About
In 2004 Joe Bridges and Michael Granger traveled to Ethiopia on a short-term missions trip. Both of these young men were shocked to see thousands of children living on the streets and felt convicted to do something to not only provide shelter and love for these street children, but also to share the message and hope of Jesus Christ with them. Not coming from the culture or speaking the language made such a feat seem impossible until they met a young Ethiopian man named Nega Meaza.
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| Nega, today, at Onesimus’s Drop-In Center |
Through interaction with Nega it became utterly clear that he loved his country, especially the children. At the end of the trip Michael, Joe, and Nega sat down for what is now known as The Forsaken Children’s first meeting. Each man shared his vision for ministry to the street children of Ethiopia. At the end of this meeting a special commitment to the street children of Ethiopia was established.
In 2005 the team grew to include Joe’s wife, Karyn. In 2006 Joe and Karyn spent three months training in Singapore and then went to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to work with Nega and another project to street people. By the end of the trip an Ethiopian NGO had been established in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to work with street children and it was named Children’s Home Ethiopia (in 2010 the name changed to Onesimus Children Ministry).
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| Joe Bridges with an Onesimus beneficiary |
2007 was busy for Nega as he started visiting children on the streets of Addis Ababa, studied Community Development at the Ethiopian Theological College, and started ministering to 7 children who were on the verge of becoming full-time street children in Onesimus’s street prevention project.
In 2008 Onesimus faced the need for more oversight as this fledgling organization grew. With this realization, Joe Bridges, along with his brother, Jonathan, and Michael Granger traveled to Addis Ababa to do some strategic planning with Nega. At the end of this trip an organizational structure was established, and new staff to help Nega were selected. On top of all this, Onesimus was blessed with a new facility, which has become known as the Drop-In Center. The Drop-In Center houses Onesimus’s offices as well as offers a place for local street children to come receive counsel, nourishment, love, and basically a new start.
After such a productive time in Ethiopia, The Forsaken Children realized its need to become an independent non-profit organization so it could formally offer its support and services to Onesimus and its growing projects. The Forsaken Children became an IRS recognized 501(c)3 organization in 2008.
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| Kota Ganate Agriculture Project in Southern Ethiopia |
Also in 2008, The Forsaken Children was blessed to gain the assistance of Jonathan and Jessica Bridges in the development of an agriculture project. This project is known as Kota Ganate, which translated means Hidden Garden, and exists to help sustain Onesimus (partially and potentially fully in the future) from within Ethiopia.
Today, The Forsaken Children continues to partner with the Onesimus Children Ministry through financial support, guidance on how to develop all its projects into long-term sustainable efforts, and direction in developing best practices and procedures for working with children at risk.
Together, The Forsaken Children and Onesimus Children Ministry’s strategy is 3-fold:
- Godly Ethiopian Mentors – Ethiopian men and women who love the Lord work directly with Ethiopian children coming off of the streets. These relationships provide the necessary foundation to move these boys and girls from the streets into families.
- Family Reintegration and Strengthening – After learning to trust their Ethiopian mentors, former street children begin the process of reintegrating back into families. These families are found through existing relatives, group homes, or foster families.
- Sustainable Practices – Empowering Ethiopians to minister to their country’s children is key to ensuring the project continues with or without outside partnership. These men and women are the best equipped for the job, having the language and culture deeply ingrained as well as a deep love for the Lord. Using families as the final destination for the children is a sustainable and God-centered approach that puts the responsibility for the children’s upbringing back into the hands of parents rather than paid caretakers. Finally, developing project sustainable income is important as it further empowers Ethiopia to care for its hurting children. Through the Kota Ganate Agriculture Project, we are helping Onesimus develop a means to sustain itself.
