P9 has been working with John in Ghana for many years now. During that time we have
done what we could with John to help others- sick children, pregnant women, older
folks who were evicted and homeless, every sort of calamity that can hit helpless
people just trying to survive.
We have always operated with very limited funds. Our goal has been to get the help
out to those who need it as fast as we can with as few hindrances as possible. The
big guys can. John deals with the people who come to him asking for help in a very personal, one-on-one way.
A large organization with myriads of offices and assistants that people have to line up at
and extensive forms to fill out and then reverify may be one way to help, but we try to
talk to those who are in need face to face, see their wounds and suffering, and
hand them some emergency funds to get them through as fast as possible. By doing
this we have saved lives. People, babies and grownups, are living today because we
gave them some help when they needed it.
But we can only do what we have the funds to cover. We try to help those who are in
greatest need, who are literally in danger of dying, but our reach is very small.
It is the charity equivalent of meatball surgery, trying to patch people up enough
to survive so that they can go on and try to get their lives together on their own.
Often they come back asking for more help and we do what we can, but many times we
simply do not have the reach to help them on a regular basis. This is a sad and
tragic truth. Our help is limited to the funds we have at any given time.
An exception to this is Anabel, the little orphan girl. Anabel was abandoned
by her mother when she was three years old. Some children found her and took her to
John, who arranged for her to stay at a private childcare center. We have been
paying for her to stay there ever since, simply because she has nowhere else to go
and no one else to take care of her. The other children we have helped have at
least one parent to be responsible for them. Anabel has no one. And though it may
seem that someone would step forward and take care of a homeless child of that age,
there are many abandoned children in Africa who are precisely in that situation-
they have no parents, no home, and absolutely no one to care for them. This could
happen to Anabel. We are determined that it doesn't.
But we do have other responsibilities. Right now we are trying to get medical
treatment for a newborn baby with heart problems. It is hard to sit back and say
'we don't have the money for that' and let the little boy possibly die. And others are in
continuing need as well. So there are times when it becomes difficult to send the
matron the money she needs for Anabel; her lodging, food, and school supplies not
to mention her medicines, clothing and other daily needs.
This month we already have extra commitments to the baby who needs surgery and some
other problems that we haven't even been able to address yet. We have just paid the
first bill of the month for Anabel. We will try to assure that her bills that come
in later in the month can be covered as well.
Will you help make everything stretch?
