2022 Journey of Faith | Education Initiative
2022 Journey of Faith | Education Initiative
by Scott Nordstrom
November 15, 2022
We spent October 27-29 in the Northwestern Province of Zambia with World Outreach Team Action (WOTA) as we assessed the needs of orphan children in the area.
Due to the mining activity in this province, many people are moving to this area, while the needs of orphan children often remain unaddressed.
We were accompanied by Pastor Barry Ilunga, the president of WOTA, who I have known since 2007. In addition, his wife Beatrice and son Kyembe was part of the WOTA team.
We visited four schools in the area, met with school administrators, and dialogued with the student body. We also had the opportunity to go into the village and easily discovered orphan children not attending school.
We have been in discussions with WOTA going back twelve months regarding their Ignite Christian Service (ICS) initiative that seeks to provide partnership with local schools to complement ongoing efforts for quality and equitable education services through independent community leadership inputs. Our partnership would be targeted to the orphan children that would attend the local school. This support would include enrollment assistance, uniform, backpack, school supplies, and nutritional aid, and would be facilitated by WOTA.
It is estimated that there are 35,000 school age orphan children in the Northwestern Province of Zambia, and many of these children are not in school due to a lack of resources. We look forward to potentially working with WOTA, and to potentially scaling this effort to impact 1,000’s of orphan children. Our involvement can be accomplished for as little as $15 per child per month that will provide an education experience that will afford a child to break the cycle of poverty.
Where we have worked in DR Congo & Zambia since 2006.
My return to Zambia was long overdue, as my last visit being in 2018. It was wonderful to reconnect with old friends to advance the cause of orphan children. Many of these same friends were instrumental in working with Minister Isaiah in building enthusiasm for our Church Mobilization launch on October 31st where nearly 250 ministry leaders gathered to exchange ideas on how to serve orphan children in Zambia.
Our visit the House of Faith and House of Hope Orphanages in the Southern Province was awesome too. All of the children are getting so big; so much so it was difficult to recognize some of them.
Our ministry has been blessed by so many quality partners in the field and I believe that the investment in this mission will provide returns for years to come!
Education Initiative is our initiative that focuses on enrolling and keeping orphan children in school. We currently support 322 students in Kenya and Zambia within this initiative.
Scott Nordstrom leads GO! today and was a co-founder when we launched in 2005. Scott has served with GO! for 16-years. Scott has been instrumental in deploying 166 volunteers on 27 teams to the mission field, and has personally served in DR Congo, India, Kenya, Mexico, Nepal, South Sudan, and Zambia. Scott is a published author and has also spoke in the United States, as well as, internationally regarding child welfare and matters of faith, hope, and love.
Global Orphan Relief (GO) has been serving orphaned children since 2005. We have accomplished this work through local partners in each country that provides oversight and distribution of care. In October 2022, we served 6,559 orphan children in Ethiopia, Kenya, Pakistan, South Sudan, and Zambia within our Home-based Care, Scholarship, Nutrition, and Church Mobilization Initiatives.
You may send support or other correspondence to Global Orphan Relief, 16352 Prairie Farm Circle, Parker, CO 80134 or you may give also give electronically at Education Initiative or give on this website at the upper righthand corner under ‘Donate’ and select Scholarship Fund under the Fund designation.
Movement of FAITH | Voice of HOPE | Act of LOVE
Global Orphan Relief (GO!) is a Christian relief agency serving vulnerable children and is a recognized U.S. public charity, tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3). All donations to GO!, or any charitable contribution processed through Network For Good Donor Advised Fund, are tax deductible to the extent of the law. If you prefer, you may provide gifts of support by sending via mail to the address above.