Board of Trustees
Profiles
LELAND BRENNEMAN:
I have been involved with international relief and development work in one way or another for most of my adult life. Much of my work was carried out under the umbrella of large and complex organizations involving a mix of government and private funding. While much good and needed work occurs within these structures they are encumbered by large bureaucracies and the politics of foreign assistance. Over the years, while thus engaged, I would often stumble upon small, grassroots efforts in communities around the world, struggling at great odds, to meet the needs of their own people. For various reasons these efforts would fall beneath the radar of the foreign aid machinery. This always struck me as unfortunate as often these courageous, local individuals where much more efficient and better targeted in their efforts than the high visibility aid organizations staffed by expensive, expatriate staff.
An example of this was an initiative I stumbled upon in Zambia in 2007 in a squatter's village called Grippis Farm located outside of Lusaka, Zambia. This village had no school, no health post, no source of potable water and certainly no modern amenities such as electricity and phone service. Its residents were destitute with little hope of improvement. Despite this, several individuals in a nearby neighborhood had the vision to start teaching children in the village how to read and write. With no means of support, they started assembling a rag-tag group of children outdoors under a mango tree and began instruction. I and my wife were touched by the courage and vision of these under-resourced, but determined Zambian heroes. We decided to do what we could to help. Out of this desire Grassroots Heroes International was formed. It was initially a small group of volunteers from the United States who banded together to raise support for what has become the Mango Grove Community School. Three years later over 250 children attend a rustic but vibrant community school. Its success far outstripped the initial vision of those humble Zambian neighbors who wanted to make a small contribution to their own people-- it is truly a monument to the faithfulness and persistence of home grown heroes.
But there are many challenges facing the children and their families in the Grippis Farm community in addition to education. There are serious health problems, there is a lack of economic opportunity-- not to mention the scourge of the HIV/AIDs pandemic. These challenges are worth taking on and GHI is committed to doing so with its growing band of grassroots volunteers from countries like the United States supporting the grassroots heroes on the ground in Zambia.
TANYA BRENNEMAN:
As I've traveled and lived around the world, I'm always the most inspired by persons of humble means reaching out to help others. When I visited Grippis Farm, Zambia for the first time in March of 2007, there were a group of teachers who were volunteering their time to walk long distances in scorching heat and soaking rain to teach desperately poor children to read and write. Their passion for giving these outcast children a future caught my heart on fire to help them accomplish what they felt called to do.An educator and journalist, I began to simply use words and photos as a bridge to connect these amazing grassroots heroes to other heroes who also want to lift these orphans, with no shoes, one set of clothing, hungry bodies and thirsty souls out of the pit in which their circumstances had trapped them. Since then, these children are experiencing the warmth of God's love expressed through their teachers, provided with nutritious meals, given hopes and dreams to follow, and skills to enable them to reach those dreams.
In addition, I have seen their parents experience what they called "Chisisimuso" - an awakening. "We were dead to hope, but now our eyes are opened, and we realize that we can do so much to help ourselves and change our destinies." Some are expressing artistic talent by making beautiful purses and exquisite jewelry others are selling delicious bread rolls. Twenty men and women are completing a sewing course which will give them a life skill so they can provide for their families. To see vulnerable, hopeless men and women wake up to new possibilities is extremely rewarding. But most of all, to see God reach into hopeless situations and bring hope is miraculous.
Henry Blackaby, in his book Experiencing God captures my experience of walking beside the people of Grippis Farm as God reveals himself to them. "Watch to see where God is at work and join him!" I saw God moving the hearts of others to help the poorest of the poor, the oppressed and down trodden, and His Spirit urged me to join them. I trust that God will continue to prompt hearts to join His work of caring for the widows and orphans in Zambia. Together we are God's hands and feet, bringing good news to the poor in body, mind and spirit.
DR. KURTIS SAUDER:
I have never been one to wander too far from home and the world's problems always seemed too big for me to personally have any impact. But when Tanya came back from Zambia with pictures and stories of all of these children in an upstart school in a squatter village just outside of Lusaka, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to help. As a pediatrician, the health of children is what I am all about. So my wife, Cindy, and I decided to go meet these children ourselves.
And when we got there and I talked to the people, saw the village, ate the food, witnessed the muddy drinking water, smelled the smells, examined the malnourished, worm-infested children, and felt the warm breeze in the shade of a mango tree, I knew I wanted to do what I could to help. Their stories are familiar, similar to what we always hear about third world countries - poverty, disease, lack of food, clean water, shelter, and sanitation. But seeing it myself and getting to know the people affected put it in an entirely new light for me. None of us can save the world, but we can help provide hope for a group of children whose lives have contained very little, with the goal of them being able to provide that same hope independently to future generations
GREG KNIGHT:
After a trip in November 2007 my heart was opened to a new world. There were many sad and tragic things in that world but there were also real people with hopes, dreams, and names.
I was confronted with not only the great challenges of very real people but also with my blessed condition. Why was I born here in the U.S. instead of in a squatter's village in Zambia? I suppose that God makes those choices and that there is a reason for it. I do know that he calls us to provide and care for widows and orphans and that our blessed condition is to be used for that purpose. Shortly after returning home we started Grassroots Heroes thinking we could make a difference as a group in a community a world away. Since then we have had the privilege of watching a community come together and their children growing in knowledge and in hope. God's blessing has been on this project and we believe with His help we can continue to use our abundance to bless others and offer hope and encouragement. GHI has been a great way to keep my focus on just how blessed we are and that we can in turn bless others.
CHRISSY KNIGHT:
My compassion for Zambia began after my husband's (Greg) first trip. As I began to learn more about the children, the school, and the village as a whole-my heart was stirred to do something-to be in love in action. I was able to go the following year and hold the same children that Greg had held and was moved to continue the work. I was so inspired as I saw men, women, and children in unthinkable circumstances who also had joy and the ability to sing and dance at a moment's notice. I met women who were determined to better themselves. I held children who had desires and dreams not unlike my own children's.
What I love about Grassroots Heroes is that our mission is to help those who are already on the ground-those that know the people, the culture, and are already doing the work, but just need help and support. These heroes are there every day doing the work. We come along beside them and help them continue to do make a difference in their community.