Where Do They Go?

Some of our kids at HUGS for Tomorrow are sponsored, but for the most part we raise money every six months to feed each one and keep them all in school. We do this for a few different reasons, including the constantly fluctuating food costs and the opportunities it presents for our supporters to get to know them and watch them grow. But there’s another reason you probably wouldn’t guess. We raise money for each kid twice a year because sometimes they disappear.

Ekali is one of those kids. We’re thankful she’s come back to us and that I get to tell you her story. She’s six years old and the only child in her family. Her parents enrolled her in our feeding program a few years ago, before it was officially HUGS for Tomorrow. Her mother usually walked her to school, or she walked alone—something fairly common in the village at her age. But one morning her father was late to his bricklayer job so he could bring her to the campus and thank us for feeding his daughter. We were pleased to know Ekali was from a loving family with both parents involved in her life. That makes her something of an anomaly among our students and much more likely to excel.

We immediately posted a video introducing Ekali, asking for support to feed her for six months. Even though her dad was employed, inflation has made it almost impossible for even two parents to feed one child. A quality education is out of the question for most families. You all came through without delay, and Ekali not only joined us each morning for breakfast, but she stayed for class as well.

Then one day she was late to school. Her mother showed up with her in tow, apologizing that her father had taken ill and had upset their schedule. Then a few days later Ekali didn’t show up at all, but her mother stopped by to say her father’s condition was worse, and she needed to take the day to get him to the local clinic, with Ekali’s help along the way. Ekali never returned, and the house the family had occupied sat empty—until recently.

After one and a half years of wondering where Ekali went, her mother brought her back around. She told us that the illness her husband had was actually an aggressive form of cancer, and he had needed full time care. They moved to a neighboring village to be close to relatives and a hospital that could treat him. Sadly, last week he passed away, leaving Ekali a single orphan—the term Africa uses for a child who has lost one parent. Unlike raising a child in our country where resources may be hard to come by but are ultimately available, single Malawian parents can seldom get what they need to do it alone. That’s why Ekali’s mother has come back to us. HUGS for Tomorrow has a reputation in rural Malawi for being a place that helps children and their families. Although our roster is full, we saved a place for Ekali, and she’s back in school.

It’s helpful to know why Ekali disappeared and what her family was doing while she was gone. It gives us clues as to why other children suddenly go missing and their houses vacant. Other parents who have returned told us similar stories—food is scarce so they traveled looking for jobs to put some on the table, or the landlord doubled the rent overnight. Whatever the reasons, we believe investing in the same group of children over the coming years instead of randomly and temporarily caring for whoever comes around is the best strategy, so we strive to find ways to keep the families in our program local.

We’ve started home visits to learn more about each family’s situation and how we can help them stay put to allow their children to receive a comprehensive education. Based on their feedback, we’ve modified our long-term plans to include vocational training for the parents as well as low cost housing options. We’ve also learned that by the time most of these kids come to us for help, they are desperate. When we post a video on DonorSee and it doesn’t get funded immediately, the family may end up moving just to make ends meet.

When a video sits too long unfunded it can be overlooked, like a home listing that sits too long on the market. Eventually people think there’s something wrong with it. But these are not houses; they’re children. There’s nothing wrong with them except that they’re hungry, so I need to do a better job at communicating that. If you do nothing more than log into DonorSee once in a while and throw ten dollars at a “stale” video to refresh it for others to notice, you’ll be helping tremendously.

So now you know a bit more about why we do what we do and why we don’t just ask you for a year’s worth of support for one child at a time. Each time we raise money for a kid who ends up leaving before the six months is up, we have to prorate that money and allocate it to a newcomer. It can be messy and confusing and a lot of work, but we’re committed to being above board with every penny you give. It’s our way of ensuring that when we pray for God’s support, He hears us. We still don’t know where certain ones have gone or what happened to their families, but our hope for all of the children at HUGS for Tomorrow is that wherever they go on this earth, they will eventually end up in heaven. Thank you for sharing God’s heart in this matter and for joining us in the fight to save these kids. May God bless you for your generosity!