Uplands Community
New Hope Children’s Centre was originally known as the Stars for Jesus Orphanage. At that time around 60 girls were housed in a large but inadequately sized house, kindly let to Anne and Tirus Chege for a 5 year period.
The first girls in the Home were nearly all street-girls. They can all tell horrific stories about the abuse they suffered in their early years – physical, emotional, sexual abuse and rape, witnessing murder, living on the streets and feeding themselves out of hotel dustbins and rubbish tips, general exploitation of the weak and vulnerable by unscrupulous predators.
At New Hope they have been given love and hope and we at ABIGAIL MINISTRIES feel privileged to have played a part in the transformation we have seen take place in these children and teenagers.
It was evident to all, however, that the original house had to be a temporary arrangement as the number of girls needing care increased almost weekly and living conditions became more and more cramped and uncomfortable. In 2006 Abigail Ministries helped buy land to build a new more adequate home for the children and New Hope Children’s Centre was officially opened in April 2007. Since then it has continued to grow and now cares for boys and girls, many from destitute or abusive homes rather than exclusively rescued street girls.
As we came to know the families of these children who live in the New Hope neighbourhood, we became increasingly aware of the desperate conditions of these homes and felt burdened to improve the living conditions of those families. We were also aware that they not only required better living conditions but for real transformation we needed to create income generating projects so that these parents and grandparents could provide for their families into the future.