In James 1:27 we are told to care for the orphan and widow. This is a story that calls for prayer and support for a woman of great strength and endurance. This woman (top picture), a widow, cares for an orphan as well. The child happens to be her grandchild. Her story is not like any normal story of our typical family in the US. Her daughter, the mother of the child this woman cares for, died of AIDS. The child, is HIV positive.
This woman told of a story that was similar to others we spoke with. We were told of the poor housing conditions of so many homes these women lived in. This woman told of how her heart ached when her daughter died. She couldn’t keep her daughter’s body dry from the rain that came in from the holes in the roof of her home. She just wanted to keep her dead daughter’s body dry. She couldn’t.
Now she is the foster mother to her grandchild. She does her best to provide for her grandchild that is infected with a disease that has become epidemic in size for Africa, HIV. She has a story that is not uncommon for so many in Africa. Grandmothers caring for their children’s children and even they are sick with HIV. Can you imagine the courage it takes for her each day?
We went to a building and were told that a “few” foster care families were invited to come and meet us and to be interviewed. When we arrived, we walked into a room of over 1,000 people! I tried my best to shake as many hands as possible. I wanted to meet and thank each one of them for what they do. It was impossible to meet everyone. I pray they all realize how they are respected for what they do each day for those children. The pictures above are from this crowd of foster parents and orphan children.
This woman told of a story that was similar to others we spoke with. We were told of the poor housing conditions of so many homes these women lived in. This woman told of how her heart ached when her daughter died. She couldn’t keep her daughter’s body dry from the rain that came in from the holes in the roof of her home. She just wanted to keep her dead daughter’s body dry. She couldn’t.
Now she is the foster mother to her grandchild. She does her best to provide for her grandchild that is infected with a disease that has become epidemic in size for Africa, HIV. She has a story that is not uncommon for so many in Africa. Grandmothers caring for their children’s children and even they are sick with HIV. Can you imagine the courage it takes for her each day?
We went to a building and were told that a “few” foster care families were invited to come and meet us and to be interviewed. When we arrived, we walked into a room of over 1,000 people! I tried my best to shake as many hands as possible. I wanted to meet and thank each one of them for what they do. It was impossible to meet everyone. I pray they all realize how they are respected for what they do each day for those children. The pictures above are from this crowd of foster parents and orphan children.
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