FOVC-Ethiopia

“Friends of Orphans & Vulnerable

Children”

FOVC-Ethiopia’s goal is to end the cycle of

poverty and hunger through education and
income generating activities in Damot
Pulasa Woreda, Southern Ethiopia.
 Team Tasfa (“tasfa” means “hope”)
 A group of twenty-five concerned people from all
over the U.S.— a doctor and a nurse, adoptive
parents, people skilled in architecture and
construction, business people, engineers,
teachers, students, a social worker, a pastor,
artists--who want to encourage and show love to
the poorest of the poor in Ethiopia will travel to
Ethiopia from December 28, 2010 to January 8,
2011.
E T H IO P IA

Why Ethiopia?
 The population in Ethiopia has consistently grown faster than food production.
Droughts have devastated the country's ability to sustain itself (droughts = no
crops, then no seeds, then no livestock).
 Half of the children in Ethiopia will never attend school. 88% will never attend
beyond primary school.
 Coffee (Ethiopia's only major export) prices have fallen significantly in recent
years.
 Ethiopia is a land-locked nation with no sea ports.
 The median age in Ethiopia is 17.8 (which means there are many more
children than adults).
 1.5 million people in Ethiopia are infected with AIDS (not just HIV)--the 6th highest
in the world.
 720,000 children have been orphaned by AIDS alone; there are 5.6 million
orphans all together.
 Per capita, Ethiopia receives less aid than any country in Africa.
 1 in 6 children dies before his/her fifth birthday.
 44% of Ethiopia's population is under 15 years old.
 60% of children in Ethiopia are stunted because of malnutrition.
 Upon arriving in Ethiopia, we will
spend two days in the capitol city,
Addis Ababa.
O n e o rg a n iza tio n w e w illw o rk
w ith is ca lle d C h ild re n ’ s
H e a ve n (
w w w . ch ild re n sh e a ve n . o rg ).
H a n n a Fa n ta , th e fo u n d e r o f
C h ild re n ’ s H e a ve n , se rve s a
p o p u la tio n o f o rp h a n e d te e n
g irls in A d d is. B u t fo r
C h ild re n ’ s H e a ve n , th e se g irls
w o u ld h a ve to re so rt to
b e g g in g o r p ro stitu tio n .
T h a n ks to C h ild re n ’ s H e a ve n ,
th e g irls a re a b le to sta y in
sch o o l, a n d th e y e a t o n e
h e a lth y m e a lp e r d a y.
C h ild re n ’ s H e a ve n p ro vid e s
The recreation area at Children’s Heaven…this safe and h e lp a n d h o p e to th e se g irls
clean facility is made possible through Ethiopian
Orphan Relief’s hard work and generosity! w h o w o u ld o th e rw ise su ffe r
g re a tly. W e w illh a ve th e
ch a n ce to sp e n d tim e w ith th e
g irls o f C h ild re n ’ s H e a ve n a s a
w a y to sh o w o u r lo ve a n d
Our team will tour the world-renowned
Hamlin Fistula Hospital in Addis Ababa.

Fistulas are devastating

injuries that occur during
childbirth. Young women
travel from all over Ethiopia
to find help and healing at
this hospital.

To learn more about the

amazing work of this
organization, watch
the movie, “A Walk To
Beautiful” and read the
book, The Hospital By
The River.
 About Addis Ababa
 Ethiopia has been an independent nation since ancient times.
Although our team will witness a great deal of suffering and need
in Ethiopia, the history and culture of this beautiful country are
unmatched!
 We will learn a lot about Ethiopia from our days in the capitol city of
Addis Ababa, which is home to two million people.
 The skeletal remains of “Lucy,” who many archeologists believe lived
3.5 million years ago lives in Addis Ababa. Some of our team
members will visit Lucy.
 Our team will have the opportunity to visit a modern leper
community, and to purchase handcrafts made by the members of
the community.
 The largest market in all of Africa, called the Mercato, is located in
Addis. The bravest members of our team might go to the Mercato!
 We will stay in a guest house in Addis Ababa, where we will have
access to clean water and good food….not to mention electricity
and water (but we probably won’t have internet)!
The Road to
Soddo

A fte r o u r b rie f tim e in A d d is, o u r

te a m w ill tra ve l to a sm a ll city
ca lle d S o d d o , lo ca te d in S id a m a ,
E th io p ia . It w ill b e a five to six
h o u r d rive th ro u g h th e b e a u tifu l
E th io p ia n co u n trysid e .  For the majority of our time in
Ethiopia we will be based in Soddo.
We will spend our days in the
nearby village of Shanto, where
FOVC is located.
FOVC-Ethiopia started its humanitarian work in
August, 2006 with five orphans, three vulnerable
children and one widow. ? A young man named
Desalegn Daka
started FOVC in
his home village of
Shanto, Ethiopia.
Desalegn is the
second person in
the history of his
village to graduate
with a university
degree; he is a
civil engineer.
?

? After graduating
from university,
instead of finding
a job in his field,
Desalegn returned
to Shanto to try to
save the orphans
there.
?
Dave Howlett and Desalegn Daka,
February, 2010 in Shanto, Ethiopia ? Four years after it
was started, FOVC
currently serves
When two of our team members visited FOVC in February,
2010, they were the first white people (farenje) the
children of Shanto had ever seen!
W h e n tw o
m e m b e rs o f
Te a m Ta sfa
a rrive d in
S h a n to in
e a rly 2 0 1 0 ,
th e y w e re
g re e te d
w ith flo w e rs
a n d so n g s b y
th e
ch ild re n a n d
te a ch e rs
o f FO V C !
Shanto
Team Tasfa will spend each night in Soddo, and we will travel

approximately forty-five minutes each day to the village of
Shanto. FOVC is headquartered in Shanto, and this is where
our team will do its work!

T h is is “ d o w n to w n
S h a n to .”
 What we’ll do in Shanto
S in ce Te a m Ta sfa is co m p rise d o f so m a n y p e o p le ,
w e w ill se rve in th e fo llo w in g su b -te a m s:
1.
2.Orphanage Construction
3.Orphan Care
4.Orphan Sponsorship
5.Widows Hope Program
6.Medical
7.Pastors Conference
8.FOVC Staff Support
Orphanage Construction
T h a n ks to a g e n e ro u s g ift
fro m E th io p ia n O rp h a n R e lie f
(
w w w . e th io p ia n o rp h a n re lie fo
. rg
), FOVC is starting
co n stru ctio n o n its
o rp h a n a g e ! ( C u rre n tly m a n y
o f th e FO V C o rp h a n s live w ith
n e ig h b o rs, a n d so m e sle e p o n
th e d u sty stre e t in S h a n to .)
O u r te a m w illh e lp w ith
o rp h a n a g e co n stru ctio n , a n d
w ith p la n n in g fu tu re p h a se s
o f b u ild in g .
 Orphan Care

O u r te a m w ill a lso sp e n d p le n ty
o f tim e w ith th e o rp h a n s a t
FO V C . In a d d itio n to d e live rin g
sch o o l su p p lie s, sh o e s, clo th e s,
a n d h o p e fu lly a fe w to ys, w e
a n ticip a te lo ts o f so cce r g a m e s,
a rt p ro je cts, h u g s a n d sm ile s!
 Hope 4 Orphans
 Team Tasfa’s social worker will be responsible for
setting up an orphan sponsorship program for FOVC.
This program will be similar to World Vision’s or
Compassion International’s sponsorship programs.
Thirty-five dollars a month from a long-term sponsor will
change a child’s life forever! Sponsorship is a huge
priority because sponsored children will get a good
education, which is a major factor in breaking the cycle
of poverty and giving the kids a chance to have a
“normal life.”


 Sponsored children are able to attend a quality school, and

they receive items such as school fees, text books, tuition fees,
medical supplies, uniforms, shoes and clothes, backpacks, school
supplies and stationery items plus, at this time, a monthly
stipend of about $15. The monthly stipend is directly given to
carefully selected foster families who allow the orphans to live in
their homes.


 FOVC is currently working the 501c3 process here in the

U.S. FOVC’s 501c3 designation will make sponsors’ donations
 Widows Hope Program

FOVC currently serves several

widows in Shanto. Each widow is
responsible for caring for up
to ten people: her children,
her parents, her deceased
husband’s parents, and even
extended family. Unfortunately,
there are very few income-
producing activities in Shanto.
This is “Beauty.” FOVC recently made simple improvements to her
home, making it habitable for her, her children, parents and
extended family. You can see the community members celebrating
with her!
FOVC’s Widows Hope program will provide micro-loans, equipment and
supplies so the widows can begin to make items that are in demand in
local markets. The second goal of this program is to come alongside
widows and help them buy livestock. The widows will be taught modern
methods to care for and breed their animals, and the animals produce food
and income for the women and their families. An important aspect of FOVC’s
program is that the widows re-invest some of their income in the program,
so the program can continue to expand and serve more women in need.
 Medical
 With a family practice
doctor and his wife, who
is a nurse/community
health expert, and a
trauma doctor from the
U.K., Team Tasfa will be
prepared to provide
medical care to any
members of the team
who need it!
A s n e e d e d , th e te a m ’ s m e d ica lp ro fe ssio n a ls
w illb e a va ila b le to se e m e m b e rs o f th e
S h a n to co m m u n ity.

S o m e o n th e m e d ica lte a m m ig h t a lso w o rk
to tra in a n d e n co u ra g e lo ca ln u rse s in th e
 Pastors Conference
Desalegn, the local churches and the local
governments have asked the pastor on our
team to conduct a “Pastors Conference.”
 This is Mitch,
the pastor who
will travel
with us.
Mitch’s
daughter
Jocelyn
(pictured here)
won’t be coming
with us. (But
his wife,
Becky, will!)
 FOVC Staff Support & Training
T h is is th e FO V C sta ff,
a lo n g w ith th e
stu d e n ts, in FO V C ’ s
cu rre n t b u ild in g . ( N o
flo o r, n o fu rn itu re , n o
e le ctricity , n o
w in d o w s, n o w a te r…
b u t lo ts o f sm ilin g
fa ce s! )

Te a m Ta sfa w ill d e live r su p p o rt a n d h e lp to th e FO V C sta ff, to o , in

th e fo rm o f lo ve a n d e n co u ra g e m e n t, skills tra in in g a n d g ifts o f
te a ch in g m a te ria ls a n d su p p lie s fo r u se in FO V C ’ s sch o o l.
A Special Treat for Team Tasfa!
U n tilve ry re ce n tly …

…THIS was the toilet facility in

Shanto.
 As part of FOVC’s building
program…

e a m Ta sfa w illb e h a p p y to u se S h a n to ’ s n e w fa cilitie

 How Can You Help?
 Pray for us, and pray for FOVC as they prepare for our
arrival!


 Consider sending a donation with our team. For a

variety of reasons, it is best for us to purchase
supplies and donations in Ethiopia, as opposed to
trying to carry them into the country.


 Sponsor an orphan through FOVC.



 Learn more about the world orphan crisis, and get

involved! GIVE HOPE.
 Will you partner with Team
Tasfa to help change the
world for the orphans,
vulnerable children, & widows
in the community of
Shanto, Ethiopia?
  “Pure and genuine
religion in the
 sight of God the Father

means caring for

orphans and widows in
their distress and
refusing to let the
world corrupt you.”
 Suggested Resources:
www.fovcethiopia.wordpress.com
www.thehowletts5.blogspot.com
www.bethechangeforever.blogspot.com
www.26orphans.blogspot.com
Read the book, There Is No Me Without You
See the movie, “A Walk to Beautiful”
Read the book, The Hospital By The River
Read the book, When Helping Hurts: Alleviating
Poverty Without Hurting The Poor
