My Name is
Sumaya
Sumaya
Sumaya's father died when she was a young child, and her mother started living with another man who was unwilling to care for her. She was then considered abandoned by social welfare before arriving at the Rafiki Village Uganda in 2005. Now, Sumaya is doing well in math, biology, English, and literature. She enjoys math and biology because she is interested in numbers, problem solving, and nature. Sumaya says that education is the key for her future, and she knows that she must strive to master all her subjects. She knows God loves and cares for her, and she marvels at the fact that God also cares for all of creation. Sumaya continually prays not to conform to the world but to be transformed by the renewal of her mind.
DOB: Oct 10, 2001
Kiziya
Kiziya’s father died in 2006 after a brief illness, and her mother died while giving birth to her younger brother, Isaac.
Zawady
Zawady is a double orphan; his mother and father died in 2006.
Mercy
Mercy was referred to the Rafiki Foundation by a local ministry in Kampala, Uganda. Her parents died in 2008, and she was put in the care of an...
Mehiret
Before coming to Rafiki, Mehiret lived with her maternal grandmother.
Hannah
Hannah’s mother abandoned her shortly after she was born.
Hope
Hope and her half sister arrived at the Rafiki Village Rwanda in 2009.
James
James’s father died HIV+, and his mother also had HIV.
Alex
Alex and his sister arrived at the Rafiki Village Rwanda in 2012.
Mary
After the death of her parents, Mary and her sisters lived with their aunt.
Dorine
Dorine and her twin sister, Irene, were living with their impoverished paternal grandmother after they were abandoned by their parents.
Martin
Martin and his sister, Grace, arrived at the Rafiki Village Ghana in 2005.
James
Day students are children in need from the communities surrounding the Rafiki Villages who attend our Rafiki Schools with full scholarships or...
Kenny
Kenny and his brother arrived at the Rafiki Village Rwanda in 2014.
Akua
In 2007, Akua’s mother and father both died of illness a few months apart.
Chloe
Chloe is a double orphan; both of her parents died when she was around three years old.
Jonah
Jonah’s father died when he was just a year old, and his mother died soon after.
Abiba
Abiba Ruth's father abandoned her, and her mother is terminally ill.
Isaac
Isaac's mother was sick and admitted him and his twin brother, Paul, to a transient home in Lusaka, Zambia in July 2012. The boys' mother passed...
Jacob
Day students are children in need from the communities surrounding the Rafiki Villages who attend our Rafiki Schools with full scholarships or...
Simon
Day students are children in need from the communities surrounding the Rafiki Villages who attend our Rafiki Schools with full scholarships or...
Nahom
When Nahom was just three years old, his mother died of a sudden illness, and after the mourning period, his father abandoned him.
Bertha
Bertha lost both of her parents to an illness.
Jamila
Jamila's mother gave her over to the care of her aunt.
Aaron
Aaron was abandoned as a small child near a police station.