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ORPHANSBUILDING
HOPE FOR CHILDREN WITHOUT FAMILIES Every 30 seconds 2 children become orphans. There are more than 100 millions orphans worldwide. There are an estimated 65 million orphans in Africa alone. It is hard to grasp such large numbers, but if one had just the African orphans hold hands in a line, the line would go around the entire earth. If one were to follow that line of orphans holding hands, driving 60 mph, passing 1700 children per minute, you could drive 24 hours a day, mile after mile, hour after hour, day after day, nonstop, for over 17 days, and you would still see orphans holding hands. These children are hungry, lonely and afraid. They have holes in their clothes and tattered shoes (if they even have clothes and shoes). They feel cold, sad and forsaken. MPYRAA's ST. VERONICA’s ORPHANAGE Vision and Mission Statement The St Veronica Orphanage was providing the orphaned, destitute, outcast, unloved, needy, sick, handicapped and/or dying persons, with a home, love, happiness, physical, mental, emotional and spiritual nourishment, the highest level of education possible, and a hope for a bright future. The vision of the St. Veronica’s Orphanage was to one day have a self-sustaining community consisting of a children’s home, orphanage, school, university, training center, women’s shelter, elderly person’s home, chapel for worship, hospital, library, park, play fields, technology center, shops, and other facilities that help a community to succeed. Our vision is to one day establish such communities all over Cameroon. Goals and Objectives TheSt. Veronica’s Orphanage primary objective was to meet the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual needs of orphaned and/or destitute children by providing them with love, care, nourishment, guidance, and the highest level of education so that they can grow to be valued members of society with a promising future and a memorable past. TheSt. Veronica’s Orphanage also aims to provide all of the children of India with the highest level of education and guidance, so they can grow to be assets to their community and so that they can compete competitively for jobs, admissions and placement upon graduation. The Orphanage Project aims to not only cater to children’s mental needs, but to provide a complete package, by catering to the physical, spiritual and emotional needs of the children as well. Another goal of the St. Veronica’s Orphanage is to provide disabled persons with the requisite therapy, training, care and love so they can overcome the social limitations placed on them because of their disability and achieve their goals and dreams. The St. Veronica’s Orphanage also aims to educate the general public about disabilities in an attempt to destroy the many myths and stereotypes about disabilities rampant in the community. TheSt. Veronica’s Orphanage also seeks to aid outcast, battered and widowed men and women by providing them with an accepting environment, love, mental, physical, emotional and spiritual nourishment, jobs, training and the power to step into the outside world and accomplish their goals and dreams, putting their past behind them. Yet another aim of The St. Veronica’s Orphanage is to provide destitute or needy elderly persons with a clean, safe, comfortable and loving environment, in which to spend their golden years in dignity. The organization also has the goal of providing sick individuals with the highest level of love, care and medical attention available. Also, the St. Veronica’s Orphanage seeks to provide the terminally ill with whatever is necessary so that they may spend their last days with dignity. TheSt. Veronica’s Orphanage aims to provide all persons with training and access to the latest technology, concepts, and ideas as well as time-tested traditions and ideas so that they can successfully compete in the global economy. Implementation The first step in achieving the goals and visions of the St. Veronica’s Orphanage is to build a children’s home, residential and day school and a place of worship (Chapel) on the campus. The children will attend the residential and day school on the campus. The residential and day school will begin as a Nursery and primary school for all children, not only the children living in the children’s home. The school will provide the highest level of education. As funds are made available, and upon the success of the school, the school will be expanded to provide secondary education as well as training centers and eventually a full university. The hope is that one day the school will be self supporting and also produce funds to support the other goals of the Orphanage. The place of worship (Chapel) will cater to the spiritual needs of those living on and off the campus. Eventually, the children’s home will be expanded to provide for the facilities of a traditional orphanage, where attempts will be made to place “adoptable” children with suitable loving families. The home for the elderly will be established early on. The children in the home will be paired with “grandparents” in order to provide the children with some semblance of family. The organization then will expand to meet its other goals by providing the appropriate facilities. The organization will also publish books, pamphlets and other materials as it sees fit, both in print and on the internet or using other technology. Sound recording and movie production will also be media used by the organization to meet its goals and to fulfill its mission. ST. Veronica’s Orphanage a branch of MPYRAA has been involving young people in the alleviation of suffering by building homes for the poor. Hundreds of homes were built for needy families with the help of nearly 500 volunteers. Our Orphanage was unique because our very own people were doing the work. In the process, their lives were changed. This proven, powerful vehicle of change provided a fertile environment for hundreds of youths to grow in Christ and give of themselves by doing works of mercy for a needy world. Volunteers from all over Cameroon and 3 foreign countries have participated. Additionally, we hope to continue strengthening our ties between these people and be an example of how we can help each other when we work together if we have the means. Lives have been changed. Families have been catapulted forward in their struggle to have good shelter and a true home. The impact of this step cannot be measured as they can now focus their energies on their family's moral, spiritual, and educational needs. Some families would split up otherwise, unable to adequately provide for their children. Disease and death no longer loom at every spell of bad weather and rain. And spiritually, it is pure joy to watch the tears of thanks flow during the house blessings. The families know that the Lord has visited them, literally, where they live. How can we continue these wonderful works? We need your help. The volunteers who build the homes and took special care of the sick are profoundly affected. We regularly receive letters from participants, parents, and clergy describing the awakening that has occurred in all the neighborhoods where we worked. Many become active and eager participants in their home parishes. Others have made college decisions and career choices based upon the experience they acquired while with us. All seem to be more in touch with the simple yet difficult commandment of our Lord to love our neighbor and to care for the least of these persons as you do for yourself. The Orphanage was started by local volunteers, many of whom became the original board members. Later on we started our internship program. This was a way for young people to give a few months to a year in service. These interns helped with everything from work trips to projects at the orphanage to administrative tasks. It was an exciting time in spite of extremely tough conditions. Many more interns would follow and do invaluable work both with home building and at the orphanage. Everyone involved has both endured difficulty and experienced blessings as they have given of themselves to do works of mercy. We stood at well over one hundred homes built and blessed! Over 1,900 volunteers from all over the country and five foreign countries have come to give of themselves and have been blessed in return. Despite all these sacrifices the project was not sustainable; we need your help to put back our efforts on track. If we have the means this time around, we shall work to implement an independent living skills program for older boys /girls who complete high school which will cover career training, personal finances, ethics, a healthy lifestyle, and household management. We shall also try to secure scholarships for boys/girls to attend university or vocational schools. We shall also work to expand the livestock and farming operations to supply 75% of the orphanage's food needs and provide additional work experience. Our master plan includes further vocational and business training which will include profit-making ventures for the orphanage. We shall also build facilities for on-site staff, life skills housing, and vocational shops. We also aim to increase the number of homes rehabilitated for families and to bring as many volunteers to do the work as we are able. The number of groups we accommodate per year doubled considerably over the last few years, one of the reasons why our project failed. ST.VERONICA
The woman of Jerusalem who wiped the face of Christ with a veil while he was on the way to Calvary.The veil was subsequently seen in Rome in the eighth century, and was translated to St. Peter's Basilica in 1297 by command of Pope Boniface VIII. |
