Church invites community to reach out to AIDS orphans

Church invites community to reach out to AIDS orphans By Lori Porter porter@theacorn.com

Sharon Clack, the wife of Pastor Dave Clack from Conejo Valley Congregational Church in Thousand Oaks, is inviting members of the community to reach out to Lily of the Valley, a small village orphanage with an enormous heart in Kwazulu, South Africa.

Home to 70 young children who are HIV positive, Lily of the Valley (LOV) was established in 1992 by an elderly couple who decided that instead of spending their retirement on themselves, they wanted to do something towards eradicating the AIDS pandemic in South Africa and all over the world.

It was just four months ago that Clack learned about the orphanage and shared its history with members of CVCC, and already there has been an outpouring of support for the incredible work the orphanage is doing.

Last April Clack raised $10,000 and donated it to an AIDS center connected to the South African orphanage. CVCC decided to take LOV on as their own mission and established The L.O.V.E. Foundation (Lily of the Valley Enterprise) to raise funds that will pay for all administrative costs at the orphanage.

"I believe most people in the community want to help but they either don’t know how or they feel overwhelmed by the enormity of the AIDS pandemic," said Clack. "We’ve found a way that the entire community could help through this foundation."

On Sept. 3, Todd and Taydn Tucker of Thousand Oaks, along with their two sons—ages one and three—will travel to South Africa to visit LOV. The Tuckers are members of The Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley. They have already raised over $2000 and hope to have more by the time they arrive in Kwazulu so they can give LOV a monetary gift.

There is so much to be done but amazingly it doesn’t take as much as one would think to provide for the orphans at LOV.

A donation of $3,000 can feed the entire village of LOV for one month. $200 provides a one year supply of medication for one orphan at LOV. The L.O.V.E. Foundation has set up a program for those interested in sponsoring a child. A sponsorship of $1,000 will provide enough for the total care of one child for one year. That includes schooling, food, clothing, shelter and medical care.

Eight thousand people die daily of AIDS world-wide and there are currently 14 million orphans afflicted with the deadly AIDS virus throughout the world.

Rich Stern, president of World Vision International was recently quoted as saying that if all the AIDS orphans in the world held hands they would cover the USA coast to coast five times.

These statistics can be overwhelming but Clack says that CVCC has made a way to help through this foundation. "It is not a job just for our church but for the entire community," she said.

The administration of Lily of the Valley is run by three volunteers who do not receive compensation for their work. There is one house mother to six orphans living in one of the several self-contained cottages at the orphanage. The $1,000 sponsorship also covers the salary of a house mother at LOV besides providing total care of a child.

A house mother’s job is like that of a foster parent, doing everything a mother would do for a child. Each house mother at Lily is fully trained before moving into a cottage to care for children. While there are currently 70 children at LOV, that number is expected to double in two months.

Through LOV, much has been done for just a few when you consider 70 children out of 14 million. "That is why we want to ask the community to help. There is no limit of space, just funds," said Clack. Many experts have compared the AIDS pandemic to the Holocaust in terms of its enormity and the impact it has on its survivors.

The life expectancy of a child diagnosed with the AIDS virus is 18 months to five years. When a child is HIV positive at birth but tests negative after a couple years of treatment they are considered to be what is called, "sero-converted."

As a result of the fantastic care and nutrition the children at LOV receive, the percentage of those who are sero-converted has risen from one percent in 1992 to more than 60 percent in 2003.

Although this is an awesome aspect of the work at LOV, it also presents a new challenge; how to care for orphaned children as they grow up into adulthood. "The need is infinite but the vision of the people at LOV is also infinite," said Clack.

When 6-year-old James came to LOV he was so ill they only expected him to live a couple weeks. LOV volunteers and staff members just wanted to provide love for James in a nice place so his last days of life would be good. Four years later he is smiling a lot and hanging onto life through an amazing survival that involves AIDS medications with harsh side effects.

Several nurses and doctors who live and work in Kwazulu volunteer their time and expertise through regular visits to the clinic located at LOV.

In addition to the cottages and the clinic, LOV has a nursery for the babies, a pre-school, activity center and a fully equipped play ground.

Staff members are proud of the two computers that serve the entire village of LOV. Education is provided for the older orphans through the nearby public schools.

Approximately 50 miles from the South African Coast near the city of Durban, LOV is located in a lovely setting surrounded by rolling hills in a somewhat tropical climate. The goal of LOV is to raise enough funds to plant subsequent "Lilies" in South Africa and/or wherever they are needed.

What is so unique about The L.O.V.E. Foundation is that every single dollar they raise goes directly to funding LOV.

Those interested in making a donation are encouraged to write a check to the L.O.V.E. Foundation and mail it to 750 Erbes Road, Thousand Oaks, Ca. 91362.