New Church Life Jan/Feb 2015 | Page 63

       children; HCIC provides the funding for that care. We are proud to be a part of this life-changing/ saving work. Our recent trip to Kenya assured us that our donation dollars are indeed being well used and that the children are thriving under the care of Samson and his The Abuga family, left to right: China, Dorothy, Jackline, staff. Samson, Helga and Heather. In front, Andy and Nicole. When we formed two years ago, HCIC knew that our first order of business was not only to stabilize the situation for the children but also establish policies and procedures that would assure a professional level of transparency and accountability for our donors. Our 27-page document draws on best practices in the field. It can be found on our website: www.helpingchildrenincrisis.com. The staff in Kenya has been eager to learn and meet these requirements. GCSC cares for 65 orphans ranging in age from 7-20. Five of them have graduated from high school and we are supporting them through two years of vocational school so they can become useful members of their community. After age 18 the children cannot legally be housed in the orphanage, so members of Samson’s congregation take them into their homes. The members of the Etora congregation actively support the orphanage as an integral part of their church life. They see it as a way they can contribute to their local community and live the doctrines they love. The New Church is truly the family of these children. The younger children all attend Samson’s New Church elementary school, while the older ones attend nearby religious boarding schools. The first phase of HCIC’s support was to set up a sponsorship program for each of the children. Sponsorship currently is $800 per year and covers the day-to-day needs of the children, such as food, clothing, education, childcare and medicine. It took us two years but we have all of the children sponsored. Some people only commit to sponsor for a year or two so there is always a need for people interested in sponsoring a child. The next phase of support is to provide the physical structures for an Faith, left, and Charity 59