Seven year old Aster is a confident, smart and playful student at our Bethany School in Ethiopia.But Aster’s progress was hiding the struggle of her home situation which was revealed to our staff when Aster’s mum, Bekelu, arrived at our project office; distressed and starving.
We’re doing everything we can to make a difference in our kids' lives. Yet many return home after school to go to sleep on the hard, cold ground alongside their parents and siblings. But a bed can change all that.
15 year old Sena is kind and thoughtful, full of potential and, just like every child, deserving of a bright future. But Sena is living with HIV, causing her to worry. Today Sena is healthy thanks to the life-changing HIV Food Programme. She tells us how the programme has taken away her worries and helped her feel happy again.
Sadly tragedy and unexpected loss are all too common for children in Bekoji. The Stand by Me Bekoji Children’s Village was built to care for children just like Samrawit, orphaned, abandoned and in need of a loving family. We welcomed her into our girls’ home after the death of her father and she immediately fitted in.