Feeding the hungry. Tax deductible

There are too many hungry people in the world. We try to provide as many meals to those unfortunate souls as possible. For now, our primary focus is in southern California and Africa.

There are over 75,000 unhoused people in Los Angeles County alone. Our team of volunteers fan out in the city and give as much food assistance to those people living on the streets as possible. We gift cards that can be redeemed for food, usually with relatively small amounts of value, such as $10-$25. We do not give cash because of safety issues, and cash is far too often used to buy drugs.

We support several orphanages on the continent of Africa. One in Malawi, and 3 in Johannesburg South Africa. Of the 3 in Johannesburg, 2 were founded by Mother Teresa beginning in 1988. Altogether our nonprofit is serving approximately 60+ orphans in total.

10 Facts About Orphans in Africa

There Are Millions of Orphans in Africa

In the entire continent of Africa, there are an estimated 52 million orphans. Statistics for orphans combine three groups, including those that have lost both parents, those that have lost a father, and those that have lost a mother.

Africa Is Home to More Than a Quarter of All Orphans

With approximately 140 million orphans in the world, Africa’s 52 million make up more than 30 percent of the entire orphan population.

Millions in South Africa Alone

There are an estimated 3.5 million orphans in South Africa alone. As of 2014, 812,000 have lost both parents, 2.13 million have lost their fathers and 611,000 have lost their mothers.

Close to a Quarter of African Youths are Orphaned

In sub-Saharan regions of Africa, around 20 percent of the population under 18 is considered orphaned.

Millions Orphaned by AIDS

Approximately 32 percent of orphans in Africa have had a parent or parents die from AIDS. Many of these children suffer from the disease as well. AIDS continues to be a major epidemic in Africa, and the number of those affected continues to rise.

Many Recent Orphans Lost Their Parents to Ebola

Thousands of African children were orphaned by losing their parents to Ebola. The Ebola epidemic was especially detrimental to West Africa at its height, spreading through many countries, including Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, leaving close to 4,000 children without parents.

Orphans Lead a Difficult Life

Many orphans have no support and are forced to fend for themselves as well as their siblings. This includes maintaining a household, providing food, and working to support themselves as well as fund education and medical costs. Yet, because of their young age, orphans are often unable to find any kind of stable income. Fear and stigmatization of diseases such as AIDS also contribute to unemployment.

Extended Family Members Are Unable to Provide Support

Many orphans turn to extended family members for support, but they are often unable to provide it. Their extended family often includes grandparents and women, who tend to make 31 percent less than the average household.

Malawi is one of the poorest countries in Africa. Over half of its estimated population of 20 million lives below the poverty line.  It is landlocked and bordered by Zambia, Tanzania, and Mozambique. It was a former British colony until it won its independence in 1964. 

A large proportion of Malawian children must grow up in the absence of one or both birth parents. The Aids epidemic has devasted local communities and created a humanitarian crisis. In all, nearly one-fifth (18 percent) of children aged 0-14 years of age, 937,000 children in absolute terms, are either “single” (i.e., one parent deceased) or“double” (i.e., both parents deceased) orphans. Orphaned children are often taken in by their extended family in their local village. The children often lack proper nutrition, and shelter, have insufficient parental care, very limited access to education and healthcare, and are at an increased risk of exploitation and abuse. COVID-19, global warming, floods, and inflation have exacerbated the problems for everyone, especially orphans, and are ever-worsening. The number of orphaned children is growing, and we need to be ready.

The government of Malawi doesn’t allow Orphanages in the traditional sense.  It falls on private citizens to create what is known as “Orphan Centers” to provide resources for orphans. But the people have no money. The government will only license an Orphan Center if it can be proven that it is self-sufficient and doesn’t burden the local government. To satisfy this requirement our nonprofit, Preparations Now, bought land and began construction on two 3 bedroom 2 bath townhouses (on the same lot) in the city, to rent to people who work there. We were then approved for the Orphan Center. Our land purchase for the Orphan Center is in the village outside of town. One townhouse is completed and rented out. The other is 95% complete. At present, we are providing for 18 orphans in the village outside Blantyre, Malawi including the village of Nkhotakota, which is 374 Km, or 235 miles north of Blantyre. It is a 5:30-hour drive between the two. 

Preparations Now is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, working for social justice and racial equality worldwide. All contributions to Preparations Now are tax deductible in the US as allowed by law.

Through the efforts of our board of directors, small staff, and little overhead, you can be sure that every penny is put to work and your dollar makes more of a difference! All our board members and staff in the U.S. and Africa are volunteers and receive no salaries or pay whatsoever. Our office space is donated.

Please partner with us and open your heart to donate. No amount is too small or too large. We are a government-approved 501(c)(3)nonprofit organization in good standing with the U.S. government, California Attorney General, and the IRS. 100% of your contributions go for the benefit of the intended recipients. Any extra will go toward expanding our support to orphans, battered women, and others in dire circumstances, plus paying down the debt incurred for the land purchase and construction of the townhouses.  

Education is the key to long-term solutions. If we strive to PREPARE our youth today for the upcoming future, we can concretely build a solid beginning for our world’s children, NOW!

It is a miracle to be able to live, breathe, and walk the earth. Let’s share this great gift with future generations who need it most. Everyone deserves to live a life of dignity.

Thank you. 

Sincerely, Board of Directors at Preparations Now

Our website: PreparationsNow.org

EIN: 85-4086803