This week, in recognition of Mother’s Day, May 10, we at Bread and Water for Africa® are paying tribute to our “Mothers of Africa” – Phyllis Keino, Angela Miyanda, Margaret Makambira and our newest, Rosemary Kirutu, who are giving of themselves so selflessly to provide the orphaned and abandoned children and youth a home, sustenance, an education and most of all – their love.
The Inspiring Journey of Phyllis Keino: A Beacon of Hope for Vulnerable Children in Africa
It is because of Phyllis Keino, founder and director of the Lewa Children’s Home, Kipkeino Primary School, and Baraka Farm in Eldoret, Kenya, that Bread and Water for Africa® continues to expand, reaching millions of families across 12 sub-Saharan African nations.
It was in December 1988 when Gene Krizek, founder of Christian Relief Services headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, announced to his board of directors that a fundraising appeal was going to go out that month in support of “Kip Keino’s Children Home.”
Over the years – nearly four decades now – Phyllis commitment to the children in her care and to helping countless others throughout sub-Saharan Africa as the volunteer international spokesperson for Bread and Water for Africa®, that she has been devoted her entire adult life to caring for orphaned, abandoned, and vulnerable children.
Several hundred of children have found a safe haven at Lewa Child’s Home. The dedicated work carried out has consistently been recognized as a lighthouse of hope and an exemplary model for humanitarian efforts focused on child welfare. Community partners frequently highlight their commitment to nurturing the most vulnerable children, ensuring they receive the care, support, and opportunities they need to thrive in their environments, such as Lewa Children’s Home in Kenya.
For that, she has received much-deserved recognition including the Humanitarian Award for 2018 by World of Children in 2018 (described as the “Nobel Prize for Child Advocates), the Jury Chairman’s Award for Philanthropic Excellence by the East Africa Association of Grantmakers (EAAG) in 2012 (its highest honor to humanitarians who spread awareness about conditions affecting poverty-stricken communities and provide long-lasting solutions for others to follow), and The International Alliance for Women (TIAW) World of Difference Award for her unwavering commitment to the children of Kenya.
Of course, she has not devoted her life to helping children and youth overcome massive obstacles and challenges to escape dire poverty, for but one simple reason – growing up in poverty herself, telling us:
“We were poor people, very poor, in Kenya. That actually helped me to be what I am; people helped us all the time.
“When we didn’t have food, other people would come and help us.”
Angela Miyanda: A Legacy of Love and Hope at the Kabwata Orphanage
Angela Miyanda, a former “Second Lady” of Zambia, is the founder and director of the second-longest partner of Bread and Water for Africa® -- the Kabwata Orphanage (formerly the Kabwata Transit Centre) in Lusaka. In fact, it was in 1998, just one year after the incorporation of Bread and Water for Africa®, that we joined forces to provide loving homes for orphans in the AIDS-ravaged country.
“I founded the Kabwata Transit Centre in response to the plight of children orphaned by HIV/AIDS,” Angela told us. “Quickly, however, that mission grew to include Lusaka’s orphaned street children, many also victims of HIV/AIDS.
“It became obvious that we needed to address root causes of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and also the needs of local communities,” she said, noting that working with community leaders and volunteers, the transit centre’s operations quickly expanded.
Angela has also received several awards for her good work, including being named in 2015 as the Country Winner from Zambia by South Africa’s CEO Magazine in its 2014/15 issue of Africa’s Most Influential Women in Business and Government. She received the award in the “Welfare & Civil Society Organizations” category, which recognizes those who “are very active in the field and have acquired an in-depth knowledge of children’s rights, enabling them to make considerable contributions towards improving the lives of children.”
In the summer of 2017, the Daily Mail of Zambia reported on “Kabwata Orphanage: Many successes 20 years later,” noting at the time that a total of 563 children had passed through Kabwata.
“The orphanage was born out of Mrs. Miyanda’s compassion for children who were left behind by parents who died of AIDS and related illnesses,” the article states, adding that when Angela opened, “HIV and AIDS was at its peak” and it was at that time she decided to create a shelter for such children.
And, to date, children orphaned by the AIDS epidemic still make up the largest number of those who have gone through Kabwata, and Angela notes that in all its years of existence, they have lost 13 children, mostly due to HIV and AIDS.
As for Angela herself, “The greatest achievement we celebrate is the children who have made it and are able to fend for themselves,” she says humbly, “I have had very wonderful people around; we cannot even claim that we have done it all by ourselves at the centre. It has been a collection of so many people. It is not me and myself, but God.”
Angela’s favorite verse from the Holy Bible is Psalm 23:6: “Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
Empowering Lives: The Transformative Work of Margaret Makambira and Lerato Children's Home
In Zimbabwe, another longtime partner, Margaret Makambira, founder and director of the Shinga Development Trust and its Lerato Children’s Home, created the safe space “to offer a place of safety for orphans and vulnerable children in Zimbabwe that will be able to promote physical, social, spiritual, psychological, and emotional growth.”
Other long-standing goals for Margaret and Lerato are to empower children to reach their full potential for self-sufficiency through livelihood training as well as to provide access to formal education for orphans and vulnerable children and youth.
In addition, thanks to the supporters of Bread and Water for Africa®, we have been able to assist her to increase the overall ability, accessibility, sanitation, and hygiene of water to people in the Mutare Rural District, where Shinga is located.
Since its establishment, Lerato Children's Home has provided invaluable support to hundreds of orphans, benefiting not only the children residing at the facility but also those engaged through its dynamic outreach program.
In 2017, Margaret received recognition from The Manica Post, a leading newspaper based in Mutare, Zimbabwe, for her advocacy and significant contributions to children's welfare.
Everything she does is for the benefit of those children and youth who come under her care, such as an orphaned teenage boy named Akashinga (which means ‘brave’ in the Shona language), “whose life was marked by trauma from a young age,” said Margaret.
“At just 14, he had already fallen into the grips of substance abuse, using it as a coping mechanism to escape the challenges he faced,” she told us. “After losing both parents, he experienced physical, emotional, and psychological abuse and substance misuse from his uncle.”
And recognizing Akashinga's potential, the Lerato Children's Home, with the support of Bread and Water for Africa®, facilitated his enrollment in a hospitality and tourism diploma program to which he is eternally grateful.
"Thank you, Lerato Children’s Home and Bread and Water for Africa®, for changing my life," he expressed. "If I had not placed in that home, I was going to be dead or roaming the streets with drugs."
Another was a 14-year-old girl who had been deprived of going to school by her father because he believed that the girl was useless,” reported Margaret, who was able to grant the girl’s fondest wish of obtaining an education.
“Attending school is a dream come true,” the girl told us.
Margaret's favorite verse from the Holy Bible is John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life."
Nurturing Hope: The Inspiring Journey of Rosemary at Watoto Wa Africa Orphanage
Rosemary is the co-founder and programs coordinator of Watoto Wa Africa (WWA) Orphanage, where she oversees the general welfare of some 100 orphaned and abandoned children and youth at the WWA Orphanage, supported by Bread and Water for Africa®.
In addition, Rosemary oversees its daily operations and community programs that provide holistic support for children.
In fact, since WWA’s founding in 2000, Rosemary has literally devoted her life to creating a nurturing, faith‑centered environment where orphans and vulnerable children can grow and thrive.
With experience in child development, counseling, and community service, she has helped shape the orphanage’s compassionate care model.
Her leadership ensures that every child receives love, education, and guidance toward a brighter future.
Having been married to her husband and WWA co-founder, Josephat, since 1990, Rosemary shares his passion to see every child they care for become a responsible citizen and a child of God’s kingdom.
She draws her strength and motivation from faith, guided by her favorite verse:
“If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?” – 1 John 3:17
Rosemary’s empathy, gentle strength, and unwavering devotion embody the heart of Watoto Wa Africa Orphanage, a living example of love in action and faith that transforms lives.
In sum, together, Rosemary and Josephat have created more than an orphanage—they have built a family. Through faith, perseverance, and love, they continue to offer hope and opportunity to Tanzania’s most vulnerable children.
Over the past nearly four decades, Phyllis, Angela, Margaret, and Rosemary have become the “mothers” to thousands of children who have matured into successful adults under their caring and watchful eyes – a daunting, but a loving task made so much easier through the generosity of the supporters of Bread and Water for Africa®.
