FAMILY NEWS: January 2023 / Family Reunification

A PICTURE TAKEN THIS PAST WEEK OF THE GIRLS READY TO START A NEW SCHOOL YEAR (KENYA'S SCHOOL YEAR GOES FROM JANUARY - NOVEMBER)

Due to playing catch up for December and January, I am posting two monthly articles in back-to-back weeks. In the future, they will be spread out to just once a month! If you missed our December Family News, you can read it here.

I’m very excited to share a significant update for our January Family News. Our girls in Kenya were able to experience something that is quite a big deal, and a major step forward in their healing journey— reunification with their families. For many of the girls, it is the first time in over 10 years they have seen a family member.

For those of you who aren't familiar with the backgrounds of the girls we care for, here is a brief description:

We care for children and young women who have been rescued from sexual exploitation, gender-based violence, forced early-childhood marriage, female genital mutilation, and other forms of abuse. Many of the children in our care are orphans, having lost one or both of their parents to HIV or AIDS. If they had not been rescued, they very likely would have been forced into child prostitution (slavery), contracted the same diseases, and never lived to see adulthood.

Now that we've explained the variety of backgrounds the girls come from, we can better explain the process of family reunification.

When a girl enters our program, we assess their individual needs according to their background, family, and trauma, and create their unique care plan. This includes assessing what made them vulnerable to exploitation or was the cause of their exploitation. We also do in-depth research into their family and determine if their family is safe for them to return to at some point whether in the near or distant future. Like stated above, most of the girls in our care are orphans or do not have parents in the picture. But many of them have aunts, uncles, a grandparent, or older adult siblings. Being a part of a family— especially their own family when possible— is crucial to their healing and stability in life. If family reunification is not possible, we provide the family support they need through our safe house.

In the past year, after a thorough investigation into the stability of their families, we have begun to help the girls reunify with their safe family members. It is not an overnight process; we are very involved in the entire process, checking in regularly with the girls and the family members to see how it is going. Our entire team has been very encouraged to see it going well.

Family reunification is important for many reasons. One of the major reasons is for the girls to absorb the culture of their family, which will help prepare them for life outside of our care. Many people don't realize that while safe homes, orphanages, and similar institutions are necessary for children who truly have nowhere else to go, they will never be able to fully replicate the culture of a family unit. Every family is unique and has its own values, culture, and way of doing things. Once the girls finish their time in our care, they will need to be as equipped as possible to function within Kenyan culture, and that culture is best learned in their families.

I know for some of you reading this, it might be a bit confusing to you. You might wonder, “why are these girls not with their families full-time?” or “why were they ever separated from their families?”. These questions are valid, but due to each girl’s situation being different, it is impossible for me to fully explain in an article.

The short answer is this: many of the girls in our care were rescued over 10 years ago. At the time of their rescue, they were either at risk of being exploited or already being exploited due to a vulnerability caused by poverty, an unsafe parental figure, or other similar scenarios. Now that so much time has passed, many of them have siblings or aunts/uncles that are older and more stable, which means they are now in the position to begin building a relationship. However, many of their family members are poor and unable to financially support the girl(s). So that is why we will continue to support them while giving them an opportunity to grow those relationships.

 Prayer requests:

Please pray for the girls. Given their complex pasts, it will take time for them to mentally and emotionally process being reunited with their families. The girls receive counseling on a weekly basis to give them the support they need and a safe space to verbalize their thoughts and feelings.

Please pray for their families. Pray they will continue to be receptive to reunification and take responsibility for their role with the girl(s). 

Please pray for our Kenya and U.S. teams as we seek to navigate each situation with wisdom, prioritizing the long-term well-being of each girl in our care.

If you are not already a monthly partner with us, I'd like to invite you to join The Family. To help meet the growing needs of our Restorative Program in Kenya, we need 40 new people to partner with us at $50 a month. Your contribution will go towards providing full-time, holistic care for 15 precious girls. Learn more here.

For the one,

Caitlin Crane

CEO/Founder