The feeding program was the first ministry Cruciform began. Two young adult church members teaching Sunday school at Bulenga Healing Center noticed that many of the children attending were malnourished. After discussing the problem, they decided that if the two of them gave up eating eggs and meat, replacing these foods with a common, cheap, nutritionless but filling food called posho, they could save enough money to provide an egg each week to the most malnourished children.
From these beginnings, additional funding was obtained and the ministry was born. Cruciform Life International Ministries now provides a simple but nourishing meal to the children in the village of Bulenga each week following Sunday school (all kids who attend Sunday school are fed). We feed approximately 250 children each week a meal of beans, rice, an egg, and either greens or fruit (alternating weeks).
The children of Bulenga are malnourished and hungry for a variety of different reasons, financial for the most part. Some families work hard, yet still don’t earn enough to afford consistent or nutritious meals. Other children might live with family members who neglect or abuse them. Kids who have sponsors are able to eat at school, but might go hungry when they’re home for school holidays. Even tiny children gobble up a full plate of food each Sunday!