We knew we had been entrusted with this precious gift of a lovely baby girl and we accepted her into our family and named her Naomi. From abandoned to accepted, from being alone in the world to having a family who adore her, Naomi’s life is now full of love. Her beautiful smile tells nothing of the difficulty that lead to her becoming part of the family but shows the vast opportunity ahead of her and the joy and love that every children should experience.
Naomi was a special surprise. At just nine days old she was abandoned outside our home in Tamu, with only a piece of a calendar to mark her date of birth.
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Isaac first came to our Emmanuel Care Centre when he was four years old. Life was hard for him back then. With barely any income, his mum struggled to feed him and Isaac had little chance of ever achieving an education.
Isaac is now 11 and lives with his mum and his nephew, cheeky Jhon Devis. He receives regular food, medical help and tutoring at our safe and colourful care centre. We’ve seen him come out of his shell and best of all, he’s doing well at school and on his way to achieving his dreams of being an actor.
Mersayit lives with her mum and sister. Their small mud hut does not have a toilet, toys or even a bed.
Mersayit’s mum used to have a heard of sheep that helped her earn an income to support her children, but most of her sheep were stolen. This pushed the already struggling family deeper into poverty. Without the means to provide food and clothes for Mersayit, Mersayit's mum felt hopeless. Now Mersayit receives regular food, medical care and a fantastic education at our Bethany School. Mersayit is able to play with her friends knowing we are looking after her and her family.
Jean Carlos’s father is in prison with a 15 year sentence for murder.
His mother met the father of her third child while working in a brothel, and sadly he is not a kind man. With barely any income for the family, food is scarce at home. When he first came to our school, Jean Carlos had a hard time getting along with other children. Now he puts all his effort into learning to read and write and has lots of friends to play marbles with at recess. He has a special interest in animals, especially bugs and he is growing in health as he gets to eat a nutritious meal every day, something he doesn’t get at home.
Rayana* comes from a remote hill village in Nepal which in the wet season is a four day walk from the nearest town.
Her family is from the very low Chepang caste and both her parents are illiterate, working in the fields to earn money. Her village lies close to the Indian border attracting child traffickers - she knows there is more than just leopards and tigers to fear.
Now Rayana is a Stand by Me child she has all the opportunities that an education can provide, good nutrition and health care, and lots of new friends! When she arrived at our hostel she had never had a bath, never used a toilet and never been to school. Now she is learning her numbers and letters and can even speak English. She may be little but she definitely has a big personality.
