The Chikondi Orphanage Children and Their Stories
Shakila
Fidess
Shakila and Fidess are twin sisters, and the first children to arrive at Chikondi Orphanage. They are double orphans. Shakila is far above her grade level. She is already in the public school system and walks several miles to get to school each morning. Shakila is thoughtful, helpful and quite an intuitive little girl. She loves to help and play with the other little girls at the orphanage. Her favourite colour is pink and wearing a pink dress makes her really happy. Shakila loves to have her hair braided and eat mangos.
Fidess enjoys living with the other children and you will find her laughing and playing most of the time when not at school. Fidess loves to hug and really likes one-on-one attention. She has a sweet and bubbly personality and loves the colour pink. She loves to dress up and takes special care of how she looks. Fidess loves to dress up dolls and do their hair. They are very connected sisters and will seek out time with each other.
EXCITING UPDATE: SHAKILA AND FIDESS ARE NOW WITH THEIR GRANDMOTHER WHO IS NOW IS A POSITION TO CARE FOR THEM!
Paul
Jennifer
Paul and Jennifer are siblings. We met Paul first, when he was two years old; he was so malnourished that we didn’t think he would survive the night. His spine had not developed properly and he was so fragile that he couldn’t stand or walk.
Their mother had died and their father was struggling to feed and care for both of them, so he contacted us, his son was so sick he knew he would die without a medical intervention that he couldn’t provide. Even we didn’t know if we could save him. However, our head matron, was convinced that with food, love, kindness and prayer he would make it, and she was right.
She spent countless hours looking after Paul day and night. Soon everyone at the orphanage, adults and children alike, had fallen in love with him and rallied around to help. Little by little and with proper nutrition Paul has grown strong and is proof that with love anything is possible. When Paul came to the orphanage Jennifer was distraught and we knew that we could not separate them. Their father who knew that Paul needed the care that only the orphanage could provide also knew that they needed to stay together so he made the difficult decision to have them both live at the orphanage.
He often comes to visit his two beautiful children and hopes and prays for the day he’ll be able to provide for them and take them home. Words cannot express how grateful he is that we were able to save his son’s life and that we’ve been able to give both his children a loving home, food, access to medical care and an education.
Jennifer is thriving at the orphanage and is so happy that she can live with her brother. She is a sweet little girl who loves to play with dolls and spends a lot of her time with Fidess and Shakila.
Jonathan
Jonathan was abandoned at a police station in Blantyre. When we picked him up from the station he was suffering from severe malnutrition. He had no known name or age. We named him Jonathan and estimated that he was about 2 years old. He did not speak, smile or laugh and most of the time he wouldn’t even open his eyes. He did love to eat and was ravenous, but would not stop eating so we had to ration portions for him so he wouldn’t make himself sick. At first, the nighttime was hard and Jonathan would wake up in the middle of the night screaming. Our head matron, moved her bed beside his and would sleep next to him to be there and help him through the rough patches. Jonathan’s progression has been a miracle. Now he loves to give hugs, eats normally, plays, goes to school and is part of the Chikondi family. People said he would never smile, but he did, and his first smile had us all smiling for the rest of the day.
James
Chrissy
James and Chrissy are siblings. When their parents died the Chief of their home village, Chileka, asked if we could take them, as with no parents and very little resources they would die. We were happy to take them and they quickly became members of the Chikondi family. James has grown into a healthy young boy, who listens well and is a great little guy. He loves cars and trucks and playing ball. You will find James laughing and playing with all of the children and he is very easy to get along with. He has lots of energy now and enjoys going to school. Chrissy is helpful, considerate and a bright young lady. Chrissy likes to help out with the cleaning, washing, cooking and supporting the younger children. Chrissy is a great student and her last report card from school showed marks from 95-100% in every subject. Her favourite foods are rice, chicken, bananas and mangos. She loves running, dancing and singing. Chrissy’s favourite colours are blue and yellow.
Maureen’s parents died. The Chief of their home village, Chileka, asked if we could take her, as with no parents and very little resources she would not make it. We were so happy to welcome her into our Chikondi family, with open loving arms. Maureen has been living at the orphanage for 3 years now. During the week she wakes up in the morning and helps the other children get ready for school. She is always the one willing to help the younger children, giving her support when needed. Maureen loves playing with the other children and having fun after her school studies and home work are done. Her favourite foods are rice, beans, chicken, bananas and when they are taking out for treats it’s pizza, yummy pizza. Maureen’s favourite colour is pink and she loves wearing a t-shirt that says “Love” on it. We all love you, Maureen and we are so happy and blessed that you are part of our Chikondi family!