We are often asked where the boys come from or how they come to Ahadi.

There are many ways. Below are a few. 

The Children's Department sometimes calls us about boys they have found on the street who seem to have no care-giver.  We find out a little about them and determine if they will fit into our environment.  We are a Christian home, and boys who come to us must we willing to live in a Christian environment, attend church, attend school, and not smoke or do drugs. In some cases, the children must go to a rehab home first to get off of drugs.

Sometimes a principal of a school or a teacher where our other boys attend, becomes aware of a boy who has been abandoned. Recently, one boys' mother left a note on the table telling her son that she was not really his mother and that she was no longer taking care of him. She abandoned him.  Another boy was an orphan who was living with an older brother who was not responsible.  The brother was arrested and put in the cells, leaving the boy to live by himself.  Another boy was living in a storage room at the school and the students and teachers were giving him food.

Sometimes a neighbor, pastor, or relative tells us of a boy recently orphaned who has no one who can cater for school fees, and there is no place for him to stay. Many times extended family is already struggling to provide for their own family and may be living in only one room of a house.  They are not able to take in another person because their income and accommodation cannot stretch any more.

In every case, we do find a relative or friend, however, whom the boy has had some prior connection to, and the boy visits that person for a short time during school breaks.

These are some of the ways the boys come to us.  In each case,  we report the situation to the Children's Department and the boys are committed to our care through the district court.