May 1, 2025

Stunning Isn’t it! Mt. Kilimanjaro from the Blessing House at Neema Village

Baby Vincent

One day old baby Vincent (below) came to Neema Village the last day of April 2025. This baby makes 4 new babies this month. His mother is 17 years old and mentally incapable of caring for a baby. The grandmother believes someone took advantage of her daughter. The grandmother cannot care for the baby because she takes care of her daughter who cannot take care of herself. I just have no words for this. In a poor country like Tanzania the government has no money for facilities to care for the mentally disabled and they often just walk the streets. We may not can help this poor girl but we can certainly love and care for this little one. Jesus cared so we care.

Baby Natalia

Early Sunday morning a mother went to the hospital to have her baby. There was a sudden onset of seizures and coma with elevated blood pressure. She was diagnosed with Eclampsia and the doctors planned a cesarean section. Unfortunately the new mother died a few hours after surgery. The father is unable to care for the baby and the hospital brought the baby to Neema. The baby’s name is Natalia and Dr. Sarun pronounced her healthy and normal. So sorry sweet baby girl. May God keep you strong and healthy until we can find family for you.

Keyran Kweka

Little Keyran Kweka was brought to Neema Village last week by Social Welfare. His mom had a normal birth in the hospital but two weeks later she died of eclampsia. She had had two previous miscarriages. Keyran is related to our twins Ryan and Renee Kweka who were re-united with their family last year. Their fathers are brothers who have both now lost their wives. Just all so sad for this whole family who had waited so long for a baby. Some day there will be no more tears.

Arystadeus

Handsome Arystadeus (above) 4 months old, is recovering very well from the cut on his little nose. His mother is in jail and the father has not been found. After a violent fight where both parents had been drinking the father threw a swing with a machette at the mother and she held up the baby thinking he would not cut her with the baby in front. Government officials had been called to get this abuse stopped so thank God that baby Ary is now out of that home!

Eighty Six young people at Neema Church agreed to read the New Testament through this year. God is Moving in Africa!!

A long awaited adoption took place this month when the family of baby Bruce (one of our past adopted babies) got to adopt Lanie also. Lanie was named for teacher Elaine Carter from Mansfield, Texas. Lanie had been abandoned under a banana tree. We know she will never be abandoned again.

As usual a busy month for Neema Director Kim White. With 67 babies at Neema Village we could certainly use your help in caring for these little ones. Please send an email today to Hayden Fancher at [email protected] to set up a sponsorship. They start at just $30 per month.

May God just heap great Blessings on you!

Dorris and Michael

April 2025

Bought as a second wife, hers is a story of Courage and Hope.

Tumaini in her new MAP business.

Tumaini is a Maasai woman whose lovely smile was hiding a tragic story.

As a Maasai mother of four she had been coming to town from her village, once a month to help with our Save The Mothers program. The STM women have a morning bible class and one week Tumaini accepted Jesus and was baptized. Her name, Tumaini, means Hope.

One afternoon she told us her story. She was a second wife, between age 13 and 15 years old, when she was bought to do the chores; milk the cows and goats, cook the meals, plant the corn and bear the children.

Her husband was a drunk who beat her regularly and did not care about her. She was made to work for the first wife. After years of abuse she finally ran away and went back to her parents house but they had both died. Her brother was living in the house and he took any money Tumaini was able to make working in the fields. She had some goats, much like the African goats below, and she sold them but her brother took all the money.

She had nothing when she came to Neema Village.

She cried as she told us about having no one in the world who cared anything about her.

We told her God cared and we care and that Jesus loved her so much he came looking just for her.

After hearing her story we put Tumaini into our MAP program. She worked hard and graduated from the program and has started her beautiful MAP business. Now she knows there are people around the world who care about her. If you have helped a MAP mom start a business – God Bless You!!

Our second mom to start a business this month is Mary.

When we first saw her, Mary was walking down the steps to a Neema sewing class carrying her heavy son on her back. He was born with Cerebral Palsy and she had been carrying him on her back for 15 years!

Her husband had left them when he saw the baby. Mary has been struggling for many years to have enough food for them. We learned through her work with our MAP shop that she was a good business woman and this month we were able to start Mary in her own used clothing business. We know she is going to do great!

Our third mom, Magreth, pictured above, opened a small shop this month selling items like soft drinks, soap, sugar, flour, etc.

When you see the photo below you are not going to believe it is the same woman!

Magreth was 22 years old, and mother of one child when she came to Neema Village last year. Anna writes, “Her baby was born with Downs Syndrome and she was living with her grand mother.

The father had left Magreth when he saw the baby.

The baby has a big tongue, which makes it very difficult to feed her, she has malnutrition as well.

A lady met Magreth in the hospital, and because this lady knows about Neema village, she wrote an email to Michael Fortson, and MIchael directed me (Anna, MAP Director) to visit the mama. After the first visit we knew this poor girl needed help.”

Magreth came to live in the MAP houses on campus so that we could help the baby with the medical problems and help mom learn how to support herself. She has now finished our program of classes and counseling. It is always exciting to see a woman ready to move out of the MAP houses and start her business.

And now for the final business we have all been waiting for!! Yes, that is Joari above in her new used clothing shop. isn’t that Amazing! I don’t know about you but I’m crying!

I know you remember Joari’s incredible story of the young 15 year supporting five people on the street. Anna brought all five to Neema, including the 12 year old handicap sister who had been terribly abused by the “occasional father.”

Her cousin was also living with her and with two babies and the sister the small tin shack tacked onto a corner fence was crowded. We brought them all to Neema.

Joari immediately ran away abandoning her baby with Anna. Changing a life is not easy, sometimes its messy. After a few months Joari came back, pregnant again.

This time it took, she graduated from Ed and Tammy Burns’ computer class, and sewing classes and became a leader in our women’s group. Last year she accepted Jesus and was baptized.

Joari is going to do great in her used clothing shop and she is also sewing. When you come to Neema ask for Joari!

The incredible fortitude of these African women who live through so much abandonment and abuse continues to astound us! Very few people can lift themselves up from such extreme poverty without help.

We love to call them the Lion Hearted Women of Africa. You can help women like Tumaini, Magreth, Mary and Joari by donating to our MAP (Mothers Against Poverty) program through Outreach on the donate button at www.neemavillage.org. We have set over 150 women up in small businesses. It is not a loan program, it is a free gift, mainly from Christian women around the world.

As we always say, When you help an African woman you not only change her world, you change ours!

If you have helped with a MAP business – God Bless You!!

Michael and Dorris Fortson

March 20, 2025

God is busy at Neema Village! With a men’s conference, a new MAP program for mom’s with special needs babies, a GIFT program to young Maasai girls, a full house of volunteers and four new babies this month it has been a whirlwind of activity for Directors Kim White, Kelle Samsill and the staff at Neema Village.

Most important first, abandoned baby Janeth is still in the hospital and needing your prayers. This precious miracle was born, either at home or on the streets. Her mother took her to the hospital in the night but before any details were recorded, the mama fled, leaving her baby alone.

Several young volunteers from Ft. Worth Christian school were able to go with Safina and HeavenLight to pick up the little newborn. We are praying the mama realizes how much her baby needs her and will come back. Until then, baby Janet (Janeth African spelling) will be loved and cared for at Neema Village. She will be adopted if family cannot be located.

**Remember you cannot adopt unless you have lived in Tanzania for three years so don’t be calling me about adopting this baby!! And Social Welfare handles all adoptions from Tanzania.

Another great monthly seminar was added to the MAP program at Neema Village this month. Many of the moms referred to Neema Village have been abandoned, abused and kicked out of society simply because they had a special needs baby. Added to the heart break of having the baby in a society where there are no government programs to go to for help the women often find themselves begging on the street for their next meal. We put them in our MAP apartments, teach them to read and write if they need it, train them in business and computers, tell them about a Savior who has never abandoned them and then we set them up in a business. But they still need help and encouragement to know that they are not alone.

On Saturday Dr Sarun (our pediatrician), MAP Assistant Director Grace Maans, Bri Followay, and Directors Kim White and Kelle Samsill facilitated our first seminar day of encouragement held for women with special needs babies.

It was a day filled with laughter and tears, good food, prayers and some great Bible words of encouragement. Many people come to Neema to see the babies and then are touched by the MAP (Mothers Against Poverty) program which is filling a huge gap in African society for women lost in a culture of abuse and hopelessness. These lion hearted women are not the problem in Africa, they are part of the solution!

Another new baby this month, Baraka’s mother is an alcoholic and fell on the baby, so Social Welfare asked Neema Village to take over the care of this cuddly little 2 month baby boy. Baraka, which means blessing in Swahili, was being neglected and abused in his mother’s care. This little blessing is safe and loved at Neema Village and hopefully one day his mom will be able to take him safely home.

We received another call from social welfare this month that a baby girl had been abandoned in a mosque. We think she is about 2 weeks old. Bri Followay, our longterm volunteer helping with our special needs babies has been praying about getting to name a baby. When she arrived with our social worker to pick up the new abandoned baby, social welfare had named the baby Briella. There were definitely some tears shed! Baby Briella’s mama obviously loved her; we can tell by the way she has been well taken care of. This poor mom must have been so desperate to lay her baby down in a place she knew she would be safe. We cannot imagine the sadness this mom must be feeling. It’s not our place to judge. We are called to love and hope that the mom will get the help she needs so that she can be reunited with her baby. Until then we will love baby Bri and take care of her.

Neema’s fourth men’s conference in the Preslar Mothering Center was held this month. Two hundred men came for the day with Payte Baldwin from Fort Worth facilitating the conference. Bible lessons, break out sessions, prayers of repentance and worship made this is a life changing event for many of these men.

Cooking for all the conferences and seminars held in the MAP Center adds up to lots of food and hours cooking and serving for our staff. Gertrude who cooks for our MAP moms every day while they are in their classes also organizes the food for the seminars. With all our seminars it is no small task!

Baby number four in this month is little Miriam. She makes babies at Neema Village today. Neema only takes babies 2 years of age and under and we try to get them in a home by age two. Baby Miriam came to Neema around dinner time on Tuesday, March 5, 2025. She is Maasai – her mama is 15 years old or younger and went into psychosis after the baby was born. The village knew where to turn for help. They brought the baby to Neema Village so that we could care for her until hopefully she can return home. Her name is Mariam. She is one month old and weighs 2.3 kg.

If you are in need of a good place to do your morning walks, you can come to Neema and push a buggy! Our babies love their morning walks.

Many of the babies do not have sponsors. With our new giving platform, Tithely, we are revamping our sponsorship program. If you are sponsoring a baby could you please send us an email at [email address removed] with the name of your baby? We do want to thank you and keep you updated on your baby. Neema Village does not receive money from the government and exists solely by the Grace of God and the generosity of His people. start at $30 a month and all babies are listed on the website www.neemavillage.org. And remember no one is paid a salary at Neema Village from your donations except our Tanzanian staff.

All by the Abundant and Amazing Grace of God
Michael and Dorris Fortson
[email protected]

February 23, 2025

God’s Amazing Grace just bubbling up !!

Sometime you just gotta laugh! Our sweet babies are growing strong and happy at Neema Village, like little Elisabeth White an abandoned baby who will have a forever family one day.

We believe that every baby is a special blessing from God and we take seriously the charge that He has given us to care for these abandoned and orphaned little ones.

Neema’s newest baby Victor came to us last week. His mom died in the hospital under anesthesia during the delivery. Did you know that according to our findings one in nine Maasai moms will die from complications during childbirth? With our Save The Mothers midwifery training program and our Gift programs to young girls we are working hard to change that.

The women in the village shaved this baby’s head in grief after the death of her mom. Little Joy (Nadupoi) came to Neema when her father could no longer care for her. Such a happy baby and Thank God she now has a future. Many Maasai children from remote villages do not survive to the age of five without a mother.

January and February 2025 have been great months for volunteers. One special volunteer Emily, our first full time volunteer coordinator, brought her fiancé and family to Neema. So many of you remember our sweet Emily!

If you are not a” baby man” and wondered what you could volunteer to do at Neema, driving the tractor like Tim, would be a good thing. Our dirt road is always a challenge especially after the rains. We tell our visitors as we drive our road just relax and enjoy the Tanzania Massage!

You could teach a computer class, like one of our Canadian volunteers.

Our MAP moms always love a new sewing class.

Teaching a first aid class to our staff (now 101 Tanzanians!) is a great way to volunteer.

Just taking time to do things with our big school boys can change a life.

Like Eliana above, all our babies have a tragic story or we would not have them. Our MAP moms always have tragic life stories as well. Sometime so horrific I cannot even print them. But here are a few of our MAP moms.

Even though Malaria is easily treatable, the mosquito still affects many people in Africa today. Rose’s husband became ill with malaria and became mentally unstable and physically abusive to his young wife, even after she became pregnant with their first baby. Rose was living in the slum area where we visit often from Neema Village to bless new moms on Sunday afternoons. Last year the chairperson from this area called us about a young woman whose husband was beating her. Kim, Neema’s director, went to the home to check on the 20-year-old woman with a newborn baby.

Kim knew she was not safe and brought Rose and the baby to Neema Village where she has been living for a year and half now. Rose became a Christian at Neema Village and when she was baptized, she chose a new name for herself. She wanted to be called Success. Kim talked many hours with Success and soon realized she had a lot of dreams for a better life. Success wanted to become a teacher. Success is now in college and will graduate soon and then she will look for a job to become a teacher. In the near future she will be able to support herself and her little boy Jayden.

Success has finally come to Success!

God’s Amazing Grace at work at Neema Village!

For someone who has already been through so much in life, Evelyn is only 21 years old. She has a baby and she also has “the sickness.” She inherited the disease from her parents both of whom have died.  After their deaths she was living with a friend who saw her taking her medicine one day and realized she was sick and kicked her out.  She got a job, met a man and soon became pregnant. But the man denied the baby was his and left the family with nothing. Evelyn was soon destitute with a baby and nowhere to go. One day she went to the hospital to get her medicine and the nurse could tell she was losing weight and not doing well. After finding out that Evelyn was homeless, the nurse told her about Neema Village, a place that helps marginalized women. Anna and some of our volunteers went to check on Evelyn and found that she needed immediate help so they brought her to live in our MAP houses. She is now in counseling classes and taking all the courses that Neema offers. If she will stay on her medicine Evelyn can live a normal life.

One day she will even be able to start a business to support herself and her baby.

Mariam has a two-year-old baby named Genesis. Her father has two wives, her mother left the home and the second wife was mean and fought with Mariam so the father kicked Mariam out. She had finished primary school, (about 6th grade) but her father said he had no money for her to continue on to Secondary school. She was desperate and had nowhere to go so she moved in with her boyfriend who was living in a house with 5 other men.  When she became pregnant, he said there were too many men there and he did not think the baby was his so he asked her to leave. She was alone with no one to help her. One of her classmates said she could live with her until the baby was born.

One of her classmates said she could live with her until the baby was born. Some of her classmates found out about her situation and went together to contribute some money to help their friend. Mariam got a job cleaning a local clinic once a week but it was not enough to support her and baby Genesis.

Then one of her classmates knew about Neema Village and told her to come to Neema for help.

Today Mariam and baby Genesis are safe at Neema Village, she is taking classes and hoping someday to have a better life.

African women are often called by the name of their first born child.  Mama Murshidu has two children, a two year old baby and Murshidu her first born who is 5 years old. Murshidu was born with special needs and as so often happens in Tanzania, the father ran away. The men believe it is a curse on them to have a special needs child. The mother and 2 children were left alone without any help or support and she began washing clothes for other people in order to buy food for her family. We met Mama Murshidu though our free rehab daycare for special needs babies. At the daycare, after listening to how hard her life was Nappy, the daycare director knew this mother was in desperate need of help. Nappy talked with Anna from our MAP (Mothers Against Poverty) program.

Mama Murshidu wants to start a small store selling staples like flour, soap, sugar, salt etc. God willing Neema Village will be there to help her do that.

We had been looking forward someday to one of our sweetest donors coming to volunteer and hold the babies at Neema Village. Bless him, he always sent my blogs out to all his friends. But this life is short and it ended last week for this dear friend of Neema Village.

We believe all the babies that he helped save and the moms he set up in business will one day get to meet him and they will say, “I know you, you gave me a second chance at life!”

You see this life is the short one, the long one started last week for Wayne Robison. Our Love and prayers go out to Eleanor, Matthew, Jonathan, the family and the Rulon Company from St. Augustine, Florida.

Bless all of you who have come to Neema, held the babies, cried with the MAP moms or just washed dishes and bless those of you who will never come but yet you love.

Dorris and Michael Fortson

www.neemavillage.org

February 2, 2025

Our church is lively, it’s loud and fun and most Sundays we are completely outnumbered by babies! Yesterday at Neema church on campus after all the babies had returned to their homes and the soccer kids had herded out to eat at the picnic tables and the MAP moms and nannies had finished one last song, the building was finally emptied and quiet… except one.

There was still one baby left.

It took a while for Kim and Kelle to piece it all back together and finally the guards and cameras we had installed to protect the babies told the story.

This Sunday one of our ex-MAP moms with her special needs baby, Nadri, had visited Neema church. At some point she left the building to go to the bathroom at the school across the courtyard, but instead walked out the gate and left the church. After searching, the Mom was found and brought to the office to see why she had left the baby.

She had been one of our MAP moms who finished our program a few years back and we had set her up in a used clothing business. At first, she did well but Nadri had special needs and was sick often and in the hospital. This year the hospital took all her profits. She had been able to pay her last year’s rent, but this year when rent was due for the year she was broke. The landlord locked the house with all her property and she had nowhere to go. So, she came back to Neema Village.

In the office Kim and Kelle listened to the sad story that we have heard so many times. Family, husbands, society abandons the mom with a handicap baby, she might be cursed. We have heard it so often it grips my gut, you know that feeling of mad and frustrated and helpless and angry and you just want to yell at somebody?

Tonight, little Nadri slept with a full tummy in the Hallelujah house for special needs babies at Neema. Mom left but will return Monday to visit with Angel and Anna to see how Neema can best help.

We’ve had babies left in latrines, on the sides of roads, on a bench in the bus station, under a bush, anywhere a desperate mom reaches the point where she feels her baby will be better off anywhere but with her.  This was our first left at church. It was better than most.

Doreen, with the big smile above, one of our MAP moms with her little guy and a new stroller.

We have been trying to provide strollers for our bigger special needs babies. It is hard for the moms to carry these big babies on their backs.

We have also talked with Dr. Sarun about starting a support group for moms with special needs babies. They need to know they are not alone.

Bless those of you who have helped buy strollers for our MAP moms.

Love,

Bibi and Babu

January 30, 2025

Our ski sloping, thrill seeking, falling off the side of a mountain, broken ankle treasurer, Sarah Lockett has some important information about your donation and tax receipts, I know you will not want to miss.

(Is she going to be mad I posted this picture!! Oh Yeah!)

A note from the Treasurer-

First of all, Let me thank you on behalf of the board of directors for your love and support of the work done at Neema Village! We are happy to report that again in 2024, USA Administrative Expenses are less than 5% of all expenses.

(Below is Kathy Strong, one of the Neema board of Directors with Donna and two of our current 67 babies wearing hats knitted by women from Nacogdoches, Texas. All fourteen of our board members have been to Neema Village and have seen the work first hand.)

Sarah writes:

2024 donation receipts have now been sent via US Postal Service or email! However, there were several emails returned as “undeliverable” so please contact the Neema Village Finance email at neemavillageinc@neemavillage.org if your email has been changed within the past year. If USPS has not delivered your donation letter by 2/1/25, please email us so we will be able to send it to you via email.

Did you know that there are ways to double your donation through participating company matching funds? Neema Village has received matching funds from Boeing, Chevron, GlaxoSmithKline, Halliburton, Johnson & Johnson, Novartis, Phillips 66, and Shell Oil. Neema Village is registered through Cyber Grants, Thrivent Choice, Celenese Foundation, Frontstream, NPO Connect, Network for Good, Fidelity Charitable, Bright Funds, Benevity Giving Fund, and First Giving through which companies send matching funds.

Neema Village is also registered with PayPal Giving Fund who process donations from FaceBook and GoFundMe fundraising set up with Neema Village as the charity to receive these funds. PayPal Giving Fund is the nonprofit that sends the donation tax receipt to those donors via email at the time of the donation so please save that for your personal records!

Occasionally, non-USA donors do have difficulty using the website donate button. You may send funds via regular PayPal but please cc the USA financial team when the volunteer coordinator or Neema directors are emailed in Tanzania.

You may also donate securities in the form of stock to Neema Village. If you would like information regarding this or other Qualified Charitable Distributions, please contact me at the financial email. Your financial advisor will need account detail for how to make these gifts to Neema.

The finance team is located in the USA and the directors of Neema Village are extremely busy overseeing the day-to-day activities at Neema Village in Tanzania. Between a 9-hour time difference and the logistics of a ministry that spans 2 continents, it would be most helpful to include the Neema Finance email when making pledge donations or any other donations that would need to be recorded a specific way in the financial records.

Thank You,

Sarah Lockett, Treasurer

neemavillageinc@neemavillage.org

We love our volunteers who come to hold the babies. This group of teenagers were from Trinity Christian School in Lubbock, Texas.

From all of us at Neema Village,

Thank You!!

January 25, 2025

“Isn’t anybody doing something about this?”

That was the frustrated cry of one of our Facebook readers this month.

Baby Joshua Trinity was brought in after his mom died in the car during labor trying to get to town from a remote Maasai Village. One more baby who will never know his mom.

Baby Mohammed’s mom was also young when she died this month. The young father worked day labor when he could find it and said he could not take care of a new baby so he brought the baby to Neema Village.

We had just posted the second baby whose mom had died when we read that heartfelt cry of one of our readers, “Isn’t Somebody doing something about this!”

Yes! Somebody is doing something about this! Neema Village is! Our GIFT program “Girls Informed For Tomorrow” was designed to help stem the heartbreaking numbers of young women dying in childbirth out in Maasai villages. Many of these young girls marry as early as 12 or 13 and try to have their first baby at 14 or 15 years old. We teach them their hips are not big enough to have a baby until age 18.

Four times a year we take volunteers and directors out to Maasai villages for our Gift program speaking to young girls about not getting married too young and not having babies too young (which kills many of these moms) and about their bodies, about AIDs and FGM and about how to stay in school.

One woman every 2 minutes dies of complication of pregnancy and 99% of those are in developing countries. Tanzania is one of the ten countries with the highest maternal death rates.

This month we took the Trinity Christian School group of volunteers to help our staff with the GIFT program in one of the Maasai secondary schools. There were about 150 girls who took part in the fun day.

Three of our Neema Directors, Angel, Anna and Priscilla teach our Gift program and we also took Dr. Teddy a pediatrician, Heavenlight our volunteer coordinator and Grace our Bible Class teacher and counselor. We had to rent Safari cars to get them all out to the village.

At the end of the day the girls each received a colorful bag to keep their feminine products in which they can take to school. It is a great way to keep these girls in school.

The GIFT program cost Neema Village 2,138,600 TSH or about $807. USD for each program.

About half of our 450 babies came to Neema Village because their moms died in childbirth out in the villages. Traditional birthers (Bibis or Grandmothers) deliver those babies and we know they need help. Every month we bring twelve different grandmothers to Neema Village for a week of training, called “Save The Mothers.” The first thing we teach them is try to bring the mother in to the hospital. But many women do not want to come in, they say more women die in the hospitals. Probably because they wait until they are in trouble to bring them in.

The January 2025 session brought the total to over 600 traditional birthers who have come for a week of training at Neema Village. The birthers are taught how to handle the four main problems that kill women and babies; FGM (scar tissue does not stretch), retained placenta, stuck babies, and First AID procedures. Along with lessons on AIDs, healthy nutrition and bible classes each morning, it makes for a pretty full week for these grandmothers, most of whom have never gone to school or stayed in a house with electric lights and bathrooms. We cover the floor with mattresses, it’s a week long grandmother sleep over!

This session was one of our best when many of the birthers stated they had not known they were killing their young women with FGM and would never do that again. Thank God!

After the program was over three of the grandmothers wanted to be baptized. That is always a great day!

So, with our GIFT program teaching young girls to wait and our safe birthing program with older women we are trying to slow down the high maternal death rate in Tanzania. But we cannot do it alone.

Our Save The Mothers week each month cost around $4,000 USD. Shocking isn’t it!

If you can’t help, please pray, You know we are all volunteers at Neema Village and it is hard. The long trips back and forth are hard, being away from our families is hard and trying to change a culture is hard. Just please pray. Pray for Kim and Kelle as they try to direct Neema into the next year. Pray with sweet little boy Nasiri whose mom is a young school girl and the third wife of a man who doesn’t care for her. From birth complications Nasiri cannot walk but he is so very smart. He needs our prayers too.

Love you guys,

dorris and michael

www.neemavillage.org

January 12, 2025

The big girls are back at boarding school today. For a baby home with 67 babies it is amazingly quiet, and I am finally sitting down to write my first News From Neema for 2025.

“Sweet as Sugar Pie” is our big school girls reading to the Neema babies.

Neema’s seven big girls were in from boarding school for almost 6 weeks of Christmas break. They road their bikes, took computer classes, had swimming lessons, helped with the house work in Hallelujah house and played and read to the babies. Oh and a good amount of cartoon watching which we call learning English here.

Meshack, Neema’s second baby pictured with his grandmother, makes straight A’s and is number one in his class. He wants to be a doctor and he got to make baby rounds with Dr. Sarun on his Christmas break. Meshack lost his mom in childbirth and fosters with one of our MAP moms.

This month Neema Village paid school fees for forty three school kids for 2025.

Average school fees are $520. USD

Our last baby of the year, little Mo came to Neema on the fifteenth of December, he weighed 2.28 kg. His mom died in childbirth.

With this baby Neema is at 67 babies currently in house.

Here is our totals for the baby program for 2024:

Forty One new Babies in 2024,

Twenty Three babies were reunited with family and

Six babies were adopted in 2024.

We Praise God for this precious work!

Regina, one of our sweetest moms, lives in our MAP houses today. Her husband, a soldier, left her because their first child is a special needs baby. Regina is a leader in our MAP program, helping new moms, singing at church and attending the nightly bible classes. Many of these women have been abused and kicked out of their homes and some were living on the streets when Neema was called to help.

Neema offers daily classes, sewing, bible, computer, reading and writing, English and group therapy.

In 2024 thirty five moms lived in the MAP moms housing on Neema campus.

In 2024 Seventeen new businesses were started for these women,

Three businesses were boosted to become more successful and

Over 300 classes were taught in the Preslar Mothering Center on campus. Twelve monthly Women’s Rights courses were taught with an average of 40 women attending each session.

Fifteen MAP moms accepted Jesus in 2024 and

Twenty Three women learned to sew.

We Love This Program!! Thank you for supporting these Lion Hearted women!

The average business start up is around $600. USD.

Because many babies are born with special needs here, the mother and child often are considered cursed and men abandon their families leaving the women and children destitute. Neema began a Rehabilitative free daycare for these special needs babies. It is one of our sweetest programs and I always cry when I go for their music class.

In 2024 the total number of babies who attended the Rehab Center was 32 children.

Seven children graduated out of the program when their needs were met.

Eight children are being cared for through our Outreach program.

One Hydrocephalus baby passed away this year.

Today 16 children are enrolled in the daily rehab program on campus.

Many of our babies are from remote Maasai villages and are brought to us when their moms die in childbirth. Women die at high rates during childbirth, making it one of the most dangerous things a woman can do here.

This year 144 grandmothers (Bibis) who deliver babies out in the Maasai villages came to Neema for a week of Safe Birthing. We have a midwife and a midwife in training teaching the classes, and are assisted by our nurse and doctors on staff.

Over 600 women have gone through this program saving the lives of women and babies in their villages. After a few months Ester goes out with Dr. Sarun to check on the midwives and see what troubles they might be having, how many babies they have delivered and how many moms they have lost. We are making a difference.

Our last group of volunteers of 2024 were with Aggies For Christ from A & M University in Texas.

Two Hundred and Fourteen volunteers from different countries around the world came to Neema to hold and love the babies, share their faith with the MAP moms and learn about a different culture in 2024. Volunteering changes lives, just ask Babu Michael who came to Africa in 1963 as a volunteer.

Neema Village drilled 8 water wells in 2024. We hope to drill many more in 2025! We were given the drilling rig from Nacogdoches, Texas and we do not charge for drilling the wells. We set the wells up with solar panels and to do one well cost about $7,000. USD.

We began playing soccer on our new field this year! The Waymakers Women’s team (our nannies) are pretty fierce. Thank you to Paul Pape, Shanna Kurts, The North Bound Foundation and Madeleine Bloom who fulfilled this dream of her young husband Michael after his sudden passing.

Girls who play soccer are abused less and make more money. Who knew!

The home for the 35 little orphan girls out in Maasailand was build by Montana friends and finished in 2024. I love the color, don’t you!

I’m sure there is more we could tell you about the year 2024 but our job now is to look forward to that next baby and next mom in 2025. You’ve been awesome to help and we Thank God for you!

Love,

Michael and Dorris

www.neemavillage.org

December 17, 2024

Do you remember the sad story of Namayani, the little seven year old Maasai girl whose dress caught on fire from the cook stones in the floor of her hut? Would you believe we have such a happy ending to that story!

When we first saw her we were shocked that Namayani had even survived the horrible burns over most of her body including her chest. Fortunately it left her smile.

Look at Lamayani now! We are so excited for her. After almost two years at Neema Village, as a leader in our MAP program, she has grown both in beauty and sweetness and into a Christian walk with Jesus.

Even with scarred hands and one finger burned off she has become quite a good little seamstress.

We love to watch God work in the lives of these young women who come in with such tragic stories. We can see the changes almost daily as they live and learn in the Preslar Mothering Center. A few months ago Michael had the joy of baptizing Namayani into Jesus.

When Namayani first came to Neema Village she had a surprise hidden in the wet rags in her lap. Baby Moses, not able to nurse from her burned breasts was starving. It has not taken him long to become a big boy, getting into everything and running all around the MAP center. We will miss this energetic little man.

Today Namayani and Moses left to begin their new lives. They were loaded with fabric, a mannequin, a treadle sewing machine, clothes, household items and everything she will need to support herself and Moses with her new MAP business. Teacher Grace, MAP Mom Regina and the other MAP moms were out to see them off. One of those sad/happy moments.

Last night we had a prayer that God would go with Namayani and Bless and keep her. She has completed all the classes we offer including the computer classes. She also did an internship with one of our other successful businesses to learn the bookkeeping end of running a shop. She has found a house to rent in her village and a little shop where she can set up her business.

She is confident and ready.

Neema Village will help her with rent and support for six months in a small shop much like these little shops at Joshua’s village. To set up her business it will cost $792. You probably could not invest in a better business for lasting good in the world. We all have so much to buy at Christmas so do not fret if you cannot help. Just pray that others can!

Christmas Blessings from around the world.

dorris and michael

If you can, send a check to: Neema Village, PO Box 21553, Waco, TX 76702 or use our Tithely program at www.neemavillage.org. Put MAP business on the memo line.

December 9, 2024

As I step out my door every morning, the view almost takes my breath away.

I am simply astounded at the beauty of Neema Village.

Not just at the verdant green of the grass and morning songs of the weaver birds in the trees but at the purpose of it all. We are here to save babies and mothers. Can it get any better than this?

As one of our recent volunteers said, “I would rather hear the laughter of these happy children and watch them as they swing or ride their bikes round and round than most anything in the world.” Me too, Wade Morris.

It amazes me that we get to do this! Michael and I are 81 years old, God has been faithful all these years, we have not always been. Mine has been rather a roller coaster ride of faith most of the time but thank God I married a man of solid rock faith who never wavers from the path.

These years at Neema are our time of giving back to a Faithful God who has never left us even though we have wandered. We have had people who have asked to support us personally and we have always refused. We have all we need in our retirement; it is fun to think of this time of such great beauty as a time of giving back.

As we look toward the baby home where more than 450 abandoned and orphaned babies have come and gone on to forever families, we cannot but shout “Hallelujah!” Hallel meaning “Boasting in”and Jah for Jahweh. Hallel Jahweh!

God is so purposeful and glorious at Neema Village we just have to boast a bit about Him!

Would you believe this is how the property looked when we first pulled that old red Prado onto the ten acres of pristine goat pasture?

Neighborhood boys were playing soccer on a cleared off dirt field with a rolled ball of plastic bags and string.  Today they still come every Saturday morning to play soccer in just about the same spot on our paved driveway while we wait for the grass to grow on their new soccer field.

We have a pretty fierce girl’s soccer team now too because girls who play soccer are abused less and will make more money.

Is this a road or a cow path?

We went out to a dry and thirsty land on Friday to check on a new water well. This was our road.  It brought me back to remember that most of Africa in contrast is starved for water and the land is dry and cracked.

You gotta wonder what those cows are eating!

We love to give out water and candy or sandwiches when we have them to the little boys who spend their lives guarding the family cows.

Thank you to the incredible people in Nacogdoches, Texas who gave us the water well rig. Every day now it is busy turning dusty Maasai land into rows of healthy food for mothers and babies. Can you just imagine what their day will be like when they do not have to haul buckets of water from miles away?

They will have time to think of better ways to grow healthy crops for their babies, maybe even time to dream of someday owning a small business and sending their kids to school. Great things can happen when they have water! (Neema’s vegetable haul last week.)

Christmas is coming and I wish you could have seen our nannies and their talent show at payday. I tell folks, “Don’t mess with our nannies!” You will get a kick out of the cute video below of our nannies singing to the babies.

We have gotten some money in for the Nanny Christmas bonuses but not nearly enough. Help if you can. If you can’t pray that others who can will have open hearts.

Great Blessings of Joy and Peace in this Christmas Season.

michael and dorris

www.neemavillage.org

November 24, 2024

Have you ever just wanted to chunk it all, move somewhere where you could grow your own vegetables, milk some cows, learn another culture, watch neighborhood soccer games from the front porch, hold an abandoned baby in your arms and know that he is safe now, or just sit and talk with kids about Jesus loving them so much he gave up everything to come be with them and then watch as women who were so lost finally get it that God has never lost them… Yeah, me too.

We love America, our kids, our family here, God’s incredible people, hamburgers, Cracker Barrel breakfasts…we love it all but Africa stole a big hunk of our hearts many years ago and it is hard walking around with half a heart!  It’s time to head home to Africa.

Kim tells us thirteen new babies came to Neema Village during the two and half months we have been in the States. It’s time for us to meet them. Newest baby Happy is getting a sweet welcome kiss from Nanny Mwajuma.

With 72 babies in house Kim has had to do some fancy nanny shuffling, scheduling overtime and sharing beds for babies.

Nanny Gertrude was Kangarooing a baby in the NICU unit at Neema above.

We have never had trouble finding a nanny who would strap a baby on under her t-shirt or on her back and go on about her job! Remember this little guy! He is such a big boy now thanks to Neema Nannies like Glory. .

Well, it is time to think of Nanny Christmas bonuses! Before we fly out tomorrow let me say that we try to give our staff a Christmas bonus every year. If you can help with that it would be wonderful and they will so much appreciate that.

For a country where the average family lives on less than 100 dollars a month a Christmas bonus makes all the difference in whether they will have a Christmas for their own families or not.

Four of our Directors appreciate the Christmas bonus too, right Angel, Mama Musa, Priscilla and Anna!

You can reach us in a couple of days at our Happy place. If you need me I can lay the baby down and answer. Just give me a call!

Thank You and Great Blessings of Thankfulness!!

dorris and michael

[email protected]

November 8, 2024

Usually I write sweet, “we saved another baby today” blogs but every once in a while, we just need to talk about what we actually deal with on an almost daily basis in Africa.

A few nights ago, a woman appeared at our gate and the guards called Kim to help. The mother of five children, a close neighbor to Neema Village had been beaten and punched in her pregnant belly. She was bruised, crying and begging for help from her abusive husband who was threatening to kill her with a machete.

It appears he was mad because she had washed all his clothes but forgot 2 shirts. So, she needed a beating. A man close by heard her screaming and went to help and the enraged husband in the fight cut off the neighbor’s toe.

The mother went to the police but they said instead she should go to the local village leader who told her to go back home to her husband. The police were no help so she came to the Neema gate and Kim said she could spend the night, safe at the MAP house.

But the guard on duty said that their culture says she has to return to her husband. Kim called another neighbor who is also a leader in the community and he and his wife came over to talk. Kim was informed that she could not shelter the woman, that would be kidnapping, and that the woman had to return to her husband. But the women continued to cry and beg and stressed that her husband said he would kill her. It appears that the village people had become upset that Neema was taking this woman away from her husband.

Kim said, Let’s send the woman to the hospital for the night or she can stay with the neighbor and his wife, which she did.

The husband can be prosecuted for cutting off the neighbor’s toe but not for beating his wife.

Does this make you as mad as it does me! My red hair flares up at this!

In a country where sometimes women are treated little better than the family donkey the precious love of Jesus is about all that will change the hearts of men like this.

This week in one of the monthly meetings with our village committee one of the men stated, “Well occasionally women just need a good beating!”

There are a lot of things we have to accept to live in Africa but we will never accept this!

This morning the mother of five is back with her husband and Neema Village is doing the first Thursday of every month “Women’s Rights” Conference.  I hope she is there. God help us.

Michael and Dorris Fortson