Hope For The Nations

Learn more about this Program Program: CHILDREN IN EXTREME POVERTY

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".

View CHILDREN IN EXTREME POVERTY

Funds Raised: $3,200.00 CAD
Project
KENYA - Kitale : Organics 4 Orphans (O4O)

Organics for Orphans, a Hope for the Nations and Love Mercy program, is targeting two issues endemic in Africa: the impoverishment of farmers and homelessness of orphans.

Our vision is to see rural Africans escape extreme poverty by returning to agricultural basics, with enhancements. The Organics for Orphans strategy is premised on the belief that small scale farmers can produce greater harvests at a lower cost.

Our program will achieve this vision by providing small-scale farmers with organic training and basic resources to maximize their harvest without jeopardizing the future fertility of their land.

Together with our community partners, we are taking a 3-pronged approach to transforming small-scale agriculture and the orphan pandemic starting in Kenya.

1. Sharing leading-edge agricultural practices

2. Providing organic agricultural inputs

3. Connecting thriving communities with orphans

Beginning in Kenya, O4O will partner with church groups of approximately 100 members or more, whose leaders are committed to development and who share the values of HFTN and Love Mercy. From there we will identify individuals with an interest in organic farming and demonstrated community leadership potential.

O4O sponsors training for Farm Network Leaders in organic farming and community development. In addition to training, the Farm Network Leaders receive basic farm inputs, such as open-pollinated seeds and organic fertilizer to immediately boost their farm production. As the network of organic farmers in a close geographical area grows, O4O will support Farm Network Leaders in establishing co-ops to process products where appropriate and to market their surpluses.

The goal of O4O is to shift dependency for the care of orphans from external private donors and governments to local communities by generating wealth amongst small-scale African farmers.

Our partner organization, Love Mercy, is dedicated to alleviating the suffering of the poor and the oppressed. Love Mercy has projects based in East Africa, Central Africa, South Africa, and Haiti.

[Click here to learn more about our partners]

Our other partner organization is Element Four, a marketing and Research and Development company based in Kelowna, BC. Element Four is focused on the development of atmospheric water generators, or WaterMills, which can be used in settings that lack access to fresh potable water.

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It just keeps getting better!

Posted by Admin on May 26, 2010 5:00 PM

It just keeps getting better!

Posted by Admin on May 26, 2010 5:00 PM

It Just Keeps Getting Better!

May 2009 marked the fifth trip to Africa for Dale and Linda Bolton since their work there began in 2004. Five years ago, this Thornhill couple first travelled to Malawi - one of the countries hardest hit by AIDS. They'd raised $8,000 to build an orphanage for Hope For The Nations through a house renovation. The experience was incredibly rewarding, but they came away wondering what more they could do to help the 30+ million orphans in Africa.
Shortly after that first trip, Linda discovered Natural Calm, a natural health product that relieved her sleep and muscle problems. The product was not available in Canada and so the Bolton’s became the sole Canadian distributors of Natural Calm health products. They have since seen rapid growth in their business and today, Natural Calm is distributed for the Bolton’s by Purity Life Products to over 1,500 stores across Canada.
Early in their business venture, Dale and Linda used all the business profits to build Hope for the Nations orphanages and schools. As they traveled to the project sites, however, they discovered an even more primary concern: nutrition. None of the orphanages were growing their own food, and when grain prices rose, their already tight budgets became unbearably strained.
An innovative solution soon presented itself. Dale and Linda discovered an organization in Kenya devoted to organic agricultural training. Manor House Agricultural Centre instructs locals in producing their own organic fertilizer and pesticides, creating more efficient garden beds and saving seeds. Their method of farming is low-cost, replenishes the soil, and requires little water. Even more exciting, the crops grown in this method are more nutritious and plentiful than those grown using industrial methods.
Starting in 2008, the Bolton's are hiring graduates from the two year program as community agricultural workers. These workers will train orphanages and their communities to grow their own food, sustainably and reliably. The Bolton's are calling this newest program under Hope for the Nations “Organics 4 Orphans”.
Recently, the Bolton's have discovered another exciting opportunity to support health in Africa. For the last 18 years, Anamed International has been researching the medicinal properties of indigenous African plants. Some of this organization's most inspiring discoveries even hold out a promise for reducing malaria and preventing the development of HIV into AIDS, both of which are crises in Africa. Anamed helps share their knowledge through week-long training workshops in Africa for health and community workers. The Bolton's are pleased to be supporting a volunteer Registered Nutritional Therapist from Canada - Shayna Grimwood - to participate in this workshop. Following the course, Shayna will spend several weeks training the Organics 4 Orphans community agricultural workers. In turn, these workers will help orphanages and their communities grow and prepare their own natural, local medicine.
In the span of five years, Dale and Linda have made life-changing connections with their partners, volunteers and donors. They feel their adventure has only begun, and with each successive trip, they can see their contribution towards the realization of Hope for the Nations' motto: Today's Orphans, Tomorrows Leaders.

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