The Mercy Orphanage

 

            Emmanuel Shaw spent six years as a translator, deckhand and cook on the Anastasis, where he met Shola, his future wife, who was working in the dining room. In the late 1990s, the Sierra Leone civil war was finally over, allowing the couple to go to the country on their days off. There they saw many children whose parents had been killed by rebels during the war. “We started to pray about it – my wife and the crew,” said Emmanuel.

            In 2005, the Shaws left the ship and rented a house in Waterloo, where they lived with five orphaned children. “We had nothing but a mattress on the floor. We prayed day and night for three months, seeking God’s direction,” said Emmanuel.

            They began screening in the Waterloo area for homeless orphans. The Minister of Welfare helped them to identify some children in need. When the rent on their house was raised considerably, they decided to move out. With some help from a friend, they purchased 7/10 of an acre of land in Waterloo. Emmanuel spent the next two years building a home for himself and his growing family, which then included eleven children. “The children were sleeping everywhere in the house – in the living room, the kitchen, everywhere,” he recalled.

            When his house was finished, Emmanuel built another two-story house on the property for the children. Each floor has an eating area, a kitchen, a bathroom, and four bedrooms. Two children are assigned to each bedroom. The team of workers that Emmanuel has gathered to help run the orphanage includes his mother, his uncle, a carpenter, and two ladies to clean and cook. He also has several men who work on projects part-time. The entire property is fenced in. However, after thieves broke in and caused some damage, Emmanuel added a security guard.

            There is also a small separate building which houses the main kitchen, where firewood is used to cook at least two meals a day for the children, depending on funding. To augment their food supply, they have sectioned a portion of the property for growing eggplant, okra, cassava, corn, sweet potatoes, papaya and peanuts. They also have two moringa trees, whose leaves can be crushed and ground into a very nutritious powder. Another corner of the property houses the stalls for the pigs, which the children help to tend. “When the baby pigs are sold, the money goes a long way to feed all the children,” said Emmanuel. They currently have sixteen baby pigs. 

            The Shaws live each day with a very strong faith. “Everything we do depends on how God directs us,” said Emmanuel, who is a day-worker on the Africa Mercy during the Sierra Leone field service. The Shaws have been very supportive of Mercy Ships over the years. Emmanuel claims that seeing the crew in action made him decide that he should be doing something himself to help his country. 

            Sahr Dauda is a homeless Mercy Ships patient who was recently released after five months of medical care to straighten his legs. He has joined the Shaws at the Mercy Orphanage, along with Samuel, a boy who was living on the street just outside the gates of the dock where the Africa Mercy is moored. Thanks to the vision of Emmanuel and Shola, these two boys now have a safe and secure home and the opportunity to attend school.

            “I thank the Lord because I had most of the vision (for the orphanage) on the ship,” Emmanuel stated.

Story by Elaine B. Winn

Edited by Nancy Predaina

Photos by Liz Cantu

Video by Beau Chevassus