18 by 18 Challenge is sponsored by Nehemiah's Restoration and is designed to support our efforts to break the cycle of poverty in Western Kenya due to HIV/AIDS. This challenge offers an opportunity to nominate a friend on social media to post a video doing something 18 times using #Beyond18Years, and then give at least $18 to the cause at Beyond18Years.org. Our goal is to help raise up orphaned children impacted by HIV/AIDS who require support in order to grow up to be self-sustaining adults.
Systemic poverty in Western Kenya has ravaged children left behind by parents who have died from HIV/AIDS. There are few systems in place to help these Orphaned & Vulnerable Children (OVC) & most end up on the streets with no one to take care of them. The communities that these children come from often struggle to offer any kind of support because feeding their own families is difficult, let alone taking in another mouth to feed. It's a cyclical problem that leaves most OVC's with no options.
By working with community centers in Kisumu and Siaya counties, Nehemiah's Restoration offers empowerment through income generating activities to families who take in OVC. Additionally, we offer skills training, psycho-social support, educational support, medical support, when needed for the children and various other opportunities for these family members to become self-sustainable and create safe spaces for the OVC to thrive.
Our OVC project will raise up communities who are able to take care of the orphans among them. This will in turn raise up OVC who, despite the difficulties systemic poverty and HIV/AIDS has challenged them with, are able to take care of themselves, provide for their own families one day, and give back to the communities who took care of them.
