Friends of Kenyan Orphans: Rescuing Future Leaders
Associate Sean Bradley and his wife Betsy took their children to American Samoa in the early 2000s for a mission trip. It was there that they met fellow missionaries Bud and Sue Ozar; a life-long friendship was formed. Sean recalls, “I remember them talking at that time that they really felt a calling to be in Africa.”
In 2006, Bud and Sue traveled to Meru, Kenya. Bud began service in the diocese and Sue began teaching English at St. Francis, a school for boys who are orphaned or abandoned due to HIV or tribal conflict. The school had recently been started by local priest Father Riwa, who felt compelled to help the homeless boys get off the streets and give them a hope for the future.
Soon, young, orphaned girls were coming, begging for safety. Sue says the boys in her classes were voicing their concerns for their sisters, being homeless or in servitude in the villages. Father Riwa began to rescue the girls as well, finding them temporary homes with parishioners. As word spread, Father Riwa’s reputation grew and more and more girls came for help. Bud laments, “These girls were abused and used in every conceivable way. If they survived to age 10, they were often times sold into marriage . . . to a man who would continue to abuse her.”
In 2008, as the Ozars were preparing to return home to Michigan, Father Riwa asked them if they could share the story of the children. Father Riwa’s hope was that Americans would donate the funds needed to build a school for the girls. Bud told him, he would “try.”
“It was clear from the beginning that God’s hands were in this,” Bud observes. Support began to flow in, prompting the Ozars to create the nonprofit, Friends of Kenyan Orphans (FOKO). In 2009, they returned to Meru and established the St. Clare School for Girls. By 2010, 140 girls from the northern desert had been brought to the school to live and learn.
St. Clare is now a beacon of hope providing security, education, life skills, and community to girls who were abandoned, forgotten, and abused. No longer at-risk, these independent, confident, and competent young women are able to go on to college, pursue careers, and live a life they would have otherwise never imagined. But challenges remain.
COVID-19 impacted the schools. Strict protocols were put in place to keep the children safe. Money allocated to purchase clothing was needed for COVID-19 measures.
“That’s when I asked for help,” Bud says. His friend Sean recommended FOKO for a BVM Ministry Partnership Grant to help them buy fabric, thread, needles, blankets, sheets, and flip flops for the girls. The BVMs responded positively and awarded a ministry grant. Bud says, “The girls walked around, like, ‘Look what I got!’ They were just so excited. BVMs made that possible.”
The Ozars visited Mount Carmel Bluffs, in Dubuque, Iowa, in August and shared their story with sisters on the Ministry Focus and Hunger Fund committees. Bud states, “We wanted to thank the BVMs in person for the impact the grant has made in the lives of the girls at St. Clare.”
“Your support is life-changing,” Sue shares. “It’s just incredible what those children, given a chance, have accomplished . . . that’s the beauty of it all.”
Sean says, “What the Ozars have done with FOKO has aided St. Clare in literally saving the lives of hundreds of children. And not only saved, but these kids are loved into being able to live healthy and fulfilling lives. We are blessed and grateful to be their partners.”
To learn more, visit: friendsofkenyanorphans.org
WINTER 2023: Many Faces, One HEART
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