Serving God's children
It is an honor to support the following Catholic institutions that are helping children who are in desperate need of care.
Divine
Providence Home
Located in Ogoja, Nigeria, Divine Providence Home (DPH) was established in 2007 by Reverend Sister Mary Rita Abang of the Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus - a Catholic order under the Sisters of Charity. When the orphanage was in danger of having to close its doors due to lack of funding, Sister Rita’s niece, Muji Kaiser, established the Okaja Foundation to help keep them remain operational. And by the grace of God, we have done so successfully since our founding in 2017. The home has taken in over 200 children since its founding and is known in the community as a safe haven for orphaned and vulnerable children.
Our founder, Muji Kaiser, conducts an annual site visit so that we can assess and meet the home’s needs, funding renovations to the property and creating a beautiful, peaceful environment for the children. We also fund programs which ensure that the home’s most critical needs are met.
Donations made to our foundation enable the sisters to take in and care for every child brought to their door in need of a home.
Our organization covers the home's entire operating expense, including, but not limited to:
- Medical Expenses
- Food, Clothing and All Other Basic Necessities
- Tuition and School Fees up to the College Level or Seminary Education
- Grief Counseling and Mental Health Services
- Building Maintenance, Repairs and Renovation
- Funding Various Major Projects as Needed
Emmanuel’s story
Emmanuel was born on December 23, 2022 at about 30 weeks gestation. Shortly after delivery, his mother left the recovery room, leaving her newborn behind. Knowing that Divine Providence Home was a trusted refuge for abandoned children, officials contacted Sister Rita and asked the home to take the newborn in.
After spending several months at Catholic Maternity Hospital, with medical costs covered by our foundation, Emmanuel (also photographed below with Sr. Felicia) was discharged and became a part of the Divine Providence Home family. He is just one of the many lives that Divine Providence home has saved and sheltered. It is an honor to bring awareness to their ministry and to garner the support needed to keep their doors open.
Catholic Maternity Hospital
Catholic Maternity Hospital was founded in 1946 with the primary purpose of providing medical care to victims of leprosy, tuberculosis, and other related diseases. Among several of these patients were their pregnant wives who required immediate attention. Therefore, the Medical Missionaries of Mary (MMM) sisters established a maternity unit which grew to become Catholic Maternity Hospital.
The Okaja Foundation supports Catholic Maternity Hospital through the provision of in-kind donations such as clothing, diapers, and other childcare items. Supplies one would think of as easily attainable, such as a bottle or fever medication, are difficult for their patients to afford. Thankfully, these items are made available to them by donations made to our foundation.
In addition to services for pregnant women, Catholic Maternity Hospital provides secondary medical services to adult, pediatric, and HIV patients. The area’s impoverished are often turned away by other hospitals when ill, due to their inability to pay. Thankfully, CMA offers medical services for free or for very little cost, because everyone deserves access to proper healthcare.
Food and Formula Program
During a visit to Divine Providence Home in 2023, our Founding Director, Muji Kaiser, sat behind a mother and child during mass at the home's chapel. The chapel is open and often frequented by the area's faithful. The child was very small, and his ribs were prominent - a heartbreaking sight. Muji came upon many other malnourished babies while visiting Catholic Maternity Hospital. Images of these children stayed in her mind upon returning to the US, and thus, the Food and Formula Program was established in November 2023.
The Food and Formula Program provides nutritional assistance to malnourished children in areas surrounding Divine Providence Home. We identify babies who are underfed due to extreme poverty and provide their mothers with monthly provisions of formula and baby food. These mothers are unable to maintain an adequate milk supply because they themselves are malnourished.
In collaboration with Catholic Maternity Hospital, we also conduct periodic weight checks to monitor the babies' growth and cover the cost of medical care, if intervention is needed. It has been incredible witnessing the children's improvement and weight gain after receiving supplementation. This is all made possible by the generosity of our donors. We pray that by God's grace and increased support, we will be able to provide nourishment to more hungry children.
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