Meet Omari.
He is the son to Mama Mora, the sole caretaker of 37 orphaned children at the Faraja Children's Home. This photo was taken two days after he returned from the hospital after suffering a near fatal blow to the face with a machete while defending the children of the orphanage. This incident was the fourth time in two weeks a group of thugs from the nearby slum of Mathare broke into their home to steal whatever they could find. The invaders were easily able to break into the home due to the very insecure wooden fence that surrounds half of the compound. Omari did the best he could to fight them off, armed with only a hammer.
After hearing about the orphanage and posting this story and appeal to Reddit.com, we received an overwhelming amount of support from the online community--over $80,000 in 48 hours! Notably, Weebly, the company which hosts of this website, donated $10,000 and two free years of upgraded service. With this support, we have already taken steps to ensure the security of the orphanage (less than 24 hours after the initial donation) and have begun construction of a security wall. However with the tremendous amount of generosity, we will be able to help the orphanage and the children in so many more ways. We are working on a path to the long-term support and sustainability of the orphanage.
Our plan includes purchasing the plot and building the orphanage is on (they are currently renters). Over the last eight years Mama Mora and the children have been evicted from multiple previous homes simply because they could not afford to pay rent. We would like to ensure this is never a worry again, but we need to raise more support to do so and maintain long-term support of the orphanage and children. Our current fundraising goal is $200,000, and we are nearly halfway there!
We are frequently updating the progress of the wall through our blog. Since the Reddit post, the story has also been spread all over the Internet via Facebook, Twitter, and blogs--attracting donations from all over the world. You can also read about the story at websites like the Huffington Post, Onward State and even Perezitos have also covered the story (or simply google "Reddit, orphanage" to see the breadth of the coverage). Breaking News: The Associated Press has now written a story about LEI and Faraja which can be read on ABC, CBS, The Washington Post and many other news organizations.
After hearing about the orphanage and posting this story and appeal to Reddit.com, we received an overwhelming amount of support from the online community--over $80,000 in 48 hours! Notably, Weebly, the company which hosts of this website, donated $10,000 and two free years of upgraded service. With this support, we have already taken steps to ensure the security of the orphanage (less than 24 hours after the initial donation) and have begun construction of a security wall. However with the tremendous amount of generosity, we will be able to help the orphanage and the children in so many more ways. We are working on a path to the long-term support and sustainability of the orphanage.
Our plan includes purchasing the plot and building the orphanage is on (they are currently renters). Over the last eight years Mama Mora and the children have been evicted from multiple previous homes simply because they could not afford to pay rent. We would like to ensure this is never a worry again, but we need to raise more support to do so and maintain long-term support of the orphanage and children. Our current fundraising goal is $200,000, and we are nearly halfway there!
We are frequently updating the progress of the wall through our blog. Since the Reddit post, the story has also been spread all over the Internet via Facebook, Twitter, and blogs--attracting donations from all over the world. You can also read about the story at websites like the Huffington Post, Onward State and even Perezitos have also covered the story (or simply google "Reddit, orphanage" to see the breadth of the coverage). Breaking News: The Associated Press has now written a story about LEI and Faraja which can be read on ABC, CBS, The Washington Post and many other news organizations.
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Faraja's Sustainability Projects
Milking Cows
Faraja now has two milking cows and one baby calf. A portion of the milk is given to the children, while the rest is sold for profit.
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Gardens
There are three rather large gardens at Faraja. Vegetables are grown and eaten by the children. These gardens reduce the amount of money spent on food. |
