In the extremely poor village of Kijabe, Kenya, there lives a crippled widow named Mary. After her husband died of AIDS a few years ago, she struggled to find food.
While she suffers from HIV, too, Mary’s greatest challenge is a nerve problem in her legs. She has to use crutches to walk and can’t move very far. Most of the day, the pain keeps her seated, so she spends hours reading her Bible while her children are at school.
Mary’s two young children, Robert and Elizabeth, were getting a meal every day through Forward Edge’s feeding program at the local primary school. Every once in a while, there were enough leftovers to bring some home for Mary.
Most days, though, Mary went hungry. She had become stick thin and constantly worried where she’d find her next meal.
Then came the pandemic. Quarantine measures forced our program to pivot from its normal food service at schools to delivering food packages to homes. That’s how we discovered Mary. God used the pandemic to bring us to her.
Immediately, our staff made sure Mary had consistent, nutritious meals. In time, they were even able to build the family a new home and buy Mary a new stove.
Today, months later, Mary’s anxiety is gone. She’s much healthier, has regained lost weight, and is happy again. She even has the strength to go sit outside her home and bask in the sun.
God reached out to Mary with His tangible love not just in spite of this horrible pandemic, but through it. A sweet reminder that no matter what hardships you face, God will work through them.
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
-Romans 8:28
Ymer grew up feeling invisible, his dreams of education dimmed by discrimination and discouragement. But a spark of hope emerged when he joined tutoring classes, where a simple moment of recognition changed everything. With newfound confidence, letters of encouragement, and the support of a sponsor, Ymer discovered his worth and the power of believing in himself.
Have you come across Sell a Home, Save a Child and wondered what it is? Abbreviated SAHSAC, Sell a Home, Save a Child is a funding program for Forward Edge International. The premise is simple: sell homes and save children. Real Estate professionals can partner with Sell a Home, Save
A special message from our Program Directors in Mexico, Victor and Lety Velasco: Hola and Feliz Navidad from Forward Edge and our program down here in Oaxaca, Mexico. We want to tell you a story of the impact you’re making. One of the first families to join our program 10
Relationships are everything. And it’s not just those in the U.S. reaching out to other countries; it’s the entire Global Church engaging with and learning from each other. As an organization, we seek to foster and steward those vital relationships. Recently, the director of our Uganda children’s program, Bonny Lugayizi,
17 yrs. old
Entered the program: March 2023
Pearl lives with her mother and two siblings in a one-bedroom cement brick house. The family has access to electricity but no potable water. The village women and girls must fetch water from a local dam or walk long distances to find other sources.
Pearl is from a family that practices polygamy; her father has two wives. Pearl, her mother and her siblings, Moses and Thomas (also in the program), are going through much difficulty. Her father neglects them and refuses to provide for them and their education; all of the responsibilities have fallen to her mother who has a disability. She offers hand-laundering services to other people to try and earn money, but it is infrequent. Before Create Hope, they lived on less than a dollar a day and some days there was no food. Now, Pearl and her siblings do not have to go to school without eating. Pearl is a Christian and she prays things will get better for her and her family.
