CANEY — Kristi Jacobs and Dorthy Porter, two co-workers at a Caney industry, realize how fortunate they are to live in the United States.
For each day goes by with a roof over their head, food in their kitchens, clothes in their closets, and medicines to keep them from getting ill.
That’s not the case for several hundred orphaned children in the African country of Zambia.
Food is scarce. Clothing comes in the form of handouts by church and benevolent groups. Medicine of any kind — from aspirins to penicillin — is extremely rare. And housing? Kids in rural Zambia who are considered “fortunate” are those who find shelter under a bridge.
That glaring disparity between the United States’ way of life compared to the daily turmoil in Zambia was a reason that the two women began a crusade to help those children in need.
It all started several years ago when Jacobs, who had been supporting needy children through the Christian Children’s Fund, struck up a friendship via e-mail with Gertrude Mwanza, a Zambian who was planning to open an orphanage in a rural area outside of Lusaka, the capital of Zambia (Zambia is located in the southern region of Africa and borders the countries of Zimbabwe, Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo). Mwanza knew the plight of her Zambian citizens. AIDS had decimated most of the adult population (average life expectancy in Zambia is 35 years), leaving thousands of orphaned children to fend for themselves.
Jacobs began sending a box full of usable items to Mwanza each month. Things like clothes, school supplies, and shoes made their way from Caney to rural Lusaka.
However, the raging epidemic of AIDS in Zambia has left more and more children on the streets. Late last year, Mwanza opened a school designed for only 11 children in a rural Zambian village. The enrollment quickly surged to more than 200 within a matter of weeks.
“Gertrude had prepared a Christmas dinner for only about 35 kids,” said Jacobs. “Eighty-six kids showed up.”
Mwanza’s means of support comes primarily from donations through people like Jacobs. Photographs of the donated items are sent to Jacobs each month.
“It’s amazing to see the looks on the faces of those kids,” said Jacobs, who works at Kopco, Inc., in Caney. “It really can get to you . . . knowing that these kids probably don’t have parents, they are lucky to get one meal a day, and their greatest dream is to go to school.”
Upon hearing how Jacobs was supporting her Zambian e-mail friend, Kopco co-worker Dorthy Porter said she wanted to help the project as well. So, Porter, who has taken up painting as a hobby, decided to sell each of her paintings with all proceeds benefitting the Zambian school. She has now made dozens of paintings, which are sold at arts and crafts fairs or through friends and co-workers.
And, just giving the money to the orphaned children of Zambia is not enough for Porter.
“God has laid it upon my heart to enter the mission field,” said Porter. “I’m a believer in a purpose-driven life, and I believe that God wants us to use our talents. My paintings are one way I can put my talents to work for God. But I also want to help others in places where my help and labor can be put to good use.”
Porter knows a thing or two about living in dire straits. She was raised in a coal mining family in rural Pennsylvania, where wages were low and access to amenities was limited.
“My dad would always lead a prayer each day where he asked God to help the orphans and the widows on earth,” she said. “I remember asking him where those orphans lived. When I was 4 years old, my church held a contest to see who could collect the most buffalo nickels with all of the money to be given to an orphanage. I remember collecting the most nickels of any person in church. I felt proud to be able to give that money to an orphanage. That value has stuck with me throughout my life.”
Jacobs said providing generosity to needy people does come with some limits. The cost to mail boxes of donated items is extremely high, she said. A small box measuring 18×12x9 inches can cost as much as $110 to mail.
“I’ve stuffed those boxes with as much as I can . . . to the point that the sides feel like they are going to give out,” she said. “Other coworkers at Kopco have given us items to give to the Zambian kids. Everyone has been very generous.”
While they realize that they don’t have the resources to rent a large cargo container to ship items to Africa, Jacobs and Porter will continue to use their generosity in smaller increments — one painting at a time and one box at a time.
“There is something very meaningful to me about doing this project,” said Porter. “It’s not about Kristi or I getting notoriety. It’s about us helping others. And, when you see the photographs of those kids and how they are smiling when they receive the items that we donate to them, it makes you feel good.”
The two women are sponsoring a rummage sale on Saturday, Oct. 4 with all proceeds going toward the Christian Children’s Fund and the schools in rural Lusaka, Zambia. The sale will be held at the Jacobs residence, which is one-half mile south of Kopco on county road 1700.