HISTORY
Since 2001, some members of the African Kids Foundation (AKF) board have been involved with spiritual, educational and childcare organisations and activities in several African countries—Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and Egypt. It was a natural development to be led to build an orphanage in Africa.
The President of AKF, Dr. Rob Crickett, had ministered in the wartorn north of Uganda, and he was preaching and ministering in other parts of Kampala when he met the board members of My People Childcare (MPC). It was a move of God. MPC is a registered non-government organisation providing spiritual, educational and childcare support for 50 children who have been orphaned or made vulnerable by AIDS. Members from both AKF and MPC attended conferences run by Watoto—the world famous christian child care group based in Kampala, Uganda. Watoto had called for Western pastors to partner with local pastors in the creation of new orphanages that are purpose built for leadership development. AKF and MPC seemed to be the perfect match. Rob brought MPC to the attention of the AKF Board as the group with whom to begin building the orphanage, and, in July, 2009, the partnership between African Kids Foundation and My People Childcare began.
ENTEBBE AND MASAKA
MPC is currently operational in two locations: Entebbe near Kampala, Uganda's capital city; and Masaka, about a hundred miles south of Kampala.
Many of the orphans had been abandoned to the street, or were living in squalid conditions after their parents had died from AIDS. No one was there to make them breakfast or to tuck them into bed at night. They had no bed, and no home. They lacked education, parenting, love and a childhood.
Despite being very poor themselves, Grace and Rachael Lopeyok in Entebbe, and Grace's mother in Masaka, were moved to take them in. They trusted that their love would touch the hearts of others and God would somehow provide.
GETTING BY TODAY
In Masaka, the kids began to live off whatever they could grow. In Entebbe, the kids have been taught simple songs and dance routines. Every Sunday they go to a different church to sing, dance and tell their stories in the hope of attracting something of a donation for their week's food. In their shelter, fit only for the poorest of the poor, but which is far better than from where they have come, things are still extremely lean.
WHERE TO FROM HERE?
AKF's Mission Team Leader, Lesley Van Zyl, hwo has been on the ground in Uganda. While AKF's fundraisers are mobilized to attract child sponsors and corporate donors, Lesley has estabished the Entebbe kids into rented facilities that improved the quality of living. She has begin developing a management structure for the AKF-MPC partnership, and, together, AKF and MPC are preparing for a Watoto-style of village life in the future.
The Watoto model is for clusters of eight houses, a school, church, administration and medical facilities to form a village. Each house accommodates four boys and four girls of various ages, and one mama—herself a widow—a father figure visits each weekend day. In this way the children have their own mother and father for life. Each child is permitted to live on campus until the age of 21.
AKF-PMC are raising a half million dollars to buy land, to build houses and to create a safe haven for these orphans. Simultaneously, AKF-MPC has established businesses so that the orphan village is financially capable of giving these children a future . . . and other children just like them later on. To date we have a 400 broiler chicken farm, 316 layer chickens and two milk cows. They will produce an income around October 2010.
The partnership has only just begun!
You can help, and enormously so. We welcome volunteers who want to work with the kids for a while. If this idea touches your heart, contact AKF . . . it's quite easy and effortless to make a trip to our orphanage in Africa happen for you soon.
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CORPORATE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 
