David Z Nowell

According to Christianity Today, the Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO) Summit has become the national hub for “the burgeoning Christian orphan care movement.” Last year’s conference drew 2,600 foster and adoptive parents, orphan advocates, pastors and leaders from 35 countries. On several occasions it has been my good fortune to attend, to lead topic-specific workshops, and to participate in panel discussions. And I’m looking forward to this year! CAFO Summit 2015 will take place in Nashville, Tennessee on April 30-May 1. While I realize the date is almost upon us, it’s not too late to make your plans to attend! And …

Help Wanted: Job placement for graduates

Posted In Aging Out, Orphans

On October 27, 2014

Day 25: 30 Days of Prayer for Hope From the fruit of their lips people are filled with good things, and the work of their hands brings them reward. (Proverbs 12:14) When young people graduate from Hope Unlimited, they have received some of the best vocational training available, served an internship, and are well prepared to start a career. Hope Unlimited graduates are guaranteed a job placement in their fields, thanks to our long-standing connections in the community. Finding jobs for every student means developing good relationships with local businesses, and, most important, providing them an employee worthy of hire. …

Graduates: Building A Future

Posted In Aging Out, Orphans, Residential Care

On October 26, 2014

Day 24: 30 Days of Prayer for Hope So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic.” (Isaiah 28:16) For many Hope Unlimited kids, being launched into freedom can be terrifying. The only period of real independence many of them have ever known were the years spent abandoned to the street by the adults who should have taken care of them. This new beginning is a big—and sometimes very scary—step. They will …

Dayara: Dreams realized

Posted In Aging Out, Bible Study, Orphans

On October 20, 2014

1 Comment

Day 18: 30 Days of Prayer for Hope For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. (Psalms 139:13-15) Even before she was born, Dayara fell victim to …

Graduates: Aging Out and Training Wheels

Posted In Aging Out, Orphans

On October 19, 2014

Day 17: 30 Days of Prayer for Hope We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. (1 Corinthians 2:6-7) One of the key components to the success of our graduates is that we do not drop them when they complete their years on campus. In fact, we spend more on them in the year following graduation than in …

Pride (The Good Kind)

Posted In Aging Out

On May 5, 2014

1 Comment

This is just flat-out cool, so please indulge me a bit here and read along. Yeah, and I am proud, really proud of this young lady. But before I get to the pride part, a bit of a back-story in abbreviated form. Patricia’s parents met in the brothel where her mother worked. Marriage and several children came in the years to follow. But old habits, especially dark ones, die hard, and her mother returned to the sex trade. A violent argument, father attempts to stab the mother, and mother flees the home. Patricia and her siblings were left with an …

Endgame OR Cures, Not Band-aids IV

Posted In Aging Out, Orphans

On February 3, 2014

This isn’t a grand social experiment. We don’t poke some street kids, an orphan, a few trafficked girls with the needles of our conscience, feed them a bit of gospel along with a bowl of rice, and then leave the rest to nature. So you fed a thousand kids today, and gave them a drink of clean water. Good, fine. Now what happens? I want to know what happens to these kids five years out, and I want to know what happens to their eternities. And, not or. Only when we keep both in focus will we truly be faithful …

Failure

Posted In Aging Out, Orphans, Residential Care

On April 23, 2012

The interviewer sat in a chair a few feet away from Philip: “What is the most difficult thing you face in this work?” The question hung in the air several seconds; a cloud passing over Philip’s face. He composed himself and began, “For me, the most difficult thing,” he paused, struggling for control again, but tears wetting his eyes. “The most difficult thing is when we invest our lives in a child, and we see the transformation; we see the change. We think this one is going to make it, and then a few months later he runs away to …

VIEWING the Story of Hope

Posted In Aging Out, Orphans, Residential Care

On October 25, 2011

A different kind of post today… As regular readers know, last weekend Hope Unlimited for Children celebrated 20 years of work with street children in Brazil. My wife posted about the event on her blog, My Place to Yours, and she’s given me permission to share an excerpt here with you – so you can celebrate with us! Hope’s 20th Anniversary Celebration was held in the 8,000 square foot multi-level Redwood Hall at CuriOdyssey in San Mateo, California. These photos are “broad stroke” overviews. I’ll take you on a close-up tour in a minute … Upon entering the lowest level, …