Several years ago, while on spring break, my son traveled to the Dominican Republic with a group of 23 individuals (21 students and 2 staff) to help build an orphanage for children who had been abandoned, were runaways, or left orphaned due to the death of their parent(s) from various disease and illnesses.

Built in order to address and help alleviate the suffering many of the children were experiencing, the orphanage was a labor of love that came about due to the efforts of the community and various volunteers who gave their time and resources in service to others. Between painting and helping workers clean, students also spent time with children by engaging them with learning activities and playing games.

To help address the limited material goods available to children, parents raised funds at the school site that were later donated to the orphanage.

Click here to learn more about Orphan Outreach.

• Globally, there are 153 million orphaned children (UNICEF)
• In the world’s poorest countries, around 1 in 4 children are engaged in child labor (UNICEF)
• An estimated 61 million primary-school-age children are out of school; 53% of them are girls (UNICEF)
• There are 69 million children worldwide who suffer from malnutrition (World Bank)

“I will not leave you as orphans.”