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Jenifa is the oldest of 3 sisters that were brought to Sonshine January 2025. The lives of the sisters changed drastically when their father suffered a paralyzing accident and the mother abandoned them. The grandmother who is living on the property was doing everything she could to care for her son, the girls’ father and the girls. This care included Jenifer and her sisters looking for food and firewood while also trying to keep up with their schooling. Although the family lives in their own brick home, it lacks electricity, and they must rely on a small solar panel and battery for light at night. The grandmother and the villagers made the difficult decision that it would be best for the sisters to come to Sonshine.

Charity is the middle sister of 3 that arrived January 2025 with her older sister Jenifa and her younger sister Grecious. The disability of her father due to a tragic accident and the abandonment of her mother had brought the family into significant hardship. Charity had to search for food with her sister while helping the family care for the father. They were barely surviving. The kindness of neighbors and well-wishers helped them get by. The move to Sonshine was preceded by thoughtful preparation and the assurances of the support of villagers to help the grandmother care for her son. To Sonshine has come the beautiful characteristics of fairness, charity, and grace.

Ikram was welcomed into Sonshine in Feb 2025. He was born into a family that faced numerous challenges. Sadly, his father abandoned him while his mother was still pregnant with him. Each of his other two, older siblings have different fathers, and they were all living in a very abusive environment. When a social worker discovered the children being abused by their relatives, the children were moved to safer locations. However, the relatives who fled upon being discovered eventually returned, posing a continuing threat to Ikram. The safest place for Ikram is Sonshine where he is now receiving great care and love. The support of sponsors makes the healing journey easier and complete.

Jenifa was welcomed into Sonshine January 2025. She had been living with her grandmother because her mother is affected severely by alcoholism and her father has been absent since her birth. As a result, her grandmother had taken full responsibility for raising her but struggles to provide for all of Jenifa’s needs, such as medical care, ongoing education, and adequate shelter. The environment she was living in posed great risks such as exposure to teenage pregnancy. It was helpful that a compassion group that focuses solely on education had supported Jenifa’s attendance at a local English Medium School while she lived with her grandmother. Now Sonshine has been guided to focus on the overall, complete-care of Jenifa for her best future.

Elisha and his younger sister Glory came to Sonshine January 2025. The death of their mother in 2020 and the absence of their father due to alcoholism had put a great strain on their grandmother. She had sold her land to pay for her son’s treatment, but sadly he did not recover. The grandmother has no stable source of income and understandably struggles to meet the children’s needs. The poor living conditions and lack of resources have affected the development of Elisha and limited his academic progress. The continued hardship and future risk were too great. Sonshine was contacted to help because of its reputation and impact. Providing children like Elisha with a nurturing environment to support their academic, physical, and emotional well-being is Sonshine Love.

Glory and her older brother Elisha became part of the Sonshine family in January 2025. Shortly after Glory’s birth, her mother died, and the father became afflicted with severe alcoholism and depression. The grandmother did everything she could to help the son and to care for the 2 children, including selling her land to pay for her son’s treatment. The son did not recover, and the family was thrust into significant hardship. The challenging environment had grown worse, and the children were struggling significantly. Now, Sonshine is able to provide complete-care to Glory and her brother including dedicated academic tutoring to quickly bring Glory up to grade level and assure for her best success in life. It is exciting to see where Glory with grow and go in her new life.

Samuel and his younger sister Sara came to Sonshine in January 2025. The father had abandoned the family, leaving the mother to fend for herself. The mother’s primary source of income is through a sewing machine repairing clothing. The income is insufficient to meet the family’s daily needs, often leaving the children without food. The family resides in a half-constructed, abandoned house without windows or doors. (The owner had allowed them to stay temporarily while searching for a buyer.) Many challenges and risks are in this environment. The acceleration of Samwel's education and development have begun with enterance into Sonshine. He now has the opportunity to grow, to be blessed, and to be a great blessing in a bigger family and in the nation.

Sara and her older brother Samwel arrived at Sonshine January 2025. She was living with her brother and mother in an abandoned, half-constructed house that lacked windows or doors. The family, who had been abandoned by the father, was barely surviving. As often as she could, the mother would try to earn money by repairing old clothes with a sewing machine. The significant emotional, physical, and educational challenges that Sara and her brother face due to their circumstances can’t be described in a couple of sentences. Through sponsorship and Sonshine Love Sara has a tremendous opportunity to grow and flourish to fully represent her name which means noblewoman and princess. Sonshine is happy to have Sara.

Rehema became part of the Sonshine family at the start of 2025. Tragically, her father died in a motorcycle accident at the start of her young life, and her mother abandoned her leaving Rehema in the care of her grandmother, The grandmother has no steady income and relies solely on casual farming for survival, despite medical advice against heavy labor due to past health issues. As a result, Rehema had not started school due to the associated financial constraints and the absence of safe and consistent housing. Her family had been living in a servant’s quarters that was provided by a kind person. In exchange for housing, caretaking responsibilities kept Rehema from attending school. Sonshine has come forth to shine a brighter light on Rehema’s future..

Hassan came to Sonshine late January 2025. He had previously been placed at a different center for care and support. Although his mother brought him back, she was not able to provide for him. She became a widow in 2023 due to the passing of her husband from the HIV/AIDS virus which also afflicts her. Sadly, the passing of her husband brought severe hardship. She has been mistreated by relatives who took all the property left by her late husband. Their situation remains critical. The mother has no source of income and depends entirely on well-wishers for survival. Sonshine was asked by the Social Welfare Office for urgent help. The team visited and were led to rescue Hassan to ensure his survival. The mother’s needs and wellbeing remain an important area of care and attention by the Sonshine family.

Inocent arrived at Sonshine with his older sister in Feb 2025. His mother became paralyzed in one leg from a severe spinal cord injury that occurred from a terrible accident at her work at a factory. What she thought was a minor injury that did not require medical attention turned out to be far worse. Sadly, the father had previously abandoned the family after losing his job and finding out the mother was pregnant. The mother was unable to get assistance from the father’s family as they were unknown to her. The mother had experienced a difficult life with the passing of her own mother at a young age and no opportunity to attend school. Inocent is now growing strong at Sonshine. He is a great blessing to all those around him, growing strong in the Lord and His living hope.

Mtoto Ajaye is the Swahili term for "next child". Tanzania has over 1 million orphans with the country ranking #3 in orphans per population. Why? Top contributing factors are the death of parents and guardians from HIV/AIDS, the overall impact of extreme poverty, and cultural challenges from tribalism. Sonshine Ministries has been active in Tanzania for over 20 years rescuing and caring for cildren to raise them up to become Godly, world-changing leaders in the communities and country they serve. Sonshine's commitment to excellence and its success have led governing agencies to regularly ask Sonshine to help. Sonshine is a 100% donor-supported ministry that accomplishes its mission through the love and generosity of donors and sponsors that come togeter to rescue "Mtoto Ajaye".

Elia joined his younger brother Elisha and younger sister Glory at Sonshine in February 2025. Their mother had passed, and the elderly grandmother tried to raise the kids. Elia did not initially join his siblings at Sonshine because another ministry offered sponsorship. This situation was not good as Elia had frequently missed school due to the lack of supplies. Continued outreach to neighbors confirmed he was struggling. Sonshine returned to the home to invite Elia to join his siblings. Collaboration with the other ministry allowed resources to be combined for the best possible help for the family and children.

Daniel and his twin sister Debora arrived at Sonshine March 2025 with 3 younger siblings through a special rescue campaign. A worsening financial situation kept the grandmother from providing for the children. Care was required for Daniel’s 4-year-old cousin who can’t walk or speak. This prevents the grandmother from working. A one-bedroom home was provided by grandfather before he died. Daniel shared one bed with his three brothers and Debora shared the other bed with the grandmother and her mute cousin, Sonshine is now shining healing, love, and hope to abandoned siblings that are being kept together.

Debora came to Sonshine with her twin brother Daniel and 3 younger siblings through a March 2025 rescue campaign. Their grandmother struggled to provide for the children with her worsening financial situation. Her required care for a 4-year-old cousin to Debora that can’t walk or speak keeps her from work. The grandfather provided a small, one-bedroom home before he passed away. Debora shared one bed with her grandmother and her mute cousin. Her four brothers shared a second bed. The children’s abandonment by the mother is very sad. Sonshine is brining the siblings together for their best life.

Jovine joined Sonshine in March 2025 with 4 siblings through a rescue campaign to Leguruki. Their disabled mother had abandoned the children, and their grandmother had been struggling to provide for them based on her own worsening financial situation. She was desperately trying to care to a special-needs, 4-year-old cousin. This got her full attention. Before the grandfather passed away, he was able to provide them with a small, one-bedroom home. Sadly, they were barely surviving. The four brothers shared one bed and the other bed was shared by their sister, the grandmother, and the mute cousin.

A March 2025 rescue campaign brought Jackson to Sonshine with 4 siblings. They had been abandoned by their disabled mother, and their grandmother had been struggling to provide for them due to her own worsening financial situation. The special needs of a 4-year-old cousin require the grandmother’s full attention. The family was barely surviving in the one-bedroom home provided before the grandfather died. Jackson was sharing a single bed with his three other brothers while his sister slept in the bed with the grandmother and mute cousin. The village chairman's call to Sonshine changed the children’s lives.

Elingao came to Sonshine in March 2025 with his two older brothers. Their living situation was dire, and a social worker contacted Sonshine. Their risk of survival was great due to extreme poverty. The floor was their bed. Their father’s birth defect often kept him from stable employment. The mother was unable to help with income because she cared for the boy’s 7-month-old baby sister. Due to poverty, the children were unable to attend school. An important decision was made in thoughtful counsel with the broader community. The brothers were rescued and Sonshine is now working to help the family survive.

Upendo and her younger sister came to Sonshine in March 2025 with two brothers. The family had been battling with extreme poverty their entire life. Residing on a small piece of land that is on hilly terrain made it impossible to farm or grow food. To survive, the father had to pursue dangerous and unreliable work. In their tiny house, Upendo and Ruth shared a bed with their mother while her two brothers slept with the father in a separate bed. Very difficult financial conditions prevented the youngest kids from attending school. Sonshine was called in to rescue the children from a dangerous environment.

Ruth arrived at Sonsine in March 2025 with an older sister, a younger brother, and an older brother. Their daily life was a battle with extreme poverty. Her family lived on a small piece of land on very slopped and hilly terrain. Farming or growing food was not possible. For survival, the father often had to take on dangerous, unreliable work. Ruth and her sister slept in one bed with the mother, and the brothers slept with the father in a separate bed. Their financial condition kept the youngest children out of school. Sonshine was called in to rescue the siblings from a dangerous environment.

Jackson with his younger brother and 2 older sisters came to Sonshine in March 2025. Extreme poverty has been ravaging their family for years. Their parents live on a small piece of land on hilly terrain. Farming or growing food is not possible. Survival requirements led the father to dangerous and unreliable work. In their tiny home, Jackson slept with his brother and father in one area, and the mother shared a sleeping space with the daughters. The youngest children were unable to attend school due to financial limitations. The siblings have been rescued from a dangerous environment including the father's mental instability.

Jonas and his younger brother came to Sonshine in March 2025 with their 2 older sisters. They had been struggling with extreme poverty for years, living on a small piece of land on hilly terrain. It was not possible to farm or grow food consistently. To survive, the father often had to pursue dangerous, unreliable work. In the tiny home they lived, Jonas slept with his father and brother in one area, and the mother slept with the daughters in another area. Financial conditions kept the youngest children out of school. Due to the father's mental instability, Sonshine was able to rescue the siblings from a dangerous environment.

John with two younger brothers were brought to Sonshine March 11, 2025. The district social worker contacted Sonshine due to the bleakness of their family’s living situation. The dangers from extreme poverty are many. The children slept on the floor of a tiny, one room structure. The father tried to find day labor, but he was often overlooked due to a birth defect. The mother was unable to work because she cared for her 7-month-old baby. The absence of funds prevented the youngest kids from attending school. The brothers were brought to Sonshine while the ministry looks for ways to help the family survive.

Estomii with his younger brother and older brother came to Sonshine in March 2025. They were rescued from a dangerous and dire living situation through the outreach of a social worker. The pictures of the poverty in their area are overwhelming. Their father’s birth defect kept him from stable employment. Also, the care needs of the brother’s 7-month-old sister kept the mother away from income. The children were unable to attend school due to the abject poverty. A very careful and thoughtful decision was made together as a community. Sonshine would take in the boys while also working to help the family make it.