Abu Sara is a farming community located approximately 20 miles from Debre Zeyit. Last year, the community was devastated by a drought that killed their harvest and left them with nothing to grow or eat. Some villagers abandoned their homes, some lost loved ones, and others became beggars.
Hungry Child in Abu Sara
Men Out of Work and Hungry
After seeing what the people of Abu Sara were going through, Blessing the Children decided to help by partnering with Prairie Gleaners, a Christian non-profit organization based in Canada. The gleaners take locally grown fruits and vegetables that would normally end up in the landfill and turn them into dried food and soup mixes, which are distributed to people in need around the world. The organization is run on volunteer time and serves 40 different nations.
Dehydrated Soup Mix
Prairie Gleaners readily approved the request for a food container to be sent to Ethiopia. The container took several weeks to arrive by sea to the port town of Djibouti. The food was then loaded onto two large trucks and driven nearly 500 miles to Debre Zeyit. Half the container was distributed to the community of Abu Sara, while the other half stayed in Debre Zeyit.
Food Shipment Arrives
Food Distribution Begins
A staggering one million meals were provided by these dehydrated food and soup mixes, benefitting children in the BCI program as well as those in a crisis state of famine in nearby Abu Sara. In total, 950 families have received the food support.
We are grateful to Prairie Gleaners for turning nutritious produce that would have been wasted into a remarkable blessing for the families of Ethiopia!
Children of Abu Sara Rejoicing
Blessing the Children International 