In the book of Acts, Luke writes “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Every time I travel internationally with teams, I wait until the very end of the trip to quote this. Whether it be at a playground dedication, handing out OneMeal in a community, eating OneMeal in a family’s home or participating in a StoryClub…it happens. People from the States travel with KATW to bless and serve others…but somehow they are the ones who end up receiving that blessing. I like to use the analogy of watching a groom’s face when his future bride walks down the aisle for the first time. You all know it. While watching kids is impactful here at KATW, I love watching the faces of the people who come to serve.
2022 really was a year of so many blessings at Kids Around the World. We could not have done it without each and every one of you. Your continual prayers were felt on a daily basis, the over 40,000 volunteers who served were essential to the advancement of our mission, and your creative ideas impacted the communities we serve like never before.
After 28 years of blessing children all across the globe with the gift of play, we celebrated a huge milestone this past year – our 1,000th playground! We took a team of 65 people to our Generation Hope headquarters in Ecuador and built 3 playgrounds. Not only was it a time filled with love, hope and relationship building but one that will always be remembered.
In 2008 we started our food packing program. At the time it was a very new concept and we really did not know where it would lead or what doors it would open. This past July, we were able to celebrate packing our 50,000,000th meal at a church in San Diego, CA. Not only does this program provide nutritious daily meals, but we also use food as a resource to support the discipleship-based StoryClubs we have in countries all across the globe.
Lastly, the vision of Generation Hope has continued to grow. We ended 2022 with 44 HopeZones where we partner with churches, businesses, schools and individuals to impact over 4,000 children that are actively engaged in a weekly discipleship StoryClub, receive OneMeal and have access to a playground.
We are all so blessed here at Kids Around the World and it is because of all of you that we can continue to impact children’s lives all across the globe!
Jeff Rosene
Interim President
2022 FINANCIALS
Thanks to people and partners like you, Kids Around the World continues to thrive in financial growth and impact. We are proud to report that the percentage of funds used directly for program services has consistently remained between 88%-90% in each of the past ten years. We work hard to limit spending on administrative and fundraising expenses, so our donors and partners can be confident that the financial support they provide is truly making a difference in kids’ lives all over the world in the form of food, play, and story. Thank you for your continued support – you help make all of this possible!
For more detailed information, go to www.katw.org/aboutus/#financials
Our Mission
Sharing God’s transforming hope with kids and their communities through food, play and story.
Our Vision
Empowering a generation to live a hope-filled, Christ-centered life.
Our Method
We create environments within local communities through feeding programs, playgrounds, and StoryClubs where kids will experience hope through a daily meal, a safe place to play, and stories from the Bible. This leads them to build relationships with Jesus Christ, their teachers, and the local church. Which will then multiply impact as we see kids sharing their faith at home, with their friends, and becoming young leaders raised up to repeat the cycle!
2022 Highlights
AN UPDATE ON GENERATION HOPE
At KATW, we live out our mission by sharing God’s transforming hope with kids and their communities through food, play, and story. Perhaps this is best seen in the forty-four Hope Zones operating in Ecuador, Uganda, and the Dominican Republic.
Communities that had no continuous gospel witness are now hearing God’s stories weekly. The transformation is evident. In the community of Lomas, there is now a church where forty to sixty people gather weekly. Almost none of those attending were formerly attending church. In Aguas Blancas, five families have come to faith in Christ after Bible stories were planted in their children over the course of this past year. God’s Word is being hidden in the hearts of thousands of children, and lives are forever changed.
Nutritious meals and vitamins are transforming lives too. Carla is four years old and suffers from a painful disorder that scabs and splits her skin, especially on her palms and soles. After only one month of OneMeal nutrition, her improvement was dramatic, even to the point of being able to swim in the ocean pain-free.
Another young child in one of our Hope Zones suffers from sickle-cell anemia and undergoes treatments that leave him weak and depleted. Now, with daily servings of OneMeal, his family rejoices to see him strong and vibrant even after his treatments. Sandra, a single mom, and her three children have nothing to eat except what she receives from KATW. Hope is coming to the tables and homes of hundreds of families living in the Hope Zones.
Child-friendly environments where children can play are transforming communities as well. When KATW teams visit Hope Zones and install playgrounds, the community rallies together and is inspired to dream of change. In Gramal, this inspiration has led to the revitalization of an abandoned daycare center. In San Silvestre, the community is installing new bathrooms for the children. A classroom and bathroom were remodeled in Pueblo Nuevo. Land for a church was donated in Cruce del Caño. Communities now have places to gather, laugh, learn, and play.
2022 has been a banner year for community transformation!
Transforming the next generation through Food. Play. Story.
FOOD
The power of a daily meal continues to lead to transformation in the lives of tens of thousands of kids across the globe. Family Legacy is one of Kids Around the World’s largest partners, and received over 5 million meals in 2022 for the children they serve. Gift is a 10-year old orphan, enrolled in second grade at Family Legacy’s Legacy Academy in Lusaka, Zambia. He lives with his 70-year old grandmother and two cousins. Due to their challenging home situation, Gift’s family receives extra meal packs to help feed the entire household. When Gift started school he could neither read nor write, but in the first year of being in school, he made tremendous academic progress. Part of his social and emotional health recovery has been stimulated by the feeding program at his school and the meals that he has been given to take home. Before he was enrolled in school, Gift used to worry a lot about where his food was going to come from. But now he is assured of daily nutrition, alleviating the constant worry, and freeing him to learn and grow in hope. Recently, Gift received the “Most Improved 2nd grader” award, and is now reading above his grade level & can write and speak English very well.
We are grateful for the 156 partners and 41,286 volunteers who came together to fund and pack meals across 24 states. We remain committed to coming alongside as many kids as possible with physical and spiritual nourishment!
PLAY
It seems like we were just celebrating our 500th playground in Montego Bay, Jamaica! Now, by God’s grace and the help of countless partners, over 1000 playgrounds are standing as monuments of God’s love for children in 86 different countries.
Our 1000th playground build brought many of our staff and volunteers together to celebrate and construct three playgrounds for the children of Ecuador. One highlight of the trip was the impressive construction of the 1,000th playground. With many shipping delays, the container showed up on the last day the team would be in-country. The team rallied to build the playground in roughly 3 hours. Nobody works harder than our dedicated volunteers.
Our 1000th playground was a brand new playground donated by our incredible partners at Little Tikes Commercial. In addition to this gift, they have funded many of our playground projects around the world. We are excited to continue this partnership with such a great corporation who sees the value of providing play for children everywhere. LTC team members have traveled with us to help build many playgrounds in different countries, and help pack meals with our food program. Their partnership and investment in KATW is a reflection of the heart of their company, and a great example of how we can do more when partnering together.
STORY
One of our newest KIDStory partners is Bold Ventures, whose mission is to engage indigenous people to become missionaries to their local, unreached communities. One of their main focuses are the islands off Lake Victoria in East Africa which spans over 23,000 square miles, and reaches into the borders of Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania. There are almost 1000 islands spread throughout the lake, many of which no one has set foot to share about the hope and love found in Jesus. Planting churches is a major focus of Bold Ventures on these unreached islands.
In 2022, Flona was designated the key person to reach and disciple the children on these islands. The Lord is doing an incredible work through Flona! KIDStory is an answer to a dream God had given her about ministering to children. After learning this discipleship method, she immediately went out and began casting vision and training others in reaching and discipling children. She also learned how to use KIDStory to help in trauma recovery, and days later, the Lord brought Sara to her.
Sara was 3 years old; angry and bitter and no one could understand why. Using what she learned from the trauma training, Flona began talking with Sara and discovered that she was upset about not seeing her dad who had recently died in an accident. After talking and praying with her, Sara began to smile and immediately went to play and laugh with the other children. Her mother was amazed at the radical change in Sara’s behavior. God had brought healing to Sara’s heart through His Word and His servant Flona, and renewed His joy within her.
In just 7 months, Flona had trained people to start 7 StoryClubs, ministering to over 725 children in previously unreached communities. The profound impact of God’s Word through KIDStory can be found across the globe. Through KIDStory and our committed leaders, environments are being created where the hope and love of Jesus can be found!
We invite YOU to go deeper with us?
Be A Catalyst For Transformation Through Our GenHope Launch Fund
We’re certain that at your core, you desire to make an impact. Difference makers like you propel even greater change when you come alongside our GenHope movement. By investing in the GenHope Launch Fund, you enable our team to bring the Good News to more underserved communities, and establish new Hope Zones; environments where kids and their families experience lasting transformation through Food, Play & Story.
Have A Life Changing Experience
Join us on our Global Outreach Trips to Ecuador in July or the Dominican Republic in November. Help build playgrounds, distribute meals, and participate in our weekly StoryClubs in Hope Zones. Anyone with a heart to serve is welcome to join. Experience new cultures, put your faith into action, and share the love of Christ with others. Come alone or with a group and build new relationships.
Pack For A Purpose
Gather together for a fun and incredible purpose! When your group joins together at a meal packing event you are not just providing nutritious meals to hungry tummies but you’re extending the love and hope of Christ to impoverished areas of the world. Each package provides 6 meals that meets not only physical needs but opens the door to serve spiritual needs as well!
Pave The Way For Others
Did you know? When you introduce your place of work, church, club, friends and family (frankly, anyone you know) to KATW, you pave the way for others to roll up their sleeves, take part in meaningful impact and most importantly grow together under the unifying desire to serve. It can look like building a playground, packing nourishing meals, or joining together to support a Hope Zone. Word of mouth and personal testimony of how God is at work generates and multiplies kingdom impact to kids around the world!
If you are interested in getting involved please reach out to our team or email: info@katw.org