At Mahanaim Care Centre these precious children are given hope and a chance for a better life. They will have a head start when they begin school with the education they have already received. With the socialization skills they have already learned they are on their way to becoming well-mannered and valuable citizens of their communities. And they walk with greater confidence through the difficulties they face in life as they carry with them the assurance of God’s love.

The children at Mahanaim Care Centre come from impoverished families. While our Women’s Empowerment Programs allow some of the mothers to earn better and more consistent incomes, typically the parents of these children are day laborers. This means they find temporary jobs wherever they can, working in the fields, collecting firewood in the forests or performing other menial labor. Most of their homes are made of mud walls with tin sheet roofing and usually lack running water and sanitary facilities. Malnutrition and upper respiratory infections are common physical ailments from which they suffer. Additionally, the alcohol addiction prevalent among the men causes family dysfunction and trauma. When the parents go to work, if it were not for Mahanaim Care Centre, the children would be left unsupervised to wander the streets and get into trouble, often going without food or fundamental guidance and care.

Although poor, Ashwin’s family was happy until his father was killed in a motorcycle accident when Ashwin was two years old. Without the father’s income, Ashwin, along with his mother and 7-year-old brother, had to leave his rented home and move in with his grandparents. His mother works as a day laborer and struggles to provide for her children. Ashwin, who is now 3 years old, was teased by his neighbors for having no father, which affected him deeply, adding to his grief. Now the attention, unconditional acceptance and love that he receives at the Early Childhood program at Mahanaim Care Centre is healing his inner wounds and giving him strength to face his father’s death. He shares the strong spiritual foundation he receives at The Bethania Foundation India ^TM with his family, setting a good example by his behavior and insisting that grace is said before meals. Every day the children, their parents and the staff at Mahanaim Care Centre pray for their sponsors, expressing gratitude to God for the enormous difference they have made in their lives and the hope now possible for their future.

May your support of Mahanaim Care Centre bring you into a closer relationship with your Lord as you provide love and care for His children.