Safety net for refugee children

News | March 20, 2017

Yohannes was 16 when he arrived in Cairo, Egypt, alone. He made his way to Egypt from Eritrea, in East Africa. He crossed the Sudan, and with food hard to come by, he went without eating for two days.

Upon arriving in Cairo, Yohannes came to St. Andrew’s Refugee Services (StARS) seeking help. StARS, a program supported by gifts to ELCA World Hunger, offers unaccompanied refugee children food, education and psychosocial support. First order of business for Yohannes: a warm, home-cooked meal.

Through your gifts to ELCA World Hunger, StARS feeds 350 refugee children two meals a day, four days a week. And, with the help of the program, Yohannes has learned about nutrition, budgeting, and services available to him in Cairo.

The program also offers him a safe space for playing sports and building friendships. “If StARS did not exist, I would go without food for the entire day,” Yohannes said. “Nobody can study with an empty stomach.”

“And here I get the chance to learn and to be with my friends.”

Today, Yohannes is attending school. He has a brighter future thanks to your support of ELCA World Hunger.

ELCA.org/hunger

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