Monday, December 30, 2013

What a way to welcome the New Year!

85 sponsor packets, 166 lollipops, gifts for our staff and extra handmade cards for the neighborhood children.

     Today Ryan Higgins, our director, began his 2 day journey to Rwanda, equipped with the precious words, images and treats that each of our sponsors has sent to their child.  He will spend New Years Day giving each orphan their family profile as well as helping them write their first letter back.  Each sponsored child will also be signing a Behavior Contract which we hope will set a standard for our students in the classroom and in the relationships that they will be developing.
     Ryan will also be working with James in last minute details regarding school supplies and transportation.  In addition, he will be problem solving with some of our headmasters.  In true Imana Kids fashion, the 11th our is upon us and there are conflicts with our S2 and S3 students and which school will best meet their needs.  Some of the kids have tested very low on placement exams, and deciding where to send them to fit their academic and social needs is no easy task.
     Unfortunately (and fortunately) Ryan and James will not have the time to devote to our preschool aged children.  The three nannies have been hired and the initial food program is up and running.  However, additional board members will work with the women later in the month regarding hygiene, first aid and nutrition, as well as identifying a structured, yet realistic routine for the little ones.
    If you are sponsoring a child, watch for them on Facebook and Twitter this week! Ryan will be doing his best to capture as much video and photography of these "first" moments for each child.  Please pray for all the kids, Ryan, James and the schools that will be welcoming them on Saturday.
  


Friday, December 13, 2013

Discernment

Hey there friends.
It's been another blessed week for Imana Kids.  27 primary kids took their placement tests at Good Harvest.  The railing is now complete so no more of our sweet kiddos will fall.  2 more kids have been sponsored.
The finished railing!

Bus ride to visit their new school and take placement tests.
Taking the exams.



We do have a few prayer requests going into the weekend:
  • The reality of orphaned children is painful.  Many of our older children are testing very, very low.  James is struggling with where to place them in school.  No 10 year old wants to be in a class of 5 year olds.  This will also be difficult for the children and their future teachers (although the teachers are accustomed to this).
  • James is overwhelmed.  He has requested help in placing all the children.  Getting 93 kids tested and to the correct school is a really big job.  We have offered to hire staff to assist him but we are also concerned that we want him to feel that we support him.  There are many expectations for this upcoming month and we don't want him to feel alone or pressured.  If it were not so expensive, all of us would hop on a plane to assist him.  Yet we also know that one plane ticket is the equivalent of 50 mattresses.  We are coveting your prayers this weekend that we make wise choices regarding support for James and how we use our limited funds.
  • Next Saturday there will be more than 20 kids and young adults getting baptized.  James has been leading a bible study several days a week at the orphanage and every day more kids are accepting Christ.  This is amazing! This is their salvation.  Forever and ever.  This is also a (good)burden on James.  He requests that we all pray that he can lead them well and that their faith may blossom.  As a board, our first desire is that each child know God intimately as their father.
  • For the board.  Each of us is overwhelmed with joy in this advent season that our dreams for the kids of Kimisagara are becoming a reality.  We miss them all dearly and we want James to feel confident, supported and in community with us.  We don't know if we should spend the money and send someone to support him, to seek other staff in Rwanda or to just keep encouraging him from here. Thank you for your prayers, for loving the kids and for supporting us in more ways than we could imagine!

Monday, December 9, 2013

Burdened with Hope

  The clock is ticking.

     The next school year at Good Harvest and New Life schools begins in a month.  We are rejoicing and in awe that there are 70 children are leaving for boarding school.  70 kids getting the top teachers and the top education in Rwanda.  70 kids getting a new, clean bed all for themselves.  70 kids getting a shower and clothing.  70 kids getting three meals a day.  70 kids being cared for and nurtured by staff that knows the special needs of orphaned and vulnerable children.  Yet it gets better.

70 kids now feel wanted.

      The children and young adults of Kimisagara know what it means to be orphaned.  Most of them have spent their lives at the top of a cliff, watching life happen.  Their view from the orphanage allows them to watch kids with families get walked to school every day.  They can see and hear and smell what they are missing out on.  Seeing those kids sit and watch life happen was one of the many ways that God shaped our hearts to start Imana Kids.
     Our sponsors are already bonding with their sponsored children.  They are filling their paperwork with words of love and encouragement.  Our Imana Kids are getting framed on walls across North America (see what we did there, Canada? wink), their names are being whispered in prayers and their stories are being told.  Each of those 70 kids is beginning to believe that they matter.  That they are worth it.  And to us, that is one of the best outcomes that we could pray for.
     You may be crunching numbers now.  We've said from the beginning that we had 93 stories to tell.  We still do.  Some of those stories are of children and young adults that are not orphaned but they find acceptance and companionship and a meal in Kimisagara Orphanage.  And the reality is that until poverty and disease and all the sin of the world is eliminated, there will always be more children.  We know that and we know that our work as a foundation will be life long.
     Some of those remaining are our kids that haven't been sponsored yet.  That breaks our hearts.  That is our burden.  The little (and big) faces of those that we don't want to get left behind.  Although we are burdened by this thought, we know that our God knows each of these children's story.  He has counted every hair on their head and He knows them by name.  They are already His.  And we are only a chapter of this story.
     It is Advent.  A season of hope.  We find our peace that the God of the Old Testament kept His promise to each and every one His people as He does to us now too.
"And again, Isaiah says: 'The root of Jesse will spring up, one who will arise to rule the nations; in Him the Gentiles will find hope." -Romans 15: 12
     That hope arrived 2000 years ago on a cold night. That hope hung on a tree and vacated the grave and overcame death.  That same hope shows up in the mundane and in the extraordinary
His HOPE in the form of a long-awaited railing.
   

His HOPE in your actions of love and your commitment to changing lives.

 

You can still sponsor a child.  If your heart is tugging but you have concerns about the financial commitment, can you email us?  We can still use you in other ways to bless a child in Kigali.  We are in need of families that can commit to praying for and writing to a child on an ongoing basis and the financial element we can work on together.  We also take one time donations and you can specify how your gift used (nutrition program, mattress fees, school supplies, medical needs, transportation fees).

Will you also pray for James? 

      If you don't remember, James is our staff in Rwanda.  He has the enormous job of getting each child registered for the appropriate school, transporting them, paying fees AND ministering to everyone at the orphanage.  And he's rockin' it.  On December 21 they are having a Christmas and baptismal celebration where, as of today, 16 kids are getting baptized.  James has requested that we send him someone to help with all of the schools starting up, but we just don't have the money to do that.  He needs prayers for strength, endurance and discernment.  He also requests that we prayer for these "new" believers as well.

We can't find words for our gratitude.

Thank you from each of the board members for the many ways that God has used you to bless our new ministry.  Thank you for believing that we can changes the lives of each of these kids.  
 

Monday, November 11, 2013

November isn't Enough

     November in the United States marks National Adoption Month.  With an 18 year history, the government originally started National Adoption Month in an effort to promote foster care and adoption.  Most states have one Saturday in the month of November in which family courts complete adoptions for free, waving court fees, paperwork fees and lawyer costs.  We love this.  All kids everywhere deserve a home.
     Orphan Sunday, the first Sunday of November, began in 2003 in Zambia by a group known as Orphan's Hope.  With origins in the evangelical church, it is now a global movement to create awareness of the plight of orphans everywhere.  Learn more here. 
We at Imana Kids have been using social media heavily this month, promoting a child a day that needs sponsored.  This is in part an effort to take advantage of this month as well as it is because school starts in Rwanda on January 6.  That's less than two months away!  The good news is that there are 60 kids sponsored!  We have families and individuals in 16 states and three countries that have committed to loving one child and changing their world.  It's exciting for us to see our sponsors' profiles come rolling in; we know that their lives are going to be shaped with the relationships that they develop with their sponsored child almost as much as their child's life will change.
      Here's the deal.  There are around 35 kids and young adults left to be sponsored.  Some of them have names and stories.  Some of them are faces that we can't match with a name or story because there isn't one That's a daily reminder to all of us just how ugly and unjust it is that kids don't have families.  Thank God that our heavenly Father knows their names, their stories and their hearts.
     Here's part two of the deal.  We don't want National Adoption Month to exist.  There shouldn't be an Orphan Sunday.  Accepting that there will always be orphans in world is like putting a cap on what God is capable of doing.  Each of us has something to give, to do, to invest toward ending the orphan crisis.  Adoption isn't a solution.  We love adoption; love, love, love it.  But adopting one child isn't going to end the poverty, the loneliness, the disease, the hate, the apathy and the death that is the cause of the problem.
     So what is the solution?  Of course, if every Christian in the world adopted an orphan, there wouldn't be orphans.  For one moment.  Until a parent died, another father went to jail and a mama died from dirty water.  The solution is in education and in healthcare; in delivering justice and compassion.  The solution is in using our gifts, our resources and our talents to stop the cycle here and now.  We are the church and we are one giant body.  We don't settle for answering that call just one month a year.  We ask God, "How do you want us to do this big thing?  How do You, God, use us to end this"
    We are doing this in one little corner of Kigali.  We are doing this through you all; with your compassion, your time and your support.  We are doing this by sending street kids to two beautiful schools filled with knowledge, tools and people that can empower these kids to change their future.  To be the last orphan in their corner.  We are doing this here and now.
     Even if you aren't sure that you can sponsor a child, would you consider emailing us your interest?  There are more needs for these children than only financial and we want to use every gift and talent we can to change each of our "kids" lives.

Profiles and stories of the kids of Kimisiagara Orphanage. 


Thursday, October 10, 2013

5 Reasons Not to Sponsor a Child

5.  "There are already so many needy children here. "

       You're right.  There are indeed needy children in every corner of our country.  If you feel that way, our prayer is that you are doing something about those children in need. Mentor through a community organization or donate to the Boys and Girls Clubs.  Imana Kids is for all that but our focus is a little more specific than needy kids.  These kids also happen to be orphans.  Our goal, as a family of Christians, is to answer the mandate of James 1:27; that we are called to care for widows and orphans in their times of distress.

4.  "There are already so many sponsorship programs in 'third world' countries. Why don't you join them?"

     Again, you are right.  Many great, well known organizations have existed for a long time to provide children all over the world with education.  Those groups are in Rwanda too.  But they aren't at Kimisagara, they do not serve widows and they do not have opportunities to support orphanages.  We exist to support Kimisagara street kids and orphans as well as the young men, women and orphans that call this special place home.

3.  "Won't sponsoring a child make them dependent on Americans?"

  Children receiving sponsorship through Imana Kids are not getting a "free ride" (Although, would that be so awful?).  The children of Kimisagara have either been abandoned by their birth families, kicked out a foster home (not for behavior but for lack of resources) or moved to Kimisagara because their previous orphanage has closed.  Sponsorship provides these kids with boarding school: three meals a day, supplies, tuition, supervision, spiritual and academic guidance.  Imana Kids students have signed a contract outlining both academic and behavioral expectations.  The students know that they must work hard to achieve their academic goals and to continue their education.
  Dr. Bruce Wydick of UCSF found that sponsored children in six different countries were 50-80% more likely to attend college, stayed in school 1.5-2 yrs longer than non-sponsored kids, as adults were 35% more likely to have a white collar job and were 30-75% more likely to be in leadership roles in their communities (Wydick, Journal of Political Economy. 2013.)

4.  "I don't like not seeing where my money goes."

  With Imana Kids, you can see where your money goes.  Actually, we want you to.  Firsthand.  Our sponsored children will communicate regularly with you, you receive updates and report cards and we provide trips to Rwanda to meet and spend time with your sponsored child.  We partner with Visiting Orphans to take people to the Land of a Thousand Hills so that others may be shaped and changed to love orphans and widows well.

5. " I can't afford it."

  For some of us, this may very well be true.  However, we believe that if you truly desire to follow God's word, then tithing (10%) and giving each month is an amazing way to experience God's goodness and grace.  It does take a leap of faith!  For all of us, when we give more than we believe we can "handle," God continues to provide for our needs-and even beyond.
Pray about it....and don't be afraid.  Please email us if, tweet us or reach out to someone else that sponsors a child.  It will change your world as much as it will change theirs.



 

Friday, September 27, 2013

#GodMove


     This baby is called Moses.  He has been at Kimisagara since late July.  Look at the gaze that the adults that live in the orphanage are giving him.  Attentive and loving.  This baby makes eye contact, is on track developmentally, and clearly attached to Papa Antoine.  When asked where the baby slept, Antoine, gently rubbing Moses' back, replied "With me."  Just what this orphan baby needs.  Touch and nurture and love.
     Although Moses' his happy, he isn't healthy.  His belly is round and big, distended from malnutrition.  He waddles along near the derailed hallway, a 20 foot drop just a stumble away.  There are bug bites on his face and yeast in his mouth.  A good bath, some regular meals and diapers would make his life a little healthier.
     He is one of five new kids that have moved into Kimisagara since July.  The other four are preschool aged.  A set of twins and another set of siblings.  There are at least 98 children and young adults that need a sponsor now.  God is moving; a lot has been done to make a path.  Yet the needs are so great.
     Ryan and Kara Higgins spent the last week in Rwanda, touring schools, meeting with other advocates for vulnerable children and hiring a staff person.  The trip was a whirlwind of blessings.  Stones laid.
     Meet James Odongo.  He is officially our in country staffer.  We are beyond excited to have him advocating for all the widows and orphans of Kimisagara.  His story is one of pain, loss, redemption and hope.  "My purpose in life is to make disciples.  My second love is to serve widows and orphans," was his response to our proposal.  And it was obvious everywhere we went that this is indeed how he lives his life.  Touring schools, someone was always calling his name, embracing him and telling us what a difference James had made in their life.  As we introduced him to the children, some even had tears.  One boy said "James is the reason I accepted God as my Father."
     During the trip, 8 schools were visited.  Three were colleges/universities and the remaining were boarding schools for primary and/or secondary.  The boarding schools all provide a clean, safe living space, three meals a day, excellent academics and clubs/sports.  Some were private while others were associated with another ministry and were Christian.  The Imana Kids board will work this weekend to decide on which of these schools is the best "fit" for the children of Kimisagara.  We hope to have the prices and profiles within the next 10 days.
     Additionally, the de-bedbugging of the orphanage was a success.  The older boys received a lesson on bedbugs; then excitedly went to work on applying the mattress covers and the diatomaceous earth.  Each of them grinned ear to ear, chatted nonstop and even applied a little of the earth on their faces.  One of the young women said "We may sleep too late if the bugs don't bite us."  We all decided that we could get an alarm clock if needed!


     The other development that took place in country is that we met 4 women from James' church who were former prostitutes.  All of them are joyful and loving, working hard to leave behind their old lives.  We believe that they may be the perfect women to fill the role of nanny, "Auntie" for the younger children at Kimisagara.  This would employ them and provide loving care to the little ones.
     Please take some time to consider sponsorship.  We need commitments from our sponsors because we know it would be devastating for a child to be sent to school only to be sent back to the orphanage again because of finances.  Not only are you investing financially but also emotionally.  These kids are just as excited to have someone to write to and pray for, someone to call their own.
   

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

     Imana Kids gave their first school presentation today and it was a joy to be welcomed by hundreds of sweet children that were eager and excited to help their "new friends" in Rwanda.
     Sunrise Point Elementary in Overland Park, Kansas, invited Imana Kids to present at their pep rally and launch of a school wide reading campaign.  All the staff, students and family will  be reading Giant Steps to Change the World by actor Spike Lee and his wife, Tonya.  The story talks about a variety of leaders, from Mother Theresa to President Obama, that started little and made a big impact.
    The school is also committed to doing a fundraiser along side the reading.  They will be raising funds for our nutrition program, with the hopes of providing regular fruits and veggies to the kids of Kimisagara.  How cool is that?  Each class will be filling "shoes" with money through the month of September.  We are honored and humbled that they asked to partner with us.
     In addition to the fundraising, it is a thrill to know that hundreds of children are telling the story of the street kids of Rwanda to their parents tonight.
   



THANK YOU, THANK YOU  to our friends at Sunrise Point!  

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Kiwanis and Bedbugs

     Did that get your attention?  We have still been very busy around here.  Last week we had the honor of presenting Imana Kids to a local chapter of Kiwanis.  What a great group of people and a good fit for Imana Kids to partner with!  The presentation was our first "business oriented" talk, so we are were a bit anxious but left feeling that we did the children of Kimisagara justice.  We are excited to see what unfolds with the local chapter.
     Tickets have been purchased for two board members to travel to Kigali in late September.  The board members will be on the ground for 4 full days, with each day filled to the brim with meetings.  We are considering inviting some of the older children to tour the boarding schools with us; hoping that this will ease some fears/nerves and generate a lot of excitement for their future!
    Bed bugs.  They may be here after the Apocalypse.  Challenges in first world countries at killing these nasty bugs is enormous.  Then throw in TSA restrictions, clay surfaces, children and limited access to electricity.  That equals a big, big problem.  We feel strongly that we can not ignore the problem because it is hindering the quality of life of some amazing young people in Kimisagara.  That being said, people are good.  Really good.  Phone calls to local exterminators have turned into mismatched friendships and people want to help.  People do care that kids on the other side of the world can't sleep at night because they are getting bit.  We  are grateful that God shows up everywhere.  Including connecting with exterminators.
     Did you now that crushed chrysanthemum can kill bed bugs?  Us either.  It's safe to expose children to, isn't difficult to purchase and we are clearing it with TSA as well.  Our next need is some airtight mattress covers.  These can be purchased at Walmart for $30 but we are hoping that asking some supply companies for help may be fruitful.  In other words, fall flowers, plastic sheets and duct tape are just what we need!
     September we will be launching our first newsletter.  It will feature a child each month as well as any events and progress reports.  Stayed tuned.
PS If you live in the Omaha metro area and have a pest problem, check out these guys!

Saturday, August 10, 2013

Tough Choices.

     Imana Kids board members had some big decisions to make this week.  Gracious donors have raised over $4000 to assist us in our start up costs.  How big is that?!  We feel so humbled and thankful; not to mention a little intimidated to be moving forward...
     Moving forward means spending some of this donation money.  It means deciding when and whom should be traveling to Rwanda.  Truthfully, most of the board would love to be the ones to head to Africa and attend the meetings that need to occur so that we can continue to work toward our goal of a January start date in the boarding schools.  However, we know that what we want and what we need are usually very different things.  As a group, it was decided that Ryan and Kara Higgins should be the first two board members to return to Kigali.  We want our donors to be aware of the "whys" behind each of our decisions.  Ryan and Kara adopted two children from Rwanda in late 2009; the director of Hope for Homes (the governing agency for vulnerable children) was a part of their adoption and there is established rapport between her staff and the Higginses.  They also have several friends, both Rwandan and American, that live in Kigali and will provide assistance with meals, lodging and travel.  The board also felt that Ryan was the most business-minded of the group.  
     It was also decided that board members will continue to contribute as much of their own personal money as they can during trips regarding Imana Kids business.  
     Additionally, responsibilities were delegated among members and a monthly meeting schedule was established.  This weekend some of the board will be traveling to Urbandale, Iowa, a suburb of Des Moines, to give two presentations at Gloria Dei, a Lutheran church interested in sponsoring children as well as sending a Visiting Orphans team to Kigali in the future.  And on August 15 we will attend the Omaha Kiwanis Chapter meeting to present our nonprofit opportunities.
     We also wanted to share some "updates" on the kids of Kimisagara.  They have been on holiday over the last few weeks after taking national exams in the public schools.  Their holiday is spent in the orphanage, helping Papa Antoine with chores and watching over the little ones.  The older boys have been unable to sleep more than a few hours a night because of bug problems.  We have been trying to decipher the situation: bed bugs vs bat bugs vs fleas vs mosquitoes.  Our hope is that in the near future, when the first board members return, we will have the necessities needed to rid the sleeping area of the pests so that for the time being, these kids can rest well at night.  
    In addition, we are excited to be invited to send some of the young men and women to Esperance Institute's first English certification program in Kigali.  Check out their website to learn how they are empowering young adults through education. 
     We are at approximately 30 families/individuals that have expressed a desire to sponsor a child for the 2014 school year.  Thank you and expect to hear from us after the have more specific monthly costs outlined. 

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Thanks for stopping by....

    If you are new to our website, you can visit Room4More!!! to learn more about the history and birth of Imana Kids.  Long story short, a team of teachers, midwives, students and business people have come together to keep a promise to 93 beautiful children, widows and young adults in Kimisagara Orphanage in Kigali, Rwanda.  
     This is our baby.  Our really big, fast moving baby.  In one short month we have submitted our nonprofit status, hosted 4 fundraiser/launch parties, turned in two grant proposals, established relationships with other sponsorship programs, committed to 2 additional speaking engagements and connected with at least 20 future sponsors.  Whew!  Our heads our spinning at the speed at which God is moving us forward....
     Our launch parties have been great.  We are so blessed by those of you that donated your time, prayers and tithes.  We want you to know that we each decision we make, we take prayerfully and after seeking wisdom from others.  We want each of you to know that we get it; how difficult it is to pledge to a new nonprofit that is run by some misty-eyed volunteers.  It takes all our courage to ask for what you are giving. 
     This is why we ask.
     We ask because each of these children deserves more than rice and beans every day.
    We ask because every face here has a story.  When asked what that story was, these sweet kids could not tell them well.  They could not articulate what they liked to do for fun or what it was they wanted to be when they grew up.  Life inside small, dirt packed walls does not lend to dreaming about tomorrow.
    Asking for help, humbling ourselves to seek financial support is difficult.  But our struggle for these children is a small price to pay for keeping a promise to our new family in Kimisagara.
     We woke up to an email this morning from the director of Hope for Homes.  Hope for Homes is the governing agency for vulnerable children in Rwanda.  They would like to meet with us face to face.  Soon.  Very soon.  This is wonderful news and a bit unnerving!  Working along side existing agencies is vital.  We desire to partner with as well as staff other Rwandans with Imana Kids.  Our wise friend @Rwagasore Peter, reminded us that we can can give a man a fish or we can give that man a fishing pole and some bait.  That is exactly our desire.  Poles and bait.
     Meeting face to face with Hope for Homes means that we need to send 3 board members to Kigali for at least 2 business days.  During this time, we will meet with Hope for Homes as well as hire an in country staff person and talk with the headmasters at the boarding schools that we plan to send the kids of Kimisagara to.  Once these meetings have transpired, we will be able to begin matching our sponsors with their students.      We really can't move forward until we get on the ground again in Kigali.  Our desire is for every penny to go directly to educating Gloria, Issa, Claude, Josephine and every other life lived in those dirt walls.  
     This is what it looks like: 50 people giving $50.  Or 100 people donating $25.  You get the picture.  Under the "Donate" tab on www.imanakids.org there are directions to give online.  You'll get your tax receipt and you'll get us moving forward.  Not everyone can go to Africa or give $100 a month.  But every can do something.  

27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. -JAMES 1:27