All of the children that Hope for the Nations works with are 'at risk' because of the effects of extreme poverty. Poverty impacts children because it hurts families. There are a number of ways in which it does this.
Poverty is a barrier to accessing health services. HIV/AIDS, malaria and TB affect millions of parents each year; without access to treatment, parents are unable to get well, earn a living or care for their children. Sometimes this means that their children are orphaned.
Poverty impacts a family's ability to provide food, shelter and education for all of their family members. In extreme poverty conditions, families may send their children to work rather than to school; in the worst scenario, children are employed in the worst forms of labour or parents sell their children into the trafficking network.
Poverty, in a variety of ways, feeds the cycle of violence in countries that are caught in conflict. Not only does this violence kill parents and children, it also causes major upheaval in the lives of families and communities, destroying family assets and future opportunities.
Without strategic interventions, poverty tends to be passed from one generation to another. Hope for the Nations believes that by intervening in the lives of the children who are most disadvantaged by poverty - orphans and vulnerable children - we can begin the process of change and the cycle of poverty can be broken. "Today's orphans" can be "tomorrow's leaders".
Jerusalem Children's Ministry (JCM) is a Christian organization that cares for orphans, at risk and abandoned street children between the ages of 5 and 18. JCM caters for the basic needs of food, shelter, medical attention, and guidance for those children lacking. Currently, these children are staying with a guardian, Good Samaritan or on the streets of Kenya.
Following the construction of the children’s home, Jerusalem Children’s Ministry will begin self sustaining projects such as crop farming and the maintenance of farm animals. The funds from these projects will be the means by which the children receive household income for food, medical attention, activities, and other home necessities.
JCM is located 30 km from Nairobi, Kenya. This land has access to main roads, water, and electricity. The acre of land is fertile and well suitable for farming. In addition it is located near a government owned forest which provides fresh air and beautiful surroundings.
This vision was developed in 2008 by a committed Christian evangelist, named Irene Muiru. After serving street kids and orphans with the organization 'Love Mercy' for 2 years in Kenya and witnessing young Ugandans reaching out to suffering children and AIDS orphans, God’s vision began to grow in Irene’s heart. She was inspired to reach out to and love the vulnerable children in her area of influence which includes many different communities in Kenya and neighboring countries as well.
Jerusalem Children Ministry’s (JCM) aim is to train children at risk to become individuals who are able to sustain themselves and become responsible citizens and future leaders while providing them with basic necessities, such as food clothing and shelter.
Mission Statement:
To share the love of Jesus Christ with the suffering children of Kenya as we are called to in James 1:27 "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: To look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself form being polluted by the world.”
Objectives:
- To spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ by serving children and planting churches
- To provide shelter/settlement to homeless children by establishing children village homes
- To reconcile children to their families or immediate relatives
- To provide school and vocational training in order to produce skills and knowledge
- To preserve and promote the children’s artistic talents by means of singing, dancing, and drama
- To implement mission, sports, hospital and prison ministries in order to reach more at risk children within Kenya and its neighboring nations
- To spearhead campaigns’ against HIV/AIDS virus through seminars
- To advocate children’s rights through working with government organizations and other stakeholders