Letter from the Local Leader
Dear Help One Now Family,
I am honored to share an update on the impactful work done in Kidmia in 2024. Despite significant challenges and funding shortages, our team remained steadfast in their commitment to serving vulnerable children, families, and communities.
This year, we made meaningful progress across various programs. We facilitated 20 adoptions, ensuring that children found loving and stable homes. Through our Family Business Program, 65 families were supported to start and grow businesses. Educational support reached 500 children, with another 200 students receiving library services each month.
In response to the ongoing political crisis, we provided emergency relief to 3,000 displaced families from Wollega. Our Transitional Center extended holistic care to 40 children while pre-adoption training sessions were conducted for over 120 families to ensure they were prepared for the responsibilities of parenthood. Post-adoption visits, as well as the selection, screening, and training of new families for the Family Business Program, remain a priority.
In Gunchire, we invested in the community through gardening, food assistance, and various support programs while providing health insurance and access to essential healthcare for 40 families.
While the tangible impact of our work has been felt, 2024 was a difficult year. We had significant resource constraints that impacted the amount of families we could support. Our hope is always to scale the positive changes we witness in the lives of our families to the entire community, and it is hard to say ‘no’ to a need.
Even in the face of these challenges, the dedication of our team and the support of partners like you have allowed us to make a difference where it mattered most. Thank you for standing with us as we strive to create lasting change.
– Wondimu Begeshaw
Community Care
Due to the ongoing tribal conflict in the Oromia Region, hundreds of people have lost their lives, and over 23,000 have been displaced and are living in three displacement camps in Debre Birhan.
Across the three camps, we provided 3,000 families with emergency food assistance each week. We also provided 1,350 orphaned and vulnerable children with two meals a day for more than six months.
The support provided through this initiative has brought immense relief to those in need. Elderly beneficiaries, parents, and children alike expressed their heartfelt appreciation for the assistance. It is an honor to be a beacon of hope on someone’s darkest day.
Family Business Program
Saniya Fikadu, a 30-year-old mother of four, faced immense challenges running her restaurant before joining the Family Business Program. Two years ago, she was so overwhelmed she was being forced to close the business, but had no other way to support her family. The Kidmia Foundation, through the support of Help One Now, stepped in to provide critical and ongoing support.
She received mini café equipment and essential supplies, including teff flour for injera (local bread), oil, wheat, and lentil beans. This assistance allowed her to keep her restaurant afloat and offer additional services such as biscuits and bread sales.
Today, Saniya earns about 500 birr, which is enough to meet the needs of her and her children and has recently purchased a home that has already increased in value. She credits the support of the program for enabling her to provide for her children, meet their needs, and re-engage in her community without the constant stress and strain she was feeling.
“The smallest support makes a big difference when you’re in deep trouble,”
Education Support
Kidmia (Help One Now local partner) offers education support services to over 500 orphans and vulnerable children living in Gunchire. We also run a campus library that serves an additional 200 students each month. These students are able to use library resources 22 days a month, for 8 hours a day, to continue their education.