focused throughout the year. I am also in the process of analysing their performance for last year and will talk to their teachers to identify their weak areas and we can get them a tutor to assist them.

Munaini Primary School Girls

What a joy to be able to share in this great moment with our children.

You too can share in this joy. By sponsoring a child, you will be sharing the blessings of food, water, shelter, education and healthcare. Please help us continue to serve these wonderful young children.

This little boy has not laughed a lot in his young life.  Isaac was recently rescued from the bushlands of north/central Kenya and brought to Neema House for healthcare and restoration.

We were contacted by a friend asking if we could help with this young boy. He is 6 months old. His mother is terminally ill and his grandmother is struggling to care for her daughter and Isaac.

Annie traveled to meet with the mother and grandmother to understand their wishes for this little boy.  Upon arrival to Neema House in Nairobi, Isaac was introduced to Caleb, Lily and Alice, other young children under Annie’s care.

Isaac is currently in the hospital fighting an intestinal infection. He weighs 10.5lbs., has perforated ear drums due to untreated ear infections and scabies from general uncleanliness. Once Isaac is well, he will begin a nutrition regimen designed to address his malnourishment.

We are so blessed to have this young man in our care. He WILL laugh one day. Within months he will flash us a smile and a glisten from his eyes that will let us know, he is well. We will keep him in touch with his grandmother and pray that one day he will be strong enough to be reunited with his family.

Please keep Isaac, his mother and grandmother in your prayers. Keep our staff in Kenya covered in prayers as they travel to rescue, serve, love and care for the children.

Alice is always smiling and loves people more than anyone I’ve ever met. Her sweet smile and cute giggle meets any and every one who enters the room and immediately puts them at ease. She loves her “big brother” Caleb most of all and always welcomes his attempts to snuggle, kiss, hug, and squeeze her. Alice knows how to say several words and it is quite shocking to hear what appears to be a toothless 3 month old speaking. She is very even-tempered and is definitely the “go with the flow” twin. She is patient and loving and seeing others happy makes her happy too. Alice is also proud to announce that her first tooth is coming in!

Lily has become our Neema House drama queen.  She’s been known to go straight from screaming her lungs out to giggling within seconds. I wish you could hear her happy songs and dance when she sees food! The girl loves to eat and will not stand for anyone else eating in the same room as her… even if we are eating something her little 2-toothed mouth couldn’t handle. Her favorite game is “hiding” with her two hands covering her eyes. She hasn’t quite grasped the concept of Peekaboo, as she usually sits for several minutes without removing her hands, just giggling and grinning as we “look for her.”

Both Lily and Alice suffer from Rickets, a vitamin D deficiency that causes bones to soften. So, in addition to their severe malnutrition, their development was significantly delayed due to a lack of Vitamin D. This diagnosis also explains their delayed tooth development. Thankfully, food, occupational therapy, and vitamin D/calcium supplements are already doing wonders in treating them. We love watching them gain the strength necessary to start accomplishing the developmental milestones they have missed. God is great!! They are now 19 months old and Alice has grown from 11 pounds to 14.5 and Lily has grown from 12 pounds to 15! They were both excited to start wearing 6-month clothes this week!!

Lily and Alice are so loved and they know it. We are so thankful for your prayers and support in caring for these sweet ones. Please continue to pray for their mother and older brother Martin as we seek God’s will on how to best proceed in caring for their family. We would also appreciate prayers for continued growth, strength, and healing.

Enter Mama Laura. She is the bloom of hope to her children, other widows and guardians in the community of Molo. A bright beautiful gerbera daisy.

Esther, Mama Laura as she is known to most of us is an incredible woman. Her laughter full of love and her joy is contagious to all she meets.

Esther is a young mother of two, Laura Njambi Njuguna and Brian Kamau Njuguna both of whom are in the Project 82 child sponsorship program. Her husband died a few years ago and she was left to be the sole provider for her family.  Having been from a different tribe, being young, Esther could have gone returned to her parents but she chose to stay in the community where her children were born.

When Project 82 first began ministry in Molo. Esther was very sick herself due to a lack of food. She was depressed, as she could not provide food or school fees for her children. She truly was at the end of her means and didn’t know what tomorrow would bring. Today, Esther smiles brightly and thanks God, for she has food to meet her physical needs and spiritual food for her soul. Esther’s words are that “God came through for me at the time of need.”

Early this year, Esther received a dairy goat from P82 and it’s been helpful to her and the children as they can now get the nutritious goat milk. Esther volunteers to work with P82 staff and children during the Saturday program in Church and serves as a leader for the other guardians in organizing them to cook for the children. She is the bloom of hope in the spiritual garden of Molo.

Her prayer is that God may keep her to see her children realize their dreams and that God may bless all those who sacrifice to make lives easier for all those who were languishing in poverty.

We were greeted by three sweet faces Martin a 4 year old boy, and twin girls Lillian, and Alice estimated to be 15-17 months old.  While their tiny bodies showed the physical signs of severe malnutrition, their faces glowed with the presence of God. The mother kindly agreed to let us take her children to the hospital and to keep them while their frail bodies are rehabilitated. We have great faith that God ordained our meeting, as there is no coincidence and has wonderful plans for each of these children. We are honored to be a small part of His work in their lives.

Lily and Alice are precious twins—they are happy, funny girls who are content as long as they are within view of each other. They LOVE to be held, especially if together in the same pair of arms. Martin is a strong, curious and intelligent boy who loves to eat. The types of malnutrition they are suffering from seems to be a result of improper nutrition, not necessarily a total lack of food.

According to their clinic paperwork, the twins are around 17 months old and Martin is around 4 years old. It is hard to believe that these 11 lb babies who struggle to sit up and control their heads are toddlers in age, but we anticipate they will be transformed into chubby little babies soon. The lack of proper nutrition has prevented the baby’s teeth from even beginning to develop. We were thankful for our Project 82 team full of grandparents, moms, dads, and babysitters to help us care for the babies. They have been moved to Neema House, our Infant Rescue Home and Caleb, our toddler at Neema House is loving his new role of big brother, or “kaka kubwa” as we say in Swahili. The baby girls already love him!

Martin will be staying in Molo with Kellee Gorski and Rose, a member of the Molo council. They are working with nutrition specialists to ensure he is properly rehabilitated. Soon he will have the energy to run and play and explore like other 4 year old boys. We look forward to that day!

We ask for prayers as each of these children still have quite a long way to go before they are stabilized and can begin to catch up on missed developmental milestones. We trust that the love God promises to fill us with will heal them even faster than food will. We also ask for prayers for their mother, Susan, as we work to empower her to better care for her children in the future.

I know how difficult it is to feel close when a picture, some carefully written notes, a brief bio, and perhaps a too-short meeting are supposed to serve as a bridge between you and someone you call your own 8000 miles away. It’s hard.  But more than your monthly financial support and faithfulness in writing letters and encouraging the children you sponsor, you have the unique privilege (and responsibility) to approach the throne on their behalf, to adopt them in prayer. I have found that maintaining relationships across oceans is nearly impossible if not rooted in prayer for one another.  It truly is an incredible honor to pray for an orphan and in God’s grace, He is sure to draw you both closer through this simple and obedient act.

Like you pray for your own children, specifically—throughout the day—intentionally, I encourage you to do the same for the child your family has chosen to fight for. There are a whole lot of orphans in this world and we have been given the opportunity to know one and lift him or her up to the Father as their own mother or father is not there to do.  Let’s live James 1:27 in this way.

As you wake up, they are walking home from school, helping to prepare supper, or doing chores. As you fall asleep, their day is beginning with a quick bath, some chores, a long walk to school, and a strenuous day of learning. Think of them and you are sure to pray for them. Unfortunately you will miss the moments when your sponsored child comes home defeated after receiving a bad grade on a test or with a hurt heart because of unkind words, but these moments are sure to be happening, so there is no reason we can’t pray for them ahead of time. We can pray for their futures when no one else is and believe that God hears us, treasures them, and has wonderful things in store for them. We can pray the same things over them that we pray over our children—that He makes Himself known to them in every way.

I would love nothing more than for Jesus to hear the sweet names of orphans on our lips just as often as He hears us utter our own requests and prayers for the children we birthed. What a beautiful way we can love them.