Panda Express fundraiser!!

Hi friends! Here's our first fundraiser for the Eswatini 2020 team! 

Please print or save this image to your phone and support our upcoming mission trip by eating at Panda Express next Saturday. You must have a copy of this in either format to give credit to our team's account. If you have any questions, just let us know and thanks for your help!!

Thankful for partners in the Gospel

Grace Klein Community is a non-profit in Birmingham, Alabama. They have been wonderful partners with us as we have visited Eswatini, giving of their time, resources, and connecting us with others to invest in this beautiful country. They also invest many efforts in our local community through food rescue, ministry to families and individuals, worship evenings, as well as international mission trips.

Here is an article featured on their website now regarding our upcoming trip. We are thankful for you, friends!!

Why Eswatini?

Why Eswatini?

We believe that God has special place in his heart for the people living in the Kingdom of Eswatini. We’re here to help people see God’s heart for them and to help uplift their communities where possible.

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Kingdom of Eswatini Statistics

Eswatini has the world’s highest infection rate of HIV at 28 percent –affecting over 360,000 of the 1.3 million Swazis in the country. The nation recently experienced the worst drought in the last 100 years –during which, food insecurity was facing one-in-three Swazis. With a life expectancy of 49 years and poor employment opportunities, Eswatini needs help to ensure the next generation can be effective leaders.

1,300,000 Total Population
309,000 Children
87,000 Orphans
220,000 Living with HIV
684,936 In Extreme Poverty

UNICEF The State of the World’s Children Report 2017, 120,000 Orphans UNICEF (2012)
Total Orphans – http://data.africanchildinfo.net/ejmodyf/orphans
Extreme Poverty – CIA based off 2010 est. population living below intl. poverty line

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Our Vision and Mission 

We build up servant leaders who lead by example. These leaders go into their communities and become the change they want to see.

Our vision is to see Transformed People transforming communities through discipleship, asset-based community development, and a holistic approach toward addressing the complex issues of poverty. As the people we train see their lives transformed, they’ll respectfully seek to see that change happen in others. We don’t want to provide aid, we want to start a movement of people who help each other and their communities without motive.

Longterm, we would like to see Eswatini become a leadership training ground to the surrounding nations and more. We aim to help people get a solid foundation so they can confidently walk into their next step in their journey –whether that means business, ministry, or missions.

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What We Do in Eswatini

We tend to each child holistically for survival, community, education, and future employment. Encouraging them to maintain a focus on sustainability, discipleship, leadership, independence, and long-term self-sufficiency. We also help transform the lives of the partners through exposure, education, relationships, and service.

Empower

Empowered local leaders share the gospel, disciple, and help create self-sufficiency for every child. Our local leaders are hand selected from our CarePoints, where we often see teenagers who are natural leaders. We work with these young adults and their families to create opportunities for them though a program called the Swazi Leadership Academy.

Engage

Encouraging partners to directly engage in healthy international development practices using asset-based development plans. Our development plans are created with active involvement with the broader community through open community meetings and active discussions with community leaders.

Develop

Our strategic partnerships help implement, fund, and manage leadership development and sustainability in Eswatini communities.

Uplift

We address the complex causes of poverty, including material, spiritual, emotional, social, economic, and educational needs.


----taken from https://www.eswatinirising.com/about

great quote to remember

2020 Team!

We are excited that God has led a team together who desires to travel to Eswatini this summer. We feel called to visit Lesibovu and encourage the ministry partners there as well as reconnect with the community. Please join us in praying for provision and guidance as we seek His will in this process! We currently have several adults and students committed to travel. If you are interested in learning more about our trip, please comment below.

Can't wait to see this beautiful country and these faces again!!

  

Christmas greetings!

Merry Christmas from Lesibovu! https://youtu.be/V1NBzIkwFCk

School holiday in Eswatini

I saw this post below by a missionary friend who serves in the Nsoko area of Eswatini. Her sentiment is true also for those in other areas with various HopeChest and AIM CarePoints. I thought I should share this point in case there are this new to the ministry.
Please pray for the people facing hot temps now that it’s summertime and for the volunteers who continue to serve now that kids are out of school. Many rely on CarePoints to feed them their one meal of the day. We are so grateful for all the staff and servant-hearted volunteers at Lesibovu!!
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“While we are enjoying winter over here, the heat is really ramping up in Eswatini! The kids at our community centers are finished with school & on summer break now! While many non-profits take a break during the school break & holidays, our community center volunteers have chosen to continue cooking for the kids, because even though it's the holidays, many of our kids would be without food on the school break if it weren't for Wetsembekile community centers.”