Help Katie and Daughters Begin a New Life

Hi! My name is Katie Baldwin. I’ve been a missionary in Kenya since January 2012. I loved it and had made a home and life there. I had even started a local organization to better help underserved people in remote areas of the country with development initiatives for remote schools and farming projects where there was food insecurity. I loved my life and my growing family. I was living out my childhood dream of helping people through holistic development.

In 2016 I married a Kenyan man and treasured the love and companionship of doing life together. Quickly after the marriage he became abusive. To the outside world our lives were perfect, role models in our community and leaders at our church and university. Yet my home life was miserable and scary. We started having children right away who brought a light into our home, yet as the abuse grew I became worried. I prayed for five years for God to change my husband and provide a safe home for our children. I never shared about the abuse or trouble with anyone, having grown up in a fundamental type family I knew that I could not divorce, I had to make it work and I gave it my best.

Then in 2021 my husband became more abusive and displayed more erratic behavior. Thousands of dollars started to go missing for our organization’s account that was designated for projects. He would disappear for weeks at time while I was home alone with our children and seven months pregnant with our third. When he came home one time I asked him what was happening to the money, he exploded and demanded an apology for questioning him. During this time he became physically abusive to our young daughters and would say threatening things of what he planned to do.

In those weeks I knew I needed to give birth and quietly plan our escape. He began to have our house monitored and I wasn’t able to leave without permission. Just days after giving birth I was able to flee with my three daughters and go into hiding on October 15th, 2021. I reported my case to the Embassy and local police station, everyone believed my story and highlighted the risk I was facing, urging me to be careful, yet no one was able to offer practical help.

He opened a court case demanding custody, this process went on for over a year. Various people were compromised and justice was thwarted even amidst the evidence I provided. After 18 months of traveling through other African countries the girls were received as asylees and eventually given travel documents.

We’ve been in SE Asia for a few months waiting on visa appointments for the girls which have now been scheduled. Pending a favorable outcome for the girls, based upon my citizenship, we can be on our way home soon. This is an exciting moment for us! Something we’ve prayed for for over 2.5 years. After a nomadic life, we’re looking forward to having a place to call home, settle down, and begin a new life.

This is where I need your help.

My family has disowned me and actively worked against our safety and freedom. Due to their beliefs they maintain it’s better I return to an abusive marriage, and even die there, then to be divorced. I have chosen to protect my daughters.

When I fled our home in 2021 I lost everything. Any shared assets (plots of land, car, computer, etc) were taken and sold by him. The girls and I are starting our lives from the ground up.

After getting visas, my plan is to come home to Oregon for a few weeks to see friends. I also want to go to Wyoming to visit my father’s grave and say my goodbyes. My dad believed me and was in full support of my decision. Tragically he passed away not long after and wasn’t there to give the support he desired, which alerted the course of the last few years.

Because my family continues to support my ex-husband, and has vowed to force us going back to him, it’s not safe for us to live in the US. The girls and I will have to settle abroad for our security. Where we’re currently living in Asia is safe for us temporarily, but very expensive and will make it hard to grow and settle down in the long term.

I’m sending out my resume/CV to various organizations while simultaneously, upgrading my skills with an online certification course. Many of the jobs I’ve applied for have start dates in August and September. It would be amazing if we’re able to relocate by then and begin a new job and the girls start school at the beginning of their grades with the rest of the class.

Yes, we’ve been through a lot. But the Joy of the Lord is our strength! He has a future and new beginning prepared for us and we’re excited about it!

How will your support help? This is my developing budget so far:

Tickets $16,000 to come home and then onward (SE Asia, Portland, Wyoming, Onward)

Visas $4,000 (visas, transit visas, work permit, etc)

Health insurance $5,000 (required for visa)

Renting and furnishing an apartment (most likely in the EU)

Putting the girls in school: fees, uniforms, books, etc

Possibly needing a car, depending on where we settle

If anyone has other help or advice to offer, I’d love to hear from you. I have administrative and cross-cultural experience and am open to doing remote work.

Thank you all for your prayers, your love, and your support. We look forward to being home and seeing you all soon. I wake up every morning and say, “Praise the Lord, I still have my girls!”

Blessings,

Katie and the girls

P.S. For more context to our story you can visit my FB page where I’ve shared updates, or email me at katiebuttons at gmail dot com and I can answer any questions. You can also reach me at this email if you’d prefer receiving a non-profit 501(c)3 receipt and I can send a link for how to do that.