new church life: jan uary/february 2015
messages. His laughter joins theirs as they joke about the day’s events.
Samson’s love and care for these children is humbling to witness, especially
considering that many of them would not be alive if it weren’t for his immense
loving heart. I swallow the lump in my throat that seems to have taken up
permanent residence since I arrived in Kenya, and contemplate how much I have to
learn and how proud I am to be a part of what is happening here.
So how did a retired teacher like me come to be a witness to the scene
above? In the fall of 2012 Helping Children in Crisis (HCIC) was formed
in response to a dire situation that had arisen in Kenya when more than 30
New Church orphans were thrown out of their home after their care-giver
committed suicide as a result of accusations of abuse. They walked miles
through the night to the home of the Rev. Samson Abuga, a neighboring New
Church minister, for help.
Samson was already taking care of more than 30 orphans, using his own
meager salary. Those first 30 children had been farmed out to congregation
members, but he was paying for their food and clothing. Despite his best
efforts, during the previous 18 months seven of those children had died. Now
with more than 60 children to care for, his resources were overwhelmed.
A small group of
us became aware of the
situation and decided to
form HCIC. This was a
situation that compelled us
to action. Not only were we
called to serve the needs of
these children, but we also
saw it as an opportunity
to expand the formal uses
of the General Church to
Jackline and Samson Abuga
include acts of charity.
We are a volunteer
committee working under the auspices of the General Church Office of
Outreach. The names of the two girls whose picture accompanies this article
are Faith and Charity. They are two of the orphans we care for. Their names
embody the work of HCIC. We seek to live our faith through acts of kindness
to others, but particularly to children in need of help.
After committing to the care of these children, Samson contacted the
Kenyan government and, with the help of his congregation, legally formed
an orphanage they named General Church Sacred Care (GCSC). Samson,
his staff and the GC Sacred Care board provide the hands-on care for these
58