Wrapping Up Another Year with Love

To our Amazing Supporters!

For five years God has been so faithful to provide you as hands and feet to help our brothers and sisters across the globe. Five years of HOPE, JOY and LOVE!

This busy Christmas season we pray you reflect on your blessings, your joy, your hope and may you be surrounded with an unending supply of LOVE for Christmas is all about love. God loved us so much that he sent his son to this earth, humbled as a baby born in a manger symbolic that He is the Hope and Salvation for ALL MANKIND.

The lyrics to one of my favorite Christmas songs by Matthew West “Give this Christmas Away” summarizes our Give Amore mission (link to song and full lyrics above)…

Give this Christmas away. If there’s love in your heart don’t let it stay there. Give this Christmas away. And your life will be changed by the give you receive when you give this Christmas away. For God so loved the world, He gave His only son so we could be His hands, His feet, His love, His love. What if I told you you have the power to give someone hope far beyond their wildest dreams. What if December looked different this year? What if we all just give this Christmas away, if there’s love in your heart don’t let it stay there…It’s feeding the hungry, it’s serving the poor, it’s telling the orphan you’re not forgotten anymore. It’s doing what love does even when no one’s watching you…What if we all just give this Christmas away…

Merriest of Christmas Faithful Givers,

Christa Horst and The Give Amore Team

Piece by Piece Restoring Hope

Somewhere in western Kenya a family of eleven is relishing the benefits of their new cow donated to them by Give Amore a few weeks ago, an act that not only rekindled their hope in a life they had lost faith in, but also affirmed that love isn’t limited.

From their story, the family had been through so much unfathomable melancholy for so long having been displaced from their family property due to land clashes leaving them at the mercy of their nemeses. Fortunately enough, God guided them into the compassionate arms of a local midwife, Imelda, where they reside presently.

Among the children, there was Mary, a 16 month old baby, who was extremely malnourished and weighed only 4.5 lbs. when we met her nine weeks ago. Therefore, milk from this cow will go a long way in supplementing her protein intake and together with the current support and God’s blessings, we are confident her health shall be restored.

Also, plans to erect a new shelter for the family are on course and hopefully in the coming year they shall be comfortable.  

Christine Living a Jigger Free Life

Our new painless method of jigger retrieval and treatment is effective and reliable as testified by Christine’s jigger free feet. She was one of the heavily hit patients by these notorious parasites as noted from our recent jigger clinic.

In our rounds of post treatment follow ups, we me a highly confident Christine with pep in her steps, something that wasn’t a daily occurrence during her painful days. As she confirmed, she felt no pain walking, slept better in a very long time and she is doing her best to maintain highest standards of cleanliness to keep jigger causing fleas away.

Her mother in a separate interview was thankful for the jigger clinic program terming it as life changing and pain relieving. With her ‘host’ wounds healing off perfectly, this beautiful girl is not only ecstatic of her new state of health, but also hopeful that they will not return ever. 

Moving into 2020 Motivated

Our Give Amore Team is excited to continue our mission in a new DECADE!

20 wells dug, over 53 sponsored children in school and well provided for, multiple men and women empowered through our sewing and computer classes, and so much more are what define what Give Amore stands for today, five years on, and we are so grateful to you for supporting us all the way.

Moving into 2020, we couldn’t be any happier to make this leap together with you into a year of possibilities, hope, joy and love. On the other hand, this Christmas we are all about outfits and the good news is every child will be getting one alongside school supplies and general distribution items consisting of food and toiletries.

New outfits for Christmas is a big deal in Kenya and a tradition that has been practiced for many years, therefore, this Christmas ‘Santa’ will, for a record fifth time, be doing it right. 

From Give Amore family, we wish you a merry Christmas and a prosperous 2020 full of hope, joy and Amore!

We Give Thanks for our Donors!

Dearest Partners, we are so very thankful for you!!!!

In this season of gratitude we would be remiss to not give our sincerest appreciation to those of you that make the goals and dreams God has given us for Give Amore possible. Faith without works is dead. Our ministry is alive and well thanks to generous givers that support us! We know there are so many amazing organizations out there that you can support! We also know that there’s so many ways you can use your hard-earned money and we cannot thank you enough for trusting us to use what you’ve generated to help others!

As a non-profit we often struggle with making people aware of the issues in Kenya then once they are aware we struggle to get them ENGAGED. It’s truly the biggest challenge. So many people admire what we do and say “Great job!”, “Keep up the good work!”, “What you are doing is amazing!” but only a fraction of those aware of our mission actually are engaged to support us. We truly could not do what we do without you!

I wish there was a way I could thank you! A gift? A card? A public acknowledgement? But for now, I hope you know how valued you are and that you are a treasure to us, our team, all the lives we impact and, of course, to God.

Thankful, Grateful and Blessed,

Christa Horst

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

— Matthew 6:21

Ruth's Modern Walker

Ruth received a modern walker courtesy of Give Amore fraternity; discarding her previous makeshift walker that made her assisted mobility worse out of its heavy weight during movement.

Her previous walker was put together by her incredible grandchildren out of wood which was not only too heavy for her feeble arms, but also hindered her indoors movement due to its size in her small house space.

For a recap, Ruth was involved in a road accident decades ago where she suffered dislocations in her hip, multiple arm and shoulder fractures that were never treated. Due to lack of proper medical attentions, this grandmother of seven had to live in severe pain for over twenty years now but the good news is, Give Amore is further taking up the costs of her pain management medicine given that no corrective surgery can be done on her.

While this isn't the happiest of endings we were praying for, Ruth now has better mobility, less pain and she knows she is loved by others and by God. One day, in heaven, all her wounds will be healed and she will be free from pain. Until then, may God comfort her and keep her safe.

Investing in Halima

“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for his life time. — Italian proverb”

Halima, a mother of two, can now boast of a tailoring business enterprise in her village market out of the support she received of a sewing machine and more importantly sewing expertise she gained at Give Amore’s tailoring school.

Visiting her months after her graduation, this Made with Amore alumni is in a good place and giving it her best shot at business, a career she prior had no idea of and never even fathomed venturing in. 

Her testimony exhibited that unlike before, she is now able to take care of her family and her children’s school needs. However, she also stated that her main challenge is fabric given that she is located in a remote location but from her little savings she tries her best to meet the costs.

Currently she is a sole worker majoring in children’s clothes and repairs.

Getting Ready for the Big Leap!

Via your continued support over the years, our 12th graders will be graduating from high school and hopefully join college! With amore’ we say a big Thank You!

Abednego and Elvis are our 2019 12th graders and they are sitting for their final national tests, a huge determinant of their viability for college scholarships. 

For over a decade, they have been in a sponsorship program (formerly TGD, now Give Amore). Their sponsors have nurtured and watched them grow into confident wonderful young men that they are and as their stewards, all we can do is support and dwell with them in prayer as they take this huge step in their lives, a milestone that will usher them toward their dreams.

They complete their tests in a fortnight and with that in mind, we pray for good health and courage through the entire vital remaining bit. 

Kenya 2019 Trip Summary

Some of our incredible Give Amore team! We are missing Bryan, Evans, Judith and Winnie in this photo!

Everyone wants me to summarize our trip. It’s SOOO hard to do! But I will try! This was another incredible trip to Kenya. Heather Duncan is an amazing partner and travel buddy. Our flights were fairly flawless and our luggage was not held hostage. :) Our team was overall in good health, as were we, but the real summary is this: TRANSFORMATION IS HAPPENING!!!

As I often say, we are blessed to get a front row seat to all Give Amore is able to do through your generous donations! Our trip consisted of a jigger clinic, a Made with Amore Graduation Ceremony, a party for the sponsored children, a blessing of well #20, launching a new Made with Amore product (that is sold out!), time with our team, church at Cornerstone Shibuli, beautiful afternoon rainstorms, home visits, school visits and so much more!

This video is the best way I can summarize our trip. So hard to narrow it down to 50 or less of our favorite photos, but I hope this gives you a glimpse into the joy, the hope and the love we all receive through Give Amore.

For those of you that generously gave toward our trip, here is a summary of how the funds were used:

We were able to also provide the following items/opportunities with your generous giving for our trip!

• A walker and pain medication for Mama Ruth

• Schools supplies (pencils, pens, chalk, paper, construction paper, crayons, clay, stapler, calculators, paper punch, notebook, a PRINTER, and more for the teachers and children of Cornerstone School Shibuli

• School supplies, clothing and food provision for the family of one of our well workers who recently passed away

• Stools for our Made with Amore Sewing Program

• Fungal Medications for over 50 people

• Deworming treatment (we can’t even believe this is a thing) for 200 people

• Printer for our Give Amore team

• A new sewing machine

• A cow for baby Mary and her family

• 5 mice/mouse pads for our computer training program, large dry erase board with markers

• Bibles for a local pastor

• Feminine hygiene products in bulk

• Fees toward college for a special young woman

• Funds toward a co-op founded by some of the guardians of the sponsored children

• Fabrics, scissors, threads for new Made with Amore Kimonos (we sold out, y’all!)

• Folding chairs for our Give Amore offices

• And much, much more!!!

Thank you to all that contribute to our mission! We could not be the hands and feet of Jesus without the support from you! We are so appreciative and can’t wait to see what else God has in store!

Asante!

One Small Bug, One Mighty God

The many jigger infested individuals can now get sound sleep after being treated of jiggers all thanks to you. The clinic was held in a school setting and it saw tens of children get treated of these vicious agonizing bloodsuckers.    

Being the seventh clinic and the very first witnessed live by Christa and Heather during their visit to Kenya, the mamas on a mission showed greater compassion which helped ease the magnitude of pain and agony some of the children had at the time.   

Also, some of the hard-hit homes were disinfected to rid any chances of re-infestation, and to reinforce the latter further, the now jigger free children were gifted with shoes to protect their jigger free feet. 

Finally, it is amazing how one jigger attack has yielded seven jigger clinics that have helped kick jiggers out of the lives of hundreds of families previously living at the mercy of these malicious parasites in western Kenya. This is greater love.

Blessed and Daring Amore

Give Amore acquired another motorcycle thanks to the Horst family. It came as a huge surprise nay blessing and it will go a long way in bolstering our operations which entail frequent distribution activities, school and home visitations among other undertakings. 

Over the years, motorcycles have been the bedrock of transport in Give Amore due to their efficiency especially in accessing the remote areas we serve. Therefore, with now two of them, we believe we can do even more!

On the other hand, Made with Amore is daring big in a beautiful way.  Augmented to our vibrant tote bags, the made in Kenya brand now boasts of kimonos handmade with love from African Swahilifabric.

We are hopeful this brand will grow just like its predecessor to impact in a huge way in your life and in the many lives of God’s people here in Kenya and hopefully beyond. 

Ever Growing Amore

Gizel and Calid’s cloud of hopelessness has passed and their future now gleaming with optimism after they were added to the Give amore family. The duo is the latest addition to the growing ‘household’ of Hope, Joy and Love

Gizel, 7, is a first grader and had dropped out of school due to lack of school fees and requirements. However, she will soon be able to happily rejoin her peers in the corridors of education after staying out for months. On the other hand her sibling Calid, 2, is not yet in school but will all the same busk in the warmth of his new family.

The two were abandoned by their father after the death of their mother about a year ago and ever since they’ve stuck with their frail granny.

Emily, their granny, is too frail to work and therefore relied on support from friends and well-wishers for their upkeep.

He Equips the Called

We hear this often in church-“He doesn’t call the equipped, He equips the called”. And I say “Amen” and nod my head in agreement. But when you don’t feel ready and He calls you all kinds of emotions take over, and usually not the good ones-Fear, Anxiety, Dread, Panic, Doubt and more. 

This has been me over the summer with my upcoming trip to Kenya. I didn’t “feel” ready like I have in years past. I was excited. I want to see my team. I know it will be amazing. But I wasn’t “feeling” ready. I didn’t feel equipped suddenly. And Satan LOVES to enter our lives through our weak spots. He uses scare tactics to get us to back off. We start to doubt God’s calling. We start to think we aren’t enough, that we can’t do it, that we must’ve misunderstood God, etc. 

But the thing about being in close relationship with God is I KNEW that He wouldn’t use fear to communicate with me. He wouldn’t use doubt either. If He wanted to redirect me then He would do it in a different way, not the tactics the devil uses. So, I pressed forward and moved on despite my mood, my emotions, my doubt, my fear. And, wouldn’t you know it, I’m ready! I “feel” it now! I’m equipped!  

God has been so good to me the past few weeks (well, He always is) but He’s given me some much needed “love nuggets” as I like to call them. Little trail markers that let me know I’m on the right path (some of the things highlighted in this newsletter/blog are such trail markers). He has given me renewed hope and energy. I feel like myself again, but I had to push through. It was rough. But just like a bad storm might be scary in the midst of it, it can also refresh dry streams, make flowers bloom and so much more!

While we know and trust that God has us on this path, it’s not easy leaving our families for 2 weeks to go literally half way across the globe, without cellular service. So, we kindly ask for your prayers for our safety and prayers for our families. Heather and I both leave behind small children that often want their mom and husbands who have pretty awesome wives running the back end of their lives! Ha! We leave work responsibilities (or try to do them from there) and we leave behind the comforts of our homes. However, when we are there, we receive so much joy, renewed passion and the ability to share with you all the voices and the stories of the lives we are impacting. It’s so, so, so worth it!

I hope you will follow along on our journey by following me on FB, encourage us through comments and share what we are doing with others. We can only do what we do though joining arms with other generous world changers. 

Thank you for bearing with me these past few months as I battled against the enemy’s attack on my joy, my peace and my passion. 

Some lyrics from my anthem right now-See A Victory by Elevation Worship

 The weapon may be formed, but it won't prosper

When the darkness falls, it won’t prevail

Cause the God I serve knows only how to triumph

My God will never fail

I’m gonna see a victory

I’m gonna see a victory

For the battle belongs to you Lord…

 I’m not backing down from any giants

Cause I know how this story ends…

 Gonna worship my way through this battle

You take what the enemy meant for evil

And you turn it for good. …

In Christ,

Christa Amoriello Horst

Launched into Business

Maurine’s pride radiates from her humble storefront as she now contributes to her community and comfortably provides for her family thanks to Give Amore’s sewing program-the only of it’s kind in Kenya!

Maurine Angolo is finally a proud business owner courtesy of your support through Give Amore. Having graduated from our tailoring program a while back, she put together her skills, sewing kit, and sewing machine and the outcome is this amazing enterprise at the heart of her village market center.

The business is her sole livelihood earner that keeps her family fed and her children in school. She recounts how hard it was at first to put everything together but is thankful at how word of mouth made her embroidery enterprise go viral in her remote village and beyond. 

Currently she has a myriad of customers who visit her shop daily in need of her services which include dress making, repair works, fabric sale and mentorship.

Ms. Maurine hopes to grow her business in the long run and be able to do more for the community that she loves and resides in. 

20th Blessing of Wellness

This well will be the site of a huge party in the coming weeks with Christa and Heather, the Give Amore team and the community celebrating this incredible blessing!

Somewhere at the heart of Ebulechia village, there is Give Amore’s 20thwell flowing with clean safe water. The well is complete and ready to serve the purpose of taking care of its concierge community’s water needs.   

The well will be commissioned soon in a vibrant celebration scheduled to be graced by Christa and Heather who are expected in Kenya on 9/17. As it is tradition, there will be a great feast full of music and dance, all done the Kenyan way!

The well is located at Zainabu’s home which doubles up as a strategic location. Tens of families in this community are the direct beneficiaries of this well; hence it suffices as a major solution to persistent water problems of this population.

Prior to this one, two wells have been dug in this community before, therefore this new baby adds up the number to three of the wells done by Give Amorein Ebulechia region.

Meet Kelvin

Battling a ruptured ear drum, Kelvin rests on his new mattress and blanket before our team took him to the doctor. None of this would be possible without his sponsorship in our program.

Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me… Mark 9:37

Collected, shy and quiet could be the words one might use to describe Kelvin, yet from another perspective they could be describing what his past experiences have thrown at him. But not anymore!

Having stayed still for over a year in our waiting list, Kelvin Just recently got a sponsor and this little fighter just can’t wait to start school soon. As a welcome package to the Give Amorefraternity, he was gifted with bedding, shoes, socks, clothes and food to supplement his diet.

Total orphan, he lives with his frail grandmother and with the help from an aunty Kelvin and his five cousins have been merely struggling to survive rather than live.

Within the confinements of Hope, Joy and Amore, We are confident this boy will grow into his own best version and achieve his full potential

Ready for Harvest

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. ”

— Galatians 6:9

Esteemed Donors,

First off, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support. All of you, as one team, have allowed us to impact and transform the lives of thousands of our brothers and sisters across the globe. I  have a vision that God has given me, but without your support it would not be put into action. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

What has been happening this summer has been challenging. There’s been normal hardships, but they seem to be compounding and I fear (fear is a liar) that we are losing momentum, steam, interest, etc. I was blessed to have a conversation with someone who runs another non-profit in Africa and learned that this is actually very typical for summer months, but it will require additional pushes with additional effort to bounce back. This awareness has also opened my eyes to the fact that Heather and I cannot do this alone, nor do we want to. 

We are looking for 5-10 world changers who would like to be on our first ever Give Amore Advisory Board. Our Advisory Board will be comprised of donors who are passionate about our cause and are willing to come along side us and use their voices, spheres of influence, gifts, talents, time and treasures to support our mission. The Advisory Board will also give input, ideas, and help us plan for long term stability and growth! It’s an opportunity for Give Amore to be more than it is and it is needed in order for us to reach the vision God has given us. 

The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Matthew 9:37-38

If you have a heart/desire to use your gifts, time and treasures to give hope to others, WE WANT YOU! Please reach out to me and we can discuss the process.

Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support, prayers and encouragement! Please share what we are doing with others so we can expand our support and reach our potential! 

God bless you all, 

Christa Horst

Founding Director, Give Amore

PS: Please consider donating to our general fund at www.womensnpa.givingfuel.com/give-amore to support projects outside our scope for our trip to Kenya next month!

2019 Trip to Kenya Loading

A photo from our epic 2018 trip to Kenya. Give Amore team member, Erick, Heather Duncan and Camryn Horst with their adorable classroom teaching/crafts.

Christa and Heather are set for yet another visit to Kenya in one month, the first in 2019. This time, these mamas on a mission will witness their very first jigger treatment clinics as well as get up-close with the stories and experiences of the victims.

As it is tradition, such visits give you, our esteemed partner, a fantastic prospect to bless God’s people in Kenya in a myriad of ways only you can. You can donate tangible gifts such as balls, toys, clothes, reading glasses and so much more or money contributions from as low as $5 that goes straight to changing lives immensely. To donate, contact Christa or visit our website

Such visits are paramount for our mission of changing lives as they act as an avenue to interact, bless first hand, motivation for our team and much importantly inform intimately how your generosity has given joy, hope and love to many.

Give Amore Grows by Eight Feet

Violette, Queen. Moses and Kelvin are the latest additions to the Give Amore sponsorship program. This comes at a vital moment when schools are gearing up to open for a third semester after a short break. 

For Violette, Queen and Moses, it’s a second shot at school after dropping out due to financial constraints whereas for Kelvin, it is the inauguration of his academic life after a long delay due to similar reasons to the trio.

Also from another perspective, our sponsorship program provides a potential sponsors with an amazing opportunity to positively impact a life for eternity by influencing who these children become in future by giving them a shot at education. Isn’t this marvelous?

To sponsor children, please contact us through our website

Joy, Hope and Love for Baby Ray

Sweet baby Ray enjoying a rare treat, chapati, at a recent visit with our Give Amore team.

Playful, curious and adorable are just but part of the many adjectives to describe baby Ray. This beautiful soul has been in our care alongside his mother Eugene for close to two years now but sadly and inevitably he has been abandoned.

An account from the boy’s grandmother Esther reveals that Eugene had emotional troubles after a rape ordeal she suffered and from then on lost touch with herself and only kept going with a smile for the sake of her son. Without warning she vanished and it is speculated she is somewhere in Nairobi. 

Least conscious of his predicament, Baby Ray still lives and thrives under the care of his grandmother, but it is evident, he misses her. Our hopes and prayers dwell with him to still be cared for loved and appreciated for the amazing boy he is growing into.