Orphanages
Mike and Family Go to Zambia
President of the Alkare Foundation, Mike Gregg, traveled to Zambia during the summer of 2007 with his wife and twin daughters. They visited one of the foundation sponsored orphanages. Upon returning, Mike exclaimed, “God is on the move in Zambia.” From his report, the board of directors heartily agrees with him.
The Gregg family visited the Kabwata Orphanage in Lusaka, Zambia where Angela Miyanda, director and wife to former vice-president of Zambia, is the director and a faithful servant of Jesus Christ. Kabwata translates “cup of water,” an apt name as the orphanage’s well provides clean water for the village. More than that, Kabwata provides the basic necessities for 85 orphaned children—shelter, food, education, and the Good News of our Master Jesus. Mrs. Miyanda accomplishes all this with support received from outside donors. Mike emphasizes the miraculous manner in which supplies seem to multiply to meet the urgent needs of the orphans. Each day, a 100 pound bag of “millie meal,” a type of cornmeal mush, feeds all of the children—another case of loaves and fishes in God’s kingdom.
Megan and Kristy, Mike’s daughters, found the children of Kabwata respectful and extremely polite, despite the harsh conditions under which they live. Megan said, “They are all so well behaved and they love candy!” Loving candy is universal for children, but being HIV positive is not. Sadly, many of the children in the orphanage are HIV positive. Those infected are now receiving anti-viral medications, thanks to donations from Europe and America. For that, we are profoundly grateful.
One young man, Gift, stole the hearts of the Gregg family. Local authorities brought Gift to the orphanage in December of 2005 with third-degree burns over most of his body—inflicted by his very own uncle. By God’s design, Gift is a handsome and delightful young man but very self-conscious of his scars. That’s understandable. But his scars present an even more challenging threat. Since he is still growing, scarring will cause life-limiting disfigurement for Gift. To compensate for the lack of elasticity in his skin, he must have skin removed on a regular basis for skin grafts to be applied. This is the only way he will be able to grow normally. It’s a slow and very painful process. And it’s expensive. Mrs. Miyanda is now Gift’s legal guardian so she can travel with him to South Africa for treatment, but the expense is too great. The Shriners Burn Center in Sacramento, California has agreed to provide corrective surgery, if the Alkare Foundation can deliver Gift and an escort to the burn center and provide lodging. Thus was born the Gift Gala, set for October 6, 2007, to raise the $20,000 necessary for his expenses and to meet the needs of the Alkare Foundation’s other orphanage projects in Uganda and Mexico.
