Summer 2009 Suvia Children’s Home Update

Jambo to all of our Suvia Children’s Home supporters. It is our prayer this latest update finds you all doing well. Summer, of course, is World Servants’ busy season. There will be more than 40 mission experiences going on between the months of May and September with teams spreading the Good News and serving as the hands and feet of Jesus throughout the world.

One upcoming mission trip will be to Kali Market, Kenya. A group of 27 people will be going to Suvia Children’s Home to continue the work begun by last year’s three teams. Please keep the group in prayer during their time in Kenya - July 31 through August 16.

This summer’s project is a bit different than the buildings and water project completed last June and July. The group will be constructing a hen house. Why a hen house? The directors of Suvia recognize the need to generate income in order for the orphanage to become self-sufficient; building a hen house will be the first step in the long journey to do just that. They are looking forward to selling fresh eggs and chickens at market. Other benefits include the eggs and chickens will add a protein source to the girl’s diet and offer a learning opportunity for them to help to care for the chickens.

Thanks and Troubles

Pastor Kisua has asked us to share his heartfelt appreciation with the wonderful people who support Suvia, as well as everyone who is keeping the Kali community, Board of Directors, staff and the girls in their prayers. Each of us at World Servants wants to echo Pastor Kisua’s thanks. It is because of each of you that Suvia Children’s Home exists and the girls living there now have hope for a bright future.

Sadly, there is also bad news as the drought continues in Kali. The impact has also been felt at Suvia too. The dam that provided water through the newly installed water system ran dry this spring due to the lack of rain. Water is now being purchased to ensure the health of the girls at the home. God willing, the rains will return in November when the "rainy season" normally begins.

World Servants feels the need generated by the famine continues to be so great that donations for the Famine Relief Program are still being accepted to help feed the Kali Community. If you would like to support this important program, please go to www.worldservants.org and click on the Special Appeal Kali Famine Relief button located on the right side of our home page. A contribution of only $75, the cost of a nice dinner out for two here in the US, will feed a family of 7 for several months. Since early February, more than $20,000 in donations has been collected. On behalf of the hundreds of Kali families who have received help through this food distribution program, we thank you.

Future Projects to Enhance Suvia - Wells and Solar Power

Please keep the following projects in prayer over the next several months. World Servants continues to look for corporate partnerships that can enhance the efforts to make Suvia self-sufficient in the future. We are in discussion with a couple of international companies about bringing solar power to not only Suvia Children’s Home, but to the Kali community, as well.

Another important project involves the drilling of water wells. As mentioned earlier, the drought continues putting major stress on both Suvia and the Kali area. This past March, World Servants met with George, a gentleman lovingly called "The Shoeman", who has been working within the St. Louis, MO community. For several years, he has been collecting old shoes, recycling them and has raised enough money to purchase several water drilling rigs. In April, these rigs left St. Louis for the long trek to Kenya. The hope is that in the near future the rigs will be used to drill boreholes for community wells. Thank you to Good Shepherd Lutheran church for helping World Servants make this connection possible

From Pastor Nicholas Kisua, on behalf of Suvia Children’s Home:

The Girls are Blooming at Suvia Children’s Home

It is hard to believe its been a year since Hermitage Church of the Nazarene, Tim Gibson’s friends and family and members of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church arrived in Kali Market to work on Suvia Children’s Home. Much has changed in the past twelve months, permanent structures have become home to twenty-five girls, caring individuals have banded together to run the home and three Kali residents are now employed full-time at Suvia.

Pastor Kisua speaks in glowing terms of "his girls". The girls have blossomed from orphans who were unintentionally burdening extended families to young ladies who have formed a family of their own, attending primary school and having a chance to enjoy their childhood.

Each of the girls is thriving. They are growing and glowing as they benefit from a nutritious diet and regular exercise. They are learning; soaking up education like sponges and excelling in their classes at primary school. They are developing strong bonds and loving relationships with one another that will never replace losing their parents to AIDS, but will support them in life for years to come.

The empty dormitory is now complete with sweeping stairs and bunk beds dressed in bright bed linens. Each girl has her own bed complete with pillow, blanket and sheets, a place to call her own. After the Kenyans put on the roof, the kitchen and dining room now hum with activity. Even in rural Kenya, the kitchen is the heart of the "home", a place where everyone gathers and love is part of every recipe. Instead of bare floors, there are tables and chairs where the girls gather for each meal. There is a stove installed in the kitchen where all the cooking takes place.

It’s likely that without the hard work done by more than 150 people last year not all of the girls would be alive today. The hardships they have endured in their short lifetimes are now being replaced with good memories. There is hope and a vision for the future that they couldn’t have even dreamed of a year ago.

On behalf of these girls, we would like to simply say thank you. You continue to make a difference in the lives of these vulnerable children and with God’s blessings each of them will make a difference in the life of someone else. Your thoughtful and caring support is just the first link in a chain that will continue to grow.