Thank you for helping deliver CarePacks to 40 displaced families like Mary and her daughter, Ann.
It's absolutely incredible to see how your prayers and gifts are at work among East African families displaced by tribal and political conflict.
We wish we could share every story of impact you made possible as our team of Americans and Kenyan nationals distributed CarePacks recently to 40 internally displaced families in the Rift Valley area of Kenya. But one stands out about a woman named Mary and her daughter Ann.
Mary was chased from her village 9 years ago during a time of intense tribal conflict that turned neighbor against neighbor. Her daughter Ann was only 3 years old at the time, and Mary and her husband struggled to provide for her and her siblings.
Unwilling to bear the burden of caring for his family, Mary's husband abandoned her, leaving Mary to provide all alone. On top of that, Mary had a stroke which left her partially blind. The only option the family had was to pull 12-year-old Ann out of school to work odd jobs for extra income.
Each life-transforming CarePack contains a week's worth of food, important hygiene items, and a copy of God's Word.
Ann should be in 7th grade, but instead she washes clothes to earn a few extra dollars a day so her family can eat. Pastor Isaac Munji, our partner in this region, also told us that Ann is at a very high risk of being drawn into human trafficking because of her age and level of poverty.
Mary and Ann were grateful to receive a CarePack containing food and a copy of God's Word. In fact, it brought them to tears.
But the reality is that they need much more.
That's why our goal in the months ahead is to work alongside Pastor Isaac to launch a feeding program within reach of 3 camps for internally displaced people (IDPs) -- so girls like Ann can be in school where they belong, away from human traffickers, and have hope for a better future.
So please be in prayer as we take the first critical steps toward launching a feeding program for IDPs in this area. And thank you for your generosity to rebuild broken lives in Kenya!