Helping Children in Crisis
Wade W. Buick
W
e are introducing a new effort and organization designed to assist
children in dire need. We call ourselves Helping Children in Crisis
(HCIC). We exist to connect members of the New Church seeking to care for
children in crisis situations with people and resources who can help.
New Church societies have a rich history of charity and acts of kindness.
In HCIC we seek to organize these efforts for children by combining good
works with outreach and ingraining professional standards of practice in our
mission. The focus of our efforts is the General Church Sacred Care Orphanage
in Etora, Kenya, which was founded and is run by the Rev. Samson Mogusu
Abuga and the General Church Board of Kenya.
In addition to providing spiritual, emotional and physical care for children
who desperately need it, HCIC seeks to connect interested, like-minded people
with the General Church through the doctrine of charity. “The people and
resources who can help” may include folks inside the Church and out.
For all of my adult life I have struggled with introducing friends to the
Church in an active way that showcases our beliefs in action and deed. I have
referred them to the teachings, informed them about societies and schools,
and tried to make the Church accessible. Unfortunately, I’ve had little success.
I feel like our system of introduction for someone outside the Church is like
going from 0 to 60 in a second. I believe New Church charities are one way to
help bridge that gap, particularly for people outside of Bryn Athyn.
For this reason we are attempting to give the HCIC network of donors and
sponsors a uniquely global footprint. We are seeking ambassadors in each New
Church society, across social networks and beyond, to act not only as liaisons
and information nodes but also as a scouting network to help identify the next
potential project.
That next project could be in Detroit or Philadelphia or Tijuana or the
Philippines, or anywhere New Church people are seeking to care for children
in crisis. HCIC friends and ambassadors also can be conduits to networks of
like-minded people outside the Church who may be interested in helping, and
in doing so may develop a deeper interest in the Church.
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