MATONYOK CHILDREN’S HOME – Arusha, Tanzania
At Haven of Hope International (HOHI), our goal is to empower homes to raise their standard of care so that it will transform the lives of children at their homes. One of the homes we partner with is Matonyok Children’s Home in Tanzania, where we have been providing support since 2020. HOHI founder Alice Sweet first met the directors, Emmy and Ndemno, during her visit to Tanzania in 2018. She was immediately struck by their dedication and desire to provide vocational training to their children against all odds and no committed ongoing support.
Matonyok Children’s Home started 20 years ago as a response to the neglect and abuse that disabled children were facing in the community. Emmy, a nurse, began caring for these children in her own home. Soon children were being dropped off by the government and local churches. Today, the home houses 54 children and serves over 100 children through their on-campus school, providing education and support to some of the poorest children in the area.
We believe that every child deserves to feel loved, valued, and cared for, and we are honored to play a small part in making that happen at Matonyok Children’s Home. HOHI has been supporting Matonyok in various ways since 2020:
• Monthly support ensures the children have adequate food, increases staff/child ratio, covers a social worker, access to medical care, sustainability program support and monthly access to internet.
- Funding for food during a regional drought that made food difficult to acquire.
- Water testing was needed and a water treatment plan is in the works. This will help with the stains on the teeth of the children and staff.
- One of the biggest challenges faced by the staff at Matonyok is the lack of time off to refresh from long days of caring for so many children. HOHI discovered this in response to a question posed by John Sweet during a pastoral care time at Matonyok. Despite the joy and love they bring to the children every day the caregivers had not had a day off in many months. At HOHI, we believe in supporting the whole person, and that includes offering pastoral care and providing opportunities for rest and rejuvenation.
- Their Social Worker is well acquainted with the children’s background, having escaped abusive situations as a child. She’s been a welcomed addition to the leadership team and grateful to share her experience of overcoming great obstacles to pursue her education in Social Work. She loves being a part of the restoration process for these children.
- Medical support provides funds for when children need urgent care.
- Sustainability Programs included farming, chickens, goats, pigs and solar power.
- Internet access is essential for weekly zoom calls for coaching and training, provides access to online resources for the school for educational tools and tutors, facilitates communication and reporting from the home.
- JoAnn’s closet provided clothing a teddy bear and a blanket for the 25 children who were dropped off from a bible school when it was discovered the children were facing severe abuse from an indigenous nomadic tribe.
- In September of 2022, we visited Matonyok and were thrilled to see the plans approved by the government for a boy’s cottage. This much-needed building will provide current and future children with a safe and loving place to call home. We join Emmy and her team in praying and believing for its completion.
We are committed to improving the lives of children in need, and the work being done at Matonyok Children’s Home is a shining example of what is possible when we come together to support those in need. We are grateful for your ongoing support that makes this transformational work possible and look forward to sharing stories of lives changed here in the future.
If you’d like to stay up to date on the progress of this home and the children that are impacted, please consider sponsoring this home today.