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Anthony & Betty Jonah |
The Betty Jonah Orphanage opened in January 2005 in Camp 4, a small village near the town of Yekepa in Nimba County. Rev. Anthony and Betty Jonah started the orphanage to care for orphans, at risk children, and abandoned children as a result of the Civil War in Liberia. The Orphanage is next door to Redeemer Baptist Church where Rev. Jonah has served as Pastor for over 30 years. Presently, there are 48 children living in the orphanage. Pastor Jonah became a believer through Mt. Nimba Baptist Church in 1968 and has been a consistent, honest, and compassionate presence for Christ in the area for over 30 years. Betty is a vibrant loving wife and mother. She is a wonderful mother to the children of the orphanage.
Pastor Emmanuel Jonah, the son of Anthony and Betty Jonah serves as the Liberia Director of the Liberia Christian Ministries International, formed to be a support ministry to the Betty Jonah Orphanage. Emmanuel is responsible for purchasing and transporting supplies from the capital city of Monrovia to the Orphanage located 200 miles away in Nimba County. This is an extremely difficulty task due to the bad road conditions in the interior of the country. Emmanuel and Wintee have been faithful to provide administrative and logistic support for the orphanage since it began. They are also an active part of the leadership of the LCMI Church in New Kayma Town which they helped to start. the ministry at the orphanage would not be possible without their dedication.
Most of the children in the orphanage are from nearby villages in Upper Nimba County. They have either lost one or both of their parents in the Liberian Civil War, or have a parent who cannot afford to care for and feed them. There has been no humanitarian aid organizations helping the orphanage which has primarily been surviving on local subsistence farming. There are several volunteer care givers working with the children at the orphanage by cooking, supervising the kids in the dorms, and helping them with their daily activities. Many of the children came to the orphanage malnourished and unhealthy due to lack of proper nutrition and access to medical care. It has been amazing to see the difference that the orphanage has made in the physical and spiritual well being of the children. Pastor and Mrs. Jonah have a strong desire to not only provide shelter and physical nourishment for these children, but also to provide them with spiritual guidance, training them to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Our mission through LCMI is to provide financial support to meet the basic needs of this oprhanage home. We provide food, medicine, clothes, milk, and basic necessities for the children. Our goal is to provide these necessities through friends who are willing to sponsor a child. The people of Liberia have experienced tremendous suffering because of the almost constant Civil War and instability from 1989 - 2003. Therefore, the children need someone who will stand in the gap on their behalf. They need the knowledge that someone outside their remote area cares about them and is praying for them. Being a sponsor for a child is wonderfully beneficial and rewarding experience.
As you commit to sponsor a child, you will have opportunities to send them letters and small gifts. Because of the lack of an operating postal system in Liberia, sending mail is not possible, but we try to hand deliver items to the children as volunteers travel to Liberia or with the annual shipment of supplies we send from the United States each fall.
We sincerely appreciate any help you can give to these wonderful children who need the basic necessities of life. It is our commitment to be frugal, responsible, and accountable with our dollar given to this cause. We also are committed to giving them life skills, so that they will be ready for the challenges of life. Recent projects at the orphanage include a garden, a rice farm, raising some pigs, and a soap making business.
There is a need of financial support for the Children at the Betty Jonah Orphanage in Camp 4/Yekepa, Nimba County. A $20 per month sponsorship will supply the basic needs of one child. If you are able to give a one time gift to help the kids, that also would be appreciated. If God has blessed you and you wish to give a larger gift to help improve the infrastructure of the orphanage, we would love to discuss ways your gift could be used to make a difference.
Sincerely,
Randy Godfrey and Pastor Emmanuel J onah
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Betty Jonah Orphanage
