Mission Statement: We Help Children Worldwide by Strengthening and Empowering Families and Communities.
Helping Children Worldwide operates from an empowerment model, rather than a relief model, not because it is trendy, but because it is best.
Our theory of change is based on the common sense understanding that humans are fundamentally equipped to survive, grow and thrive, and that is the natural condition of life. War, violence, greed, willful ignorance, and intolerance are acts that disrupt and destroy the natural order and create artificially imposed barriers to this basic plan for humankind. Identifying and removing the barriers created by destructive interventions in any locale reduces human suffering and allows children to naturally rise to their full potential . We built our theory on spiritually inspired themes of care from scripture and scientifically supported evidence-based interventions that improve the ability of children to recover from difficulties. You will find references to these underlying sources in published articles, magazines, podcasts, and research papers linked here on our website. Our goal is to undo the harm, and reverse the injuries caused by these negative disruptions to the natural course of human development that is the God-given right of every child. Overcoming a misperception that children born into challenging external circumstances and their challenged communities do not have any control over their destiny or means to recover from crisis is the first hurdle. Helping Children Worldwide is a US-based NGO. Consequently, we must work diligently to prevent further contributions to the harm caused by our helping in the wrong way. People residing in the Global North give power to the narrative of helplessness when we step in and assert control over crisis response to events in the Global South. We may be coming from a place of absolute love. We may have great experience in problem-solving, and in solving this problem in another time and place. We may be able to bring resources that could address a problem with more speed and more completely in that moment. But, in doing so, regardless of our experience, motivation and resources, we could also stifle the generation of indigenous problem solving responses that are better suited in the long run. This is the essence of adopting an empowerment model, rather than a relief model. In relinquishing our exercise of control over the narrative, and demonstrating genuine respect for the intuition and thoughts of others, we begin to create a balanced dialogue on approaches, counter that narrative of helplessness, and provide room for a more sustainable solution to crisis that could function without us. We focus on the things that instill resiliency, and tackle the root causes of systemically-ingrained generationally-transferred child poverty and failure to thrive. The matters we address include very concrete issues with support networks, community infrastructures, and operating systems for services that provide health, education, social welfare, and economic enterprise. The things to address also include very abstract matters of confidence, identity, faith, imagination, self-initiated action, relationship, trust, critical thinking, reliability, honesty, self-control, and courage. We focus on the lowest common connection to the child, that being the child's family and community. RESILIENCY: Dictionary Definitions from Oxford Languages re·sil·ience /rəˈzilēəns/ noun the capacity to withstand or to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness. the ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape; elasticity. We believe that resiliency is the key to survival, and that resiliency is instilled in the circumstances and experiences of childhood. We believe that a focus on family and community is essential to instilling resiliency. We cannot alter the likelihood that children will experience trauma and difficulties that threaten their wellbeing, however Helping Children Worldwide is committed to the belief that every child deserves to grow up in a strong, safe, and loving family, and live in a strong, supportive community. We believe we can help children worldwide by supporting policies, institutions and programs that strengthen and empower families and communities. We raise funds specifically for the purpose of supporting the efforts of program partners on the ground who are actively engaged in the work of social welfare in a family strengthening and empowering model. We work collaboratively with these organizations to increase program effectiveness, institute best practices, and adapt international program models to meet specific jurisdictional needs for the communities they serve. We moved into this new theory of change in tandem with our longest partners in Africa, the United Methodist Church Sierra Leone Annual Conference Children's Ministries and Annual Conference Health Ministries, and the institutions we co-founded, the Child Reintegration Centre in Bo, Sierra Leone, and Mercy UMC Hospital. In 2018, we formed a new style of partnership, aligned with the ideals of our theory of change, allowing both of us to engage in more balanced approaches together, and to form new relationships externally that expand both of our impacts on children, families, and communities. Since 2019, the CRC's work has become globally recognized as a best practice model. and the HCW/CRC partnership has become as a best practice international partnership model, and HCW has moved from working in two countries, to a global reach to over 40 countries in child welfare reforms, orphan and family separation response, global health, and ethical multi-cultural mission alliances. The CRC and HCW continue to be in the forefront of the international movement to move children out of institutional care, as UNICEF and other child-focused organizations across the globe recognize that caring families are far better at raising emotionally and mentally healthy children than institutions. CRC has a specially devoted department to send teams of social workers to educate and support the work of other institutions across the continent of Africa moving to models of care that will support and strengthen families and instill resilience in children. In 2022, CRC leadership traveled to Liberia, and Nigeria to present before faith based and secular leaders on the impact and possibility of change. In 2023, they presented the theory of change and their role as skilled professionals in implementation of the change model before all of the UMC African Bishops. Five Bishops expressed continued interest in having CRC travel to their country to provide instruction to the institutions in their conference. HCW and CRC teamed up with a new program partner, Child and Family Permanency Services in Wellington, Freetown, Sierra Leone to promote a national policy change to promote alternatives to institutionalization of orphans and vulnerable children and family-based care models, and supports the work of four child protection organizations in Sierra Leone who are driving standardization of child welfare practices. HCW has initiated a network of global health NGOs, clinicians, providers, and educators to support reduction of child mortality in the Global South. HCW supports the work of CRC with a dedicated donor initiative, Family Empowerment Advocacy. - FEA HCW supports the work of CFPS with a similar dedicated donor initiative, Family Empowerment Advocacy Program - FEAP - CFPS Family Empowerment and Advocacy Program We deliberately anchored our mission with objectives, and we use those five anchors and their objectives to review and reflect on every decision, action, and engagement to ensure we remain on course. |
Our mission is strategically anchored in 5 ways.
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Helping Children Worldwide
Builds trusting relationships with mission sustaining partners, and collaborates with international program partners to transform communities and tackle the greatest barriers to their sustainable futures: poverty, disease, illiteracy, and despair.
Partners with local leadership to strengthen communities in Sierra Leone, one of the poorest countries in the world, by supporting programs that provide vulnerable children and their families with opportunities for education, health care, and spiritual mentoring.
Underwrites a portion of local program costs where they are aligned with our goals and especially focused on education, family stability, maternal health, infant survival, and childhood nutrition.*
Supports life-changing care for thousands of children and their families through program development partnerships, funding support alliances, policy development collaborations, service training and resource networks, and by providing local leadership the support and aid to build effective programs and program management systems, including financial underwriting, training, and technical advice through our international staff, and the assistance of long term and short term mission teams with subject matter expertise and connections to further build capacity.
Join us today to transform lives and communities!
*Historic program partners include the Child Reintegration Centre (CRC), Mercy UMC Hospital, and the Mission Training Centre, Bo, Sierra Leone, three institutions which we were instrumental in co-founding with the United Methodist Church Sierra Leone Annual Conference. UMC-SLAC continues to own and operate those programs.
Partners with local leadership to strengthen communities in Sierra Leone, one of the poorest countries in the world, by supporting programs that provide vulnerable children and their families with opportunities for education, health care, and spiritual mentoring.
Underwrites a portion of local program costs where they are aligned with our goals and especially focused on education, family stability, maternal health, infant survival, and childhood nutrition.*
Supports life-changing care for thousands of children and their families through program development partnerships, funding support alliances, policy development collaborations, service training and resource networks, and by providing local leadership the support and aid to build effective programs and program management systems, including financial underwriting, training, and technical advice through our international staff, and the assistance of long term and short term mission teams with subject matter expertise and connections to further build capacity.
Join us today to transform lives and communities!
*Historic program partners include the Child Reintegration Centre (CRC), Mercy UMC Hospital, and the Mission Training Centre, Bo, Sierra Leone, three institutions which we were instrumental in co-founding with the United Methodist Church Sierra Leone Annual Conference. UMC-SLAC continues to own and operate those programs.
Vision
We believe that we can make a difference, that collaborative efforts to serve the most vulnerable will one day transform the world, and that all people will live in strong, nurturing communities where children and their families can fulfill their God-given potential through good health and education.
