March 2023 Newsletter
Hi Nyayo Family!
March was a very exciting month full of new milestones! We were able to successfully complete our first ever Nyayo fundraiser where friends and family gathered and enjoyed time together while donating to various campaigns! Not only did we hold our first fundraiser but we also have exciting news to share with you regarding our new vision on how we’re getting more involved within the communities that surround Ibonde and Jinja Children’s Homes.
In this newsletter, you’ll get all the updates on what we’ve been up to this past month, as well as the financial report so that you can see how much we’ve raised and expended.
March 2023 Giving Report
Donors gave $4,909 towards Basic Needs this month and we once more met this priority! In addition to Basic Needs, the below graph shows all of the many other projects that were given to this month. Please click Monthly Financial Report for a full detailed breakdown.
Below is a breakout of how the money raised was expended this month. As you can see not all funds are expended in the same month that they are raised. Only amounts shown in green are sent over to be expended. Amounts shown in yellow are those amounts that are being saved until the next goal is reached or, in the case of the washing machine project, until we finish costing out that project. Grey indicates amounts already sent within this calendar year and blue represents money sent in previous years.
A few things to note:
This month we conducted our first fundraiser in Nyayo’s history (more detail about the event is below)! Donors gave $4,045.00 that night! This does not include money raised from the purchase of Nyayo Lager! The following shows a breakdown of where people specifically gave to:
Basic Needs 2023 ($840)
Celebrations ($65)
Heifers ($1,120)
Outreach ($50)
School Construction ($620)
Washing Machine Project ($450)
Other ($900)
You will notice that there was $900 raised in a category called “Other”. This amount was from donations raised at this month’s Nyayo Night fundraiser that did not specify a specific project for the funds to be expended on. We have chosen to save that amount and pray about its use. We will update you when we decide where to put it.
We collected $800 to start supporting our new Outreach program! $750 was allocated this month to purchase 3 wheelchairs. We have decided to focus the Outreach campaign specifically on wheelchairs for the moment as there are many in these villages Gordon is starting to go to with those in need of them.
We sent over the $250 we have been saving for this quarter’s birthdays and Easter celebrations. The money will be used to purchase cakes and sodas for both Ibonde and Jinja Homes.
A special thanks to our regulars and one time givers for this month’s allocation:
Pat and Alex Burgess, Stacey and Earl Sutton, Shellie Mitchell, Tim and Michelle Smith, Brent and Kristen Mitchell, Joyce McConnell, Barber Brady, David Phillips, Jordan Anderson, Arman and Leslie Jahandafard, Ryan and Sydney McKenna, Curran Hyde, Taylor Handley, Elaine Hatfield, Johann Moore, Ken and Margaret Denton, Zachary Peters, Reagan and Josh Babe, Allison Lee, Amberly Smith, Stefanie McClure, Jeffrey Davidson, Austin and Tawnie Bryant, Dusty and Leah Embrey, Skyler Embrey, Shauna and Spencer Bryant, Chris Ford, Matthew and Christen Passion, Calvin Embrey, Claire and Chris Bruce, Amanda Lee, Cayce McAlister, Sebastian and Eun Joo Tarchala, Christan Yarbrough, Anna Barrera, Lydia Foutch, Armin Jahandarfard, Josh Cornett, Angi Keel, Taylor Sutton, Mahalie and Brandon Todd, Anthony and Cindy McNatt, Amanda and Jacob Patterson, Ashley Kennemer, Alex Moore, Sierra and Sam Smith, and Cindy Dorsainvil.
Thank you all, we truly would not be close to meeting the needs and are already seeing the fruit from the sustainable projects. We couldn’t do this without your help!
What’s New?
First Ever Fundraiser Completed!
Nyayo’s first fundraiser is officially in the books! We partnered with Chandlers Ford Brewing at Beezr to create "Nyayo Lager", where a dollar from every pint sold will go towards a campaign of their choosing! In addition to brewing the beer, Beezr also hosted us and allowed us to have a fundraiser event at their establishment on Sunday 19 March from 4 - 8. We had 67 family and friends come out that night and we raised $4,045! This does not include the donations from the Nyayo Lager which is still being sold. We will update you when sales from the beer are completed. A special thanks to the co-founders/owners of Beezr, Doug Tibbs and Ron Jewell, for hosting us for our first fundraiser!
A special thanks to Michael’s family who came into town to help prepare all of the food for the event. He has said that he could not have done it without their help, especially from his mom, Joyce. She and Ken came a week before the event and started preparing food for Nyayo Night on the Wednesday before the event. Joyce came up with the entire menu to feed 80-100 people which consisted of the following:
Appetizers:
Salmon and cucumber bites (a toothpick with a piece of cucumber, a piece of cream cheese, a piece of smoked salmon, a slice of radish, topped off with a parsley leaf.
Devils on Horseback (dates stuffed with a smoked almond, wrapped in bacon, soaked in soy sauce, padded in brown sugar before going in the oven)
Curried Parsnip Chips (sliced parsnips, sprinkled with curry powder, and backed in the oven)
Dubliner Irish Cheese and Crackers
Main Course:
Corned Beef (30 lbs of corned beef and pickling spice simmered in water for 8 hours)
Buttered Cabbage with Bacon
Roasted Root Vegetables (white potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips, rutabagas, and turnips)
Irish Soda Bread and bricks of Kerry Gold butter
Dessert:
Chocolate Irish Car Bomb Cake (two layers of chocolate cake with Guiness stout with an inner layer of Bailey’s creme center, topped with a Bushmill’s whiskey glaze)
Irish Fudge (white fudge with macadamia nuts)
Lucky Peanut Clusters (chocolate covered peanuts)
Shortbread cookies
This meal, especially the main course, consists of food that the McKenna’s traditionally serve at their St. Patrick’s Day celebrations at their home. So this event was not only special because it was our first fundraiser but because it was a chance to share something that is special to Michael.
Michael would not have had the confidence to take on our first fundraiser without his mom and family’s help! Joyce has a gift in hospitality and we are thankful for her help in planning, cooking, and organizing the food for the event!
During the event, one of our friends and supporters, Lydia helped organize and coordinate a silent auction during the first hour. There were seven items that were donated for auction including: 2 Atlanta Braves/Houston Astros baseball tickets, a haircut/shave at Governors Shave Company, a photography session with Anna Leigh Photography, merchandise from Beezrs, and three four packs of Nyayo Lager. Altogether, these items raised over $950! A big thanks to Lydia, Matthew and Christen Passion, Anna Barrera, Liz Kinslow, and Doug Tibbs for your part in making the silent auction such a success!
About 45 minutes into Nyayo Night, Michael gave a presentation on the history behind Ibonde and Jinja Children’s Homes, Nyayo, and the work that has been accomplished thus far. He ended with future plans as well as announcing our new Outreach expansion and Community Guardian Homes. A teenager, Jessie Phillips, from the church youth group Michael attends then blessed the food and we all ate together. Thus ended our first fundraiser.
You can view all photos from Nyayo night by clicking Nyayo Fundraiser by Anna Leigh Photography. You can also download any or all photos from the event by simply entering the following PIN number 6646 when you go to download them. A special thanks to Anna Barrera for taking the pictures during the event and providing them free of charge! Below is a sampling of some of the photos from that night.
Outreach / Community Guardian Homes
This year, God has really been expanding our ground to be a blessing, not only to the kid’s in our orphanages but to the families within the local communities as well! Our community outreach and guardian homes ministry came out of need and a vision to provide a safe loving environment for some of the children in local villages who barely have anything in life. Some of these children have never been to school, never received any health care, never worn shoes and most importantly a lot of them live with disabilities. Our prayer this year is for God to continue guiding us as we carry on His mission to love these children as we find them, and give them the care they need. This is a fairly large step and in a new direction, but we are very excited to see this unfold! We have already started seeing miracles in these communities as three children will be receiving wheelchairs from Nyayo in the beginning of April! Some of the current communities we are engaged in include Kyakasura, Kiguma, Buhara, Kalyago, Buteebe, Rwengoma, Bukuuku, Ibonde, Karago, Magamaga, Kangulumira, Busana, Kimaka, and Buwenge.
We have decided to start a new Outreach campaign and focus it on raising money for wheelchairs ($250 each) until every child and caregiver in these villages are up off the ground. The first $250 will be going to help a child Gordon met named Emmanuel Kisembo (Kisembo means “gift” in their language). He is 13 years old and is mute and disabled in both legs. In the pictures below Gordon is with Kisembo and his father. Michael and Hunter were able to video chat with Kisembo, his father, and Gordon last month. We got to see the spirit of Kisembo and how quick he is to smile despite his disability. In the pictures below, you’ll notice that his hands and clothes are dirty. This is because he currently crawls/drags himself on the ground when his dad isn’t there to help him move. We are beyond excited to be able to help Kisembo and other children and caregivers like him simply get off the ground. His name is fitting as it really is a gift for us to serve him and others like him.
Some of the current communities Gordon currently is engaged in include Kyakasura, Kiguma, Buhara, Kalyago, Buteebe, Rwengoma, Bukuuku, Ibonde, Karago, Magamaga, Kangulumira, Busana, Kimaka, and Buwenge. These villages are all short distances from either Ibonde or Jinja. The conditions in these villages are considerably worse than where we have been serving in Ibonde and Jinja but Gordon really summarizes the heart of this new direction well:
“These families and kids live in total hardships but through them they are teaching us another aspect of life. I am more thankful in life since being with these communities. God has really been leading Nyayo in a direction that only him can do to touch so many forgotten kids more so in our villages. Not many people attend to these people and I am glad God is using us guys. I am thankful for the two of you allowing God to use us in this journey and being open for God to lead us. I cant wait for the two of you to visit these villages because most people try to ignore these areas because of the conditions of the people. BUT God has led us to these places to show His love.”
Below are some of the pictures Gordon has shared with us in the villages he is reaching out to.
You should expect to see some of the pictures and content on the “Our Kids” page in the near future. We can’t wait to share new updates with you in the months to come, so stay tuned!
Things We Are Praying About
We continue to ask for your prayers for God’s continued guidance as we follow along wherever the Spirit leads. Prayer is clearly being answered in ways we aren’t even asking for help in. If you’d like to pray along with us, these are things Michael, Gordon, and Hunter are currently praying for:
Blessings for the children and caregivers of Ibonde and Jinja Children’s Home
Guidance for Michael, Gordon, and Hunter as they continue to lead Nyayo
Guidance for others who are helping
Guidance on upcoming projects for the children’s homes
Bible Study
Weekly Zoom Studies
Please reach out if you’re interested in joining our bible studies via zoom every Sunday at 7pm CT! We welcome anyone who wants to learn more about Jesus, even if you just wish to keep your camera off and only listen in on our discussions! We like to keep it light and informal as we have casual conversations about the various chapters we read throughout the Bible! We are currently reading 1 Samuel.
Peace and blessings,
Michael, Gordon, and Hunter
