Preserving a Family

Adoption Ministry 1:27 was established to partner with the church in Ethiopia to meet the needs of the most vulnerable widows, orphans and families, with the ultimate goal of orphan prevention and family preservation.

International adoption is not the answer to this crisis in Ethiopia.  With the monthly support of ministry partners and by linking arms with the body of Christ in Ethiopia, we strive to help prevent the collapse of vulnerable families.

On this blog in the coming months, we will be highlighting families who are waiting to be ‘adopted’ for $40 per month, which will help to provide the basic needs of food, medicine, shelter and clothing.

Meet Bethlehem**…

Family K-0037

Bethlehem (pictured above in the orange scarf) is a young woman in a desperate spot.  She is a full-time care-giver for her mother who is a leper and has lost her arms and legs to that terrible disease.  Little Ephrata is her 3-year-old daughter who she loves so much.  Securing food for three people is a daily struggle for this young mother living in the community at the city dump in Addis Ababa.  Helping this family monthly will provide for their basic food needs and Bethlehem will give praise to God for you and your kind generosity!

**Bethlehem and her daughter have been adopted!  But there are many more families like hers who are waiting...  For $40 per month, you can adopt this family or another one like hers in our Adoption Ministry 1:27 program.  Please contact us at:

jamie@adoptionministry.net

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Making Adoption Affordable - What YOU can do!

H.R. 4373, the Making Adoption Affordable Act, is a bipartisan bill that would extend the current Adoption Tax Credit that is set to expire at the end of this year.  

From the executive director of Show Hope on their blog:

All over the world, including here in the United States, millions of orphans are waiting, longing for a forever family to take them home. However, adoption can cost between $10,000, and $45,000, and many families with room in their hearts and homes are unable to overcome the financial barriers. Show Hope recognizes this need to help defray the expenses of adoption and get children into forever families. The United States Adoption Tax Credit currently provides up $12,650 to adoptive families. However, the Adoption Tax Credit is set to expire at the end of 2012. If Congress does not act, the size and applicability of this tax credit will shrink dramatically.

If the adoption tax credit helped you or someone you know to adopt a child, or if it could help you in the future to adopt a child, please call your House Representative todayand urge that he or she cosponsor the bipartisan bill H.R. 4373, the Making Adoption Affordable Act. You can reach your Representative by calling the U.S. Capitol Operator at 202-225-3121 and asking for your Representative’s office. If you don’t know your Representative’s name, click here and enter your zip code in the box provided.

As you call your Representative, consider sharing these messages:
• I am a constituent in your district and the adoption tax credit is important to me because…
• I urge the Representative to become a co-sponsor of The Making Adoption Affordable Act, H.R. 4373.
• If Congress does not act – the credit as we now know it – will expire in December 2012.
• H.R. 4373 is bipartisan and it supports all types of adoptions (domestic private, foster care, and international adoptions).
• This tax credit has made adoption a more viable option for many parents who might not otherwise have been able to afford adoption, allowing them to provide children with loving, permanent families.
• Thank you for your support of H.R. 4373.

If you want to learn more about the adoption tax credit go to adoptiontaxcredit.org
And “like” the Save the Adoption Tax Credit Facebook page

Thank you for taking a few minutes to make this important phone call!

Many thanks to our friends at Show Hope and to all of you who will take action today!
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Making Smiles

Moody and Emily Alexander adopted a beautiful little girl from one of YWAM’s orphanages in Ethiopia in 2011, which was our introduction to this amazing couple and their ministry in Ethiopia.  Moody and Emily had already adopted two boys from Ethiopia before they brought Gigi home. 

Dr. Alexander is an orthodontist in Texas who regularly takes teams of dental professionals and volunteers to serve the essentially unmet needs of widows, families and children in several communities in and around the capital city of Addis Ababa.  You can read more about these very dedicated servants of Christ on the website:  EthiopiaSmile 

Adoption Ministry has had the privilege of partnering with the Alexanders and their ‘Smile’ teams to serve both the widows in our Widows & Orphans Home community outreach and also some of the families in our Adoption Ministry 1:27 program.  (You can read about the October 2011 team on our blog here.)  Just this last week, a 54-member EthiopiaSmile team conducted dental clinics for the AM 1:27 families from the Meseret Christos and Bole Bulbula churches in Addis.  Several widows even received eye exams from an eye doctor present on the team and were given free eye glasses. 

We are so grateful to the Alexanders and their giant hearts of compassion!  Love in action = Ethiopia Smiles!

Be sure to read Emily’s blog soli deo gloria to read in more detail about their latest team and see some great video of their time in the village of Dube Bute.
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Links for you

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Help With Language

Amen at Home
An Amharic-English First Words Book

Amharic to English Dictionary
@AmharicDictionary.com
Do an easy search for those daily-use words that will help ease
the transition to English.

Oromo-English Dictionary
@Oromodictionary.com
Help with the Oromifa language

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Six Things Adoption Has Taught Me
by Shaun Groves @simplemom.net
Just six of the zillion things adoption has taught me 

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Grief and Loss

A Journey of Loss, Healing and Redemption
@Babe of My Heart
Little did I know as not one of these online classes really prepare you for what the journey really requires… We couldn’t wait to one day adopt. And how beautiful it would be to open our home and hearts to a child that needed a family. Sure there would be sacrifices we knew…BUT eventually that child would be a “YOUNG” through and through–and it would be easy peasy in the end as our child smoothly fit in our groove as we were consistent and…LOVE would heal all the wounds. We’d have the most beautiful Christmas card you could imagine. Honestly–writing that now…makes me have to take a deep, slow breath…

And Finally, A Post
@meghmiller.com
In the last five months I’ve realized anew that adoption is not a cause, it is a daily commitment. A commitment to run the marathon of healing and redemption alongside the child that God is grafting into your family. (I say ‘grafting’ because it is a process.) It is also a commitment to let Jesus do his therapeutic work in us too as parents.

Not Easy
@LeastComplicated
I can tell you that it is a rare thing when I meet a post-institutionalized, post-trauma child who does not have significant cognitive or behavioral challenges resulting from their life experiences.

Grief
@Ordinary Miracles & The Crazy 8

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Fathers

  

He Knows Who He Is
@AdoptiveDads.org
I am acutely aware that I haven’t gotten everything right as a dad, much less an adoptive dad.  But when my kids can be comfortable in their own skin; when they can talk with me about things that are a big deal and it’s not a big deal – I know that somehow, someway, and often in spite of me, we are headed in the right direction.

A Challenge for Adoptive Dads
@Empowered To Connect
Watch as Michael Monroe talks about the need for adoptive dads to partner with their wives to work together as they lead their children toward hope and healing.

We are incredibly grateful and have deep respect for the adoptive dads who have adopted from our YWAM orphanages.

Happy Father’s Day to each of you!

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Happy Wedding Tesfaye and Helen!

by Jeff Burns


On Sunday, June 3rd, Joy, Mark, Abebe, Abonesh and I had the privilege of attending a very special wedding. Tesfaye, our great friend and our Adoption Ministry 1:27 case manager for Korah, got married to his sweetheart, Helen.

The wedding was part of the church service held in the church in Korah and so we were there to enjoy energetic worship, an excellent sermon (I was told it was since my Amharic is quite inadequate) and a very blessed wedding ceremony. Tesfaye asked if I would take pictures and so I was trying to figure out when church was ending and the wedding was beginning. I was poised in the front and looking towards the entrance when Joy caught my attention and pointed to Tesfaye and Helen who had slipped into the back of the church.



The service was held outside on the front porch under cover of aluminum and a blue tarp extension. This allowed for more people than could fit inside. The ground was covered with colorful shredded paper and there was a string of lights hung as well as streamers looped from the ceiling. It looked very festive!



Much singing, swaying and clapping went along with parts of the celebration. You could sense people’s love for them. Many of the people who came are a part of our AM 1:27 program and I recognized at least two of the families there who had received new beds from Mark Wolbert and the University of Kentucky mission team the week before.









After the service Tesfaye and Helen went inside the church where traditional food was served. Special guests were then ushered in, including Mark, Joy, Abebe and Abonesh. Then others were invited in for a meal as well. Most of these people rarely have enough to eat – they live in Korah and daily food is not a sure thing. For Tesfaye and Helen to provide food for this many people was truly sacrificial and speaks greatly of both their love and of their character.





We enjoyed a great meal and Abebe took a picture of the YWAM guests!

Jeff, Abonesh, Joy and Mark

Abonesh (accountant for AM 1:27) with the bride and groom

Abebe, Tesfaye and Helen

Joy, Tesfaye, Helen and Mark

Lots of young wedding guests!

And so I returned home to unlimited food, a roof that keeps out the rain, a beautiful wife, awesome kids and a renewed desire to make a difference where God puts me. I’m also reminded that there is a battle for children’s lives and futures, for families in tenuous circumstances, for a wonderful newly-wedded couple in the middle of it all and that we are to do something about it. Let’s start with prayer and then see how the Lord moves in us from there.
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Gratitude Beyond Words

by Joy Casey
June 10, 2012


The YWAM Gift Catalog blessed a bunch of people today. I guess a gift catalog cannot bless anyone but is a vehicle for blessing. It is the people who purchased from the gift catalog that actually affected the daily lives of thirteen widows in an obscure village in Ethiopia called T’ede. We have had several purchases of mattresses and blankets as well as bedding, and it was wonderful to see the happy faces of the women when they were each given all of the above plus a new pillow and some coveted buna (coffee) and sugar. They were delighted!
 



 

 
T’ede is a village that Adoption Ministry has been working in for several years and nine children are sponsored there. It has been fun to see the children grow and develop and to establish a friendship with their guardian or mother. When I go to T’ede I look forward with great anticipation to seeing friends. Some of the children who in years past were shy and retiring now eagerly gather around for hugs and kisses and their mothers and guardians call me by name.


The elderly widows are precious! I noticed Mama Gete had new glasses supplied by our missions director, Mark Wolbert. She was so proud!

 


 
Patsy Johannes sponsors a little girl in T’ede.  She came on a mission team last year and got to meet the child she faithfully supports. This year she helped by putting together gift bags for each of the children and she also bought coats for each child to keep them dry and warm during the rainy season.



The children were so delighted with their gifts and immediately put on the new t-shirt that was in each bag. Even though it was a very hot day, on went their new coats and even with the heat they wouldn’t take them off. Patsy hid some special treats in the pockets, too, so they had a double surprise!




These families are the poorest in the village and live a fairly meager existence, so the gifts received today will replace very worn bedroom sets and in some cases be the first new beds they have ever had. Some of the widows were sleeping on a thin blanket placed on concrete blocks!



Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU to all the sponsors of the children who helped make this day possible and to all the many people who have purchased items from the gift catalog. Your giving has huge impact on real people and their gratitude really cannot be adequately communicated.
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Olivia – An IGA Success Story

by Joy Casey
Joy has been in Uganda with Wick Nease of Streams of Mercy, learning about Income Generating Activities (IGA’s) that can be implemented in Ethiopia.  You can read more about the Streams of Mercy team in Uganda on their blog here.




Olivia is a ball of energy with a huge smile.  I liked her immediately.  She was married to a policeman with whom she had seven daughters and they lived a typical rural life in the Ugandan countryside and owned a grass hut on her husband's family's property.  About ten years ago, Olivia's husband got very sick and quickly died .... of AIDS.  Olivia was shocked, not knowing he was infected.  They had just had their seventh little girl who was only months old when he died.  Olivia was encouraged to be tested for HIV and was devastated when she tested positive.  The child she recently gave birth to also was HIV positive.  With the death of her husband, her in-laws tried to take Olivia's house and force her off the property.  Because she had only daughters, her husband's family had no use for them - they planted snakes in her house and had the witch doctor cast spells. 

It was at this point that Sam Kisolo, the YWAM director for Uganda, became acquainted with Olivia and her girls.  She was sick and trying to keep a roof over her family's head and was barely able to feed her children.  Sam got medication for her and her baby girl and through his ministrations, Olivia gave her life over to Jesus Christ.  From that point onward, she battled the attacks her husband's family barraged her with and grew strong spiritually.

She was given a small micro loan of about $160 and she planted pineapples and sold them.  After paying back the loan, she asked for another loan to purchase a small piece of land adjacent to her property and planted coffee.  She not only sold the coffee but purchased coffee from other farmers and waited until the market value was high and then sold it, making a handsome profit on coffee.  She again paid back her loan and asked for another, this time buying a cow.  Habitat for Humanity approved her to build a house.  Olivia tore down her stick and mud hut and now has a handsome brick house with a tin roof and cement floor.  She has just recently constructed a brick cook house to replace the smoke filled, broken down one she had used for years.  She is selling crops in the market, buying coffee for re-sale and has a bicycle to better conduct her business.

Her in-laws have given up trying to get her off her inherited property and now her mother-in-law is quite sick.  Olivia faithfully cares for her and makes sure her husband's family has enough to eat.  Her daughters are growing up intimately knowing the Lord and loving Him.  Olivia is giving her daughters a great inheritance, not only spiritually but also by showing them how a woman who is not afraid of hard work can make a success of her life even when circumstances are less than ideal.

It was wonderful spending time with this great lady!  Meeting her was an encouragement to give similar opportunities to widows in Addis through our Adoption Ministry 1:27 program.  I know that giving small loans to industrious women can make a huge difference in ther lives long term.  
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A Commitment to Claim

by Cathy Carlson


 
A definition of claiming by Jojo, our 14 year old daughter (adopted 2 years ago from a disruption):

"When a parent says in their heart that this kid is MINE no matter what, it makes the ground stop shaking under the kids' feet so they can feel safe again." 

In all my attempts to define what it means to ‘claim’ I could never describe it better than that. "When a parent says in their heart that this kid is MINE no matter what..." That’s exactly it!

'Claiming' is heart work.  Yes, it’s hard work... but definitely HEART work!

It is constantly choosing to believe that the Almighty, Sovereign God designed before the beginning of the world that this child would be placed in your family. That no matter what happens, He will provide everything you need to deal with it.

Psalm 37:23-24 has comforted me through some of our most trying times with our children. It says, "The steps of a man are established by the Lord; and He delights in his way. When he falls, he shall not be hurled headlong; because the Lord is the One who holds his hand."

I love that verse because it reminds me that the Lord is the one that led us to this place and that even when we are tired and stumble on the way, we will never be 'hurled headlong' because He is still holding onto our hands. Think of it - what can overwhelm us if the God of all creation is holding our hand??

Let me just take a moment and remind you: adoption is messy! We are inviting a child that has - at least - a broken heart and - at most - a scarred, traumatized, bruised and beaten soul, to share our lives with us. What part of that seems like an easy task? If we allow ourselves to fully comprehend what we are asking of them (and ourselves) we wouldn't wonder why we are all so stressed!

Truly, the only way that we can hope to navigate the garbage that is strewn along our path in this journey is by determining that WE are the ones that God has asked to walk this very path with these very people at this very time! That is 'claiming.'

Claiming is choosing to accept

• all that this child is
• all they came from
• all their hurts, joys and hopes
• all their wonderful qualities
• all their ugliness
• all the history that played a part in who they have become
• all they will become and
• all they will fail to accomplish

and COMBINE it with who your family is to make a new family.

Did you hear that?? This is an extremely important point, so let me say it one more time, in a little different way...

Claiming means that whatever defined your family will now be different because you have invited a new person to be a part of it. Adoption is not the same as birth. When you give birth to a child, you are bringing another one of YOU into the family. With adoption, you are bringing an entirely different element into the picture that changes everything. It re-defines you.

 

 
Picture for a moment what your family looked like before adoption... what you did together, what you stood for, what was important/unimportant to you, what was the flavor, color, smell, essence of your family. Now picture your new child... What was their life like before they came to you?  What was their history, culture, and family?  What was important/unimportant to them and the look, feel, design and definition of who they are? This doesn't just go away when they become a part of your family.

When a child comes into your family with a set of ideas and experiences that have defined their perspective on life and themselves, as wonderful as your family may be, simply being a part of a new family will not miraculously transform them into another one of 'you.' If it was that simple -if love alone or a family alone could do that mighty work - then it belittles their experiences (good and bad) and the person God has made them to be, or what their history was allowed to do in their hearts.

Change is painful, difficult work and I don’t know many people that actually like it. Adoption will, and should, shake the family tree to the roots. Everyone will have to shift and adjust to find their new place. For some, this is an easier process than others, probably a combination of the personality of the family and that of the new child. As the family members feel the roots shaking and the image of what they knew before begin to take on a new look, it can create a lot of insecurity. It’s more important than ever to hold onto the belief (“claim") that this child was predestined before the beginning of time to be in this place at this time and to speak words that reflect that belief to your family members and even to yourself!

When you 'claim' this new family member with resolve and determination then, as Jojo said, "...the ground stops shaking under the kids' feet so they feel safe again." When the ground stops shaking and they begin to feel safe, they begin to trust and hope again.
 

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For some reason, there seems to be very little information about this crucial topic in adoption circles.  We often describe claiming is an unconditional commitment parents make at the time they accept a referral that has nothing to do with external issues like behavior or love being reciprocated.  Claiming doesn’t happen gradually – it’s a non-emotional decision made from the beginning, therefore claiming is not the same as bonding.  From time of referral on, if there has been a very conscious decision made to claim that child, it doesn’t matter what behaviors, medical issues or any other situations occur.  (In extreme cases, parents may consider having the child live in another setting for their own sake or the sake of the family but they don’t give up, just as they wouldn’t with a biological child.)  That child is theirs every bit as much as a biological child is theirs. 


Here is a link to an article at Families.com with some more good information about claiming:

Parental Claiming of an Older Adopted Child

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Cathy and her husband David have been married for 23 years and live in Poulsbo, WA. They have 11 children, ranging in age from 13 to 22 years old. Two are biological, two are from domestic adoption and 7 were adopted from Ethiopia. 


The Carlsons are experienced adoptive parents, not only because of the number of children they’ve adopted but also because of the kinds of kids they’ve made a part of their family. Two of their adoptive children have special needs and three come from disrupted adoption situations. The children adopted from Ethiopia were all older-child adoptions and several had experienced physical and sexual abuse in Ethiopia.  They helped to launch the non-profit adoption ministry Ibsen Adoption Network.

Cathy has been a wonderful source of help for Adoption Ministry’s staff and for several of our adoptive families. She teaches about claiming, parenting strategies, family dynamics and sexual and abuse issues for Adoption Ministry’s International Adoption Training. Her very practical advice and experience-based wisdom are an invaluable resource for others who may face these same issues.
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YWAM Mercy Development–Addis Ababa

 by Joy Casey



YWAM Mercy Development, or YWAM-MD as it is called, heard about a problem with some children in their community in Addis Ababa. Many teachers at a nearby school were complaining because a number of their students weren’t able to concentrate on their schoolwork and were listless. From experience, they identified this malaise as signs of hunger. Abdissa, the YWAM-MD director, has a huge heart for children and began seeking sponsors to provide the money for lunch for these children.

 

Today, 50 school children come to the YWAM children’s compound and receive a hot and hearty lunch. They are ragged and many are HIV+, but they are like kids everywhere and have a ready smile and like to goof around. The worker in charge of this program knows each one of them and visits in their home. If someone misses a couple of days, she ferrets out any troubling circumstances.

 


One thing noticeable about these children … there are no complaints about the food and there is nothing left over! Every scrap of wat is soaked up by the last bite of injera.

 

Twenty-five of these children are sponsored by a sister ministry called Into The Streets of Ethiopia. Several years ago, Kara Portilla traveled to Ethiopia and God placed on her heart a burden for these very poor children. Because of her monthly support, these beautiful children can be assured of one good meal a day. THANK YOU and BLESSINGS on the Portillas and Into The Streets of Ethiopia!

P.S. Into the Streets of Ethiopia also is the ministry that makes sure that all our orphanages have enough formula and pays for the transportation to get the formula to the remote areas. This is a huge (HUGE) blessing to Adoption Ministry of YWAM!
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Pregnant With Anticipation

by Joy Casey
Adama, Ethiopia
 

It is a joy to me when I can be present when a family meets their son or daughter for the first time. The moment in time when Mom and Dad first lay eyes on the child they are adopting is a bit surreal. In so many ways it is much like giving birth. The months leading up to this day are exciting and pregnant with anticipation. Parents wonder who it will be that will join their family and what will this new person look like. Will he fit nicely into the current picture of their family or will the paradigm of their family’s structure be changed radically? There are also uncomfortable nights and days when worry about your ability to parent this special child is dominant.

When a pregnant woman is heavy with child, she is hoping that any day will be the day she can give birth and it seems like pregnancy might last forever. So it is with adoptive parents who inevitably become frustrated with the predictable delays in timing. Rationally, both sets of parents know that the end result will be a child and this waiting will come to an end, but emotions nevertheless run high.  Having been “pregnant” for so long, is it any wonder that the day a couple pulls up to the orphanage door is a moment in time that will be etched in their minds forever?
 

Just a few days ago, I led Aaron and Tina Neiman into the nursery at the Widows and Orphans Home to see their son for the first time. He was in the arms of a trusted nanny and looked skeptically at these strange people. A few of the other children found a familiar leg to cling to as their safe cocoon was invaded by White people with lots of cameras.
 

The Neimans are experienced parents and knew that Bebi likely would not warm up to them instantly, and their hunch was confirmed when he would not get one inch away from his nanny. After a few minutes, the nanny, Bebi, Aaron and Tina went into the courtyard with some balls followed by several of the other toddlers. Aaron and Tina began rolling balls to a couple of the more adventurous toddlers and visited naturally with the orphanage director and Jeff Burns and me. Jeff was snapping pictures right and left and taking video for the Neimans so the moments could be documented and left them free to fully concentrate on their new son.
 

Bebi looked suspiciously on all this activity intuitively knowing that this was all about him somehow. After awhile, Aaron and Tina sat on either side of Bebi and his nanny and played with him while he still felt secure in the familiar lap. Nanny eventually put him down and he began playing with the other children and pretty soon he was having fun playing ball with Aaron and Tina. It was several hours later when Tina gently picked him up and he sat quietly on her lap and then Aaron took him and the ice was broken.  “Hey, these are not scary people at all!”
 


Bebi eventually laid his head back on Tina’s chest and fell asleep. Tina could then study the long eyelashes resting on his soft cheeks, examine every finger, fondle his hair and most likely wonder what kind of man this handsome boy will grow up to be. Eventually, she carried him to his crib and for the first time put him down for a nap.
 

Where the analogy to physical birth and adoption departs is when Tina and Aaron had to say good-bye to Bebi and head back to Addis Ababa. They had an appointment with a judge the next day who would declare that Bebi’s adoption is final and give approval for Bebi to be a forever and ever Neiman. The next time Aaron and Tina will see their son will be when the Embassy issues a visa for Bebi to travel home to America. The immense amount of paperwork that is required for this next step involves many appointments for Bebi, so within a couple of weeks he will be moved from his familiar home in Adama, Ethiopia to CHI’s Thomas Center in Addis. Within three or four months the Neimans will fly back, and this time when they hold Bebi, he will never leave their arms.
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Big Hearts Meet Big Needs

by Joy Casey
Adama, Ethiopia


I wish it was possible to write a personal thank you to each and every person who has bought items through YWAM’s gift catalog. I am in Ethiopia right now and I see first-hand the myriad ways these gifts are helping so many.  It blesses me to my toes knowing that many of the gifts are bought with a child’s allowance money, or a teen donating money saved for a computer, or another who blessed his grandmother with a gift given in her honor. I wish you could experience with me the joy of seeing just how much these gifts affect the day-to-day lives of the very poor.

Let me introduce you to several dear ladies that our Missions Director Mark Wolbert visited the other day. A large mission team from Kansas will be coming and spending a few days with the elderly widows, and they will be buying and distributing food and doing some repairs to their houses. Many items from the gift catalog will also be given to help meet the significant needs that Mark noted when he went to their homes.

 

ROMAN
During the conflict with Eretria, Roman lost her son to the war. This son was the center of her world and without him she became not only depressed, but destitute. There was no one else in the world to care or provide for her, and her life these past years has been lived in a veil of sadness as well as deep, deep poverty.

Immediately upon entering her home, Mark noticed that the front door would not close and the leather hinges needed to be replaced. The one window in her room was also badly in need of repair, and these are all things that the upcoming mission team can tackle. For just $250 her outdoor latrine can get a roof (yes, she gets wet during the rainy season!) and walls can be built up for privacy. From the gift catalog we will replace her mattress and pillow and give her a warm blanket. She readily admits that her greatest need is food. The mission team will provide her with some bulk staples, and from the gift catalog we will bless her with buna (coffee) and sugar, a rare treat!


 

ABABICH
Ababich’s daughter died and she is attempting to raise her orphaned granddaughter. This is a difficult task because Ababich has TB and is quite weak and ill. Her neighbors pitch in to help with her granddaughter and help cook food for them. The doctor has told her she needs fresh milk twice a day, and for 16 birr (less than 10 cents a day) the milk lady will bring milk for her and her granddaughter. The problem is, she does not have money to buy milk most of the time.


 

TEDGE GUDETA
We call her the Cheerful Widow! Her love and trust in God’s goodness radiates from every pore of her being. Tedge lives in a small, small room, not bigger than most of our bathrooms, but she welcomed Mark in as an honored guest. She has no living family and has absolutely nothing of material value or comfort. From our gift catalog, we will provide her with new mattress and bedding. When asked what her greatest need is, she immediately replied, FOOD!


 

ABERESH
This sweet widow has a sturdy bed, but her urine soaked mattress needs to be replaced and this time the mattress will be protected with plastic and covered with sheets. She was naked as a jaybird under her thin blanket, but was so happy to receive visitors. Mark asked her what her needs were, and she thought and thought and was hard pressed to think of anything she needed. Mark suggested that maybe clothes would be something that could be of benefit, and she said that yes, clothes would be nice indeed! To those who bought clothes from our gift catalog, I thank you on behalf of Aberesh.
 

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Life Church from Olathe, Kansas is sending a missions team to Ethiopia from June 12th to the 20th.  I hope to get updates from them so you can follow along on this blog and be blessed as this big-hearted team ministers to these ladies as well as to vulnerable families that have not yet been sponsored through our Adoption Ministry 1:27 program.

Be sure to check out the YWAM Gift Catalog to look for ways you, too, can meet the very real needs of Ethiopia’s people.
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