Secured Fencing!!!

Good news!

We were successfully able to raise enough money to support the orphanage into building a secured fencing all around and including a gate at the front. Thank you to  everyone who donated to make this possible and now the children can feel safe in their own home!!!

Please take the time to look at the pictures below, you'll see the progress of building and installing the fences - the AFRICAN way.

We still have plenty of ODO T-Shirts left even though we've reached our goal for building a new fence/gate, we will continue to sell t-shirts in support of the deaf orphans.

Again, thank you to everyone who donated and prayed to make this happen.

The Engine That Drives LDO

“And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.”

–Hebrews 13:16 (NIV)

It is easy to pat ourselves on the back for supporting this orphanage through donations or mission trips, but we are humbled when we think of the staff at the orphanage and their hard work. 

Without the staff, the children would not be able to eat three meals a day.  Without teachers, the orphans would languish in their mental development.  Without hands to gently wake them up and tuck them back in sleep, the children would sleep with fear in their hearts.  The staff is the heart of the orphanage, their labor is the engine that drives this ministry.  We in America are an ocean away, and as much as we pray and donate to the children, it is the staff who minister directly to them day in and day out.  And you know what?  The staff does it only for a place to sleep and food!

It is because of this that we will try to increase our monthly fundraising amount so we will be able to start paying the staff on a regular basis.  The average salary in Kenya is $100, and we are not able to provide that much, but we have set a goal of paying them $25 a month.  There are a total of 7 staff, so that will come up to $175 a month. 

Please pray for our fundraising efforts and consider making an extra financial gift for this goal.

New Orphan!

Stephen Obondo, 14

Winston Omondi, Lance’s right-hand man for LDO affairs in Kenya, e-mailed us and told us about a boy he met in Nairobi named Stephen.  His mother is now a widow, and she is old and very sick.  It is not expected that she will live much longer, and Stephen is without education or any way to have food or shelter.  Winston petitioned for this boy to be a new member of LDO, and we approved of this request.  He is now the 21^st child!  Praise God that our impact, through your donations, has grown.

Tested for HIV/AIDS

All kids are HIV negative!

When the ODO team visited LDO last summer, we learned that many of the kids were orphaned by parents who died from AIDS or other illnesses.  It was at that point that we talked with Daniel Ogembo about getting the children tested.  Kenya is very good with government assistance for this issue, and a few weeks ago, all the children got tested.  We joyfully praise God that none of the kids have HIV. The group who tested the children also gave education about prevention, which we know benefited the children very much.

ODO Spring Newsletter

We often try to send out newsletters to our supporters and donors and we realize that not all of our supporters get them so we wanted to try and post them here on our blog so every single person can read about our updates and such!