Chayah Children's Home

Would you please join us in prayer today? Voting started yesterday in Uganda with a very similar political climate as the US. Power was shut off to the whole nation in hopes of bringing some peace during election chaos. We have two kids that are fairly sick. One being our youngest (a baby) and the other being one of our boys. Please pray their bodies heal quickly. And lastly, we are excited to tell you our second Giving Tuesday mom has delivered a healthy baby girl! Thank you for giving so that she could have safe delivery! Mom and baby are both doing well Once again, we are so thankful that you have come alongside us.

2020. What a year. It’s difficult to write about 2020 without holding out both hands like a scale. On the one hand...but then on the other. We’ve been both amazing and burdened as it has all played out, but through it all we have been loved and cared for and we say God is good. Thank you once again for joining us on this wild journey to care for the least of these. For a full(er) recap see our stories. Here’s to 2021!

Happy New Year - these girls

Give the gift of new life in the new year! - https://mailchi.mp//give-the-gift-of-new-life-in-the-new-y

https://mailchi.mp/cba740b5c01b/redeemed-from-slavery

A little Faith at Christmas! - https://mailchi.mp/c28b20208baa/a-little-faith-at-christmas

Wow!! We pray God pours out His blessing on each of you for your generosity!! We’re so grateful!

Desperation in the midst of the shutdown in Uganda.

A short update... things are going fairly well over here at Chayah. Some kids start school this month while others will most likely be starting after the new year. They are keeping up on their studies as much as they can by having private teachers come to the Chayah compound for tutoring. With the individual attention there has been much growth! Outside of the compound things look a bit different. About 75% of school age girls over the age of 14 became pregnant during the shu...t down. Boredom, desperation and vulnerability are all causes. Schools have relaxed their rules about being pregnant at school. There is concern for the young girls that are small in stature being able to survive a delivery. We are brainstorming how Chayah can help. Opening a birthing center of sorts to have a safe place for the young girls to deliver, sponsoring individual girls to pay for their birth and support them or maybe have a home for young pregnant girls. We recognize that there is a need but are waiting on God for clear direction. There is not a need for financial gifts at the moment but stay tuned as a plan for help comes together. Again, thank you for linking arms with us. We know the whole world is in a strange season right now and looking for hope so we stand together with you as we put our hope in the ONE who holds our future. See more

We get asked often how Chayah is funded. It’s by people like you! To fully support a child it’s $150/month. Most people share the sponsorship with others (explained on our website) or you have the option to sponsor solely. We have a number of children still needing partial sponsorships so have a look around and pray about linking arms with us and helping to support these rescued precious ones!

A few weeks ago we posted about our 4 newest Chayah kids. Nusula, Angel, Paul and baby Faith. Nusula was hiding in a field seeking refuge from an abusive aunt who had just taken her in after she was a house maid/slave. The other 3 are siblings who have been rescued from a mentally disabled abusive mother. Read more about their stories and please consider partnering with us and joining their village. Link in bio.

(Edited to maintain the children’s privacy) We have an urgent request. Just this week Chayah brought in 4 more children. The first is a pre-teen girl who was found living in a garden, drinking from rain puddles having escaped from an extremely abusive relative. On the way to pick up the first, another emergency situation arose. Three siblings, bound together inside their home were rescued just before the house was set on fire. All three are under 10 and beginning their ...adjustment at Chayah. Would you please consider making a donation for immediate needs to help care for them? You can use the link in our bio and make a donation to the General Fund. Soon we will have their sponsor pages up on our website and we ask that you prayerfully consider becoming a sponsor. As it may feel like the world and the future is so uncertain right for all of us, your donation and prayers truly make a direct impact and a world of difference for these kids who have been through some big trauma. Jesus is redeeming and restoring and we can't wait to watch their story unfold. LINK IN PROFILE TO GIVE. Thank you See more

One of the biggest bummers about the COVID lockdown...missing our preschoolers! Things couldn’t have been going better for our first preschool class at Hillside Christian School (Chayah’s private school). 2 of our own Chayah kids and a handful of neighbors made up this class and by the grace of God we have been able to visit and help out our preschool families during this difficult financial time. The kids were thriving in the classroom and we can’t wait to have them all back with us.

Last week, some of our children were asked to be on a radio talk show! They were asked to speak to the children of the area on anything they wanted. How cool! They were nervous but Olivia spoke on how they should behave during lockdown. She told them to respect their parents, read books and their bibles and to help with chores. John, Agnes and Tony joined her. They shared how they came to be a part of the Chayah family, how God has changed their lives, how life has been in...side the Chayah compound during the Covid-19 period and gave some advice to both parents and children for during this time. Tony did such a great job and made the host cry. Tony's advice was for parents to stop beating and mistreating their children. He said children don't ask to be born, it's a gift to their parents and when they beat them and hurt them it makes them run away where they have to live in the streets to be safe. It was a great opportunity and we are grateful that Chayah continues to be able to be a light in the community. See more

Our brothers and sisters all over the world: We are with you. We are praying for you. Because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. Luke 1:78-79

We are continuing to work hard to meet the needs of our community. Pastor Omandi has been visiting neighbors and the hurting even though we still can’t meet as a church. He says Praise the Lord. We want just to appreciate you for the wonderful work the Lord is doing through you of giving financial assistance to people who are starving for food in Uganda due to the country Lock down in control of Covid 19. In fact, it has been a great blessing to many who have received the assistance. These are some of the pictures of the families we are reaching with food. They're old age people. God bless you.

We’ve been quiet. I guess we haven’t known exactly how to update. So this is a big update. Because of the fear of COVID, 5 week ago the Ugandan president completely shut down the country and the US embassy left. We were unaware that such a thing could even happen but the airport closed and the US embassy left, no one was allowed to travel on the roads. Our intern, Lauren, was stuck and we made the hard decision to try to get her home. It was a battle and the fight of ou...r life but we fight from a place of victory and God sure made a way. The U.S. chartered a plane to bring home any U.S. citizens that were left but still, the roads were closed and there was no way for her to get the airport. Bob Goff, a consulate for Uganda, wrote a letter allowing her on the roads, along with permission from the President of Uganda and she was able to arrive safely home. Shortly after, things turned bad in Uganda. With no one allowed on the roads, this meant that no one could work and no one could get food. They are now entering their 6th week of this. And it’s really, really bad. The kids at Chayah are ok. But we are going to share the reality of what is going on. This is just a small snapshot of what desperation and starvation has done: a mother killed her two kids and then herself, a taxi driver committed suicide because he couldn’t provide for his family since he isn’t allowed on the roads, a soldier shot his family then himself, women have delivered babies on the side of the road trying to walk to the hospital only to end up dying from complications, siblings killing each other because one ate more then their fair share, there have been riots and violence. It’s bad. But God has been gracious to us at Chayah. We have had enough food and some to share. Lauren has been working hard stateside to raise money for the families outside of Chayah that we help. We constantly have people knocking at the gate desperately asking for any food we may have. We have kept all of this quiet to ensure safety for our ministry but the Ugandan media has been reporting how much Chayah is helping the community so word is already out. But today, we got to provide groceries to 400 families. Praise God. Thank you to all who have supported us. We will continue to care of our village and community as long as we can. We know our world is in a tough place and everyone is trying to navigate it, but when you think of us, will you please pray that we can continue to be a beacon of hope and light. That God would pour out His mercy on his people. See more

Things are hard and going from bad to worse. But Jesus is still king. We can’t share all the details of everything on here now but thank you for praying. Please continue to pray for Uganda. We know many of you have been battling for us in prayer and we just wanted to publicly say thank you!! You all are making kingdom impacts!

A big happy birthday to our fearless director, Janet. One word that could easily describe her is steadfast. She is courageous and strong and so selfless. She’s been bringing in children for about 10 years now and through all the turmoil, mountain highs and valley lows, she remains. Thank you Janet for your faithfulness. Praying God’s continued favor on your life and blessings today. We love you and happy birthday.

Please pray for Uganda. A neighboring ministry posted this photo today. His sign says We can’t stay home because we must find food for our children. COVID 19 has reached Uganda. Things are going from worse to bad. But God. He is so good. Please join us in praying for God’s mercy and protection.