While The Shannons are back in the US on furlough there are amazing things that continue happening on the ground at The Day Care. Here are 4 highlights.
1. 2 New Children have been added to the Day Care.Over the past 2 months we have welcomed a little boy named Yoseph and a little girl named Kalkidan. Kalkidan is 2 years old and her mom Mariye is 20. Mariye has been trying to provide by begging for her family after a recent employment program she was part of was forced to close. They are very poor materially. Yoseph became the youngest child in the Day Care, coming to us at the age of 5 months! His mom, Tigist is 18 and has been without work, so she has been relying on others to provide her with shelter and food.
We were so happy to be able to welcome them into the project and provide a place for the kids while also starting to help mom embrace hope in other areas of life. We are so excited that we had Family Sponsorships available for these families before they even entered the project. Because of some very generous folks on our Waiting List to become Sponsors these families were covered upon entry. If you are interested in sponsoring a family, please contact us at Sponsorship@EmbracingHopeEthiopia.com and we’ll put you on the waiting list and let you know when we have new families enter the project.
2. Doubling The Project? Our US Board recently made the decision to pursue doubling the Day Care Project. This would mean that we are partnering with 60 families in the Kore area. This is such an exciting move which means we can impact more children and more families with Jesus’ love in both word and deed, while also employing more Ethiopians which means helping their families as well. The next step will be to meet with our Ethiopian Board once we return and then begin the process with the government. We’d love your prayers along the way.
3. Handicrafts are a Hit! While we’ve been touring around we’ve been selling items 
that were made by a few of the Moms in the project. Baskets, jewelry and roasted coffee in hand stitched bags have been a hit. Our friend Meredith is also working with the moms to possibly sew new types of items and new kinds of baskets. What we see is a restoration of dignity as these moms make things with their hands that are things of
beauty while also providing for their families. Thank you for supporting this initiative. Profits will help provide micro-grants for the moms in the project. Join us on the road and check out the wares!
4. Meet Our Staff. There is something difficult about leaving a young project for 3 months. However, we have an amazing staff who are doing great work while we are away. They continue to press forward in ensuring that families are supported and embracing hope. Our Staff consists of our Director (Alayu), a Social Worker (Sisay), 6 Care Givers (Hareg, Beyalf, Martha, Beza, Alyanesh, Fetile), 1 Cook (Desta), 1 Cleaner (Etegegn), 3 Guards (Yaiye, Yirga, Tazib) and a part time Accountant (Nebiyu). They are an amazing team that works together for the good of the children and their mothers. We are so glad to have them as part of our family! They gave us a great going away party and we look forward to being back with them soon.
