Stewardship & Accountability

Greetings from the Institute of Global Outreach (IGO)!

As I reflect on the impact IGO has made in the lives of so many children and families over the past nine years, I am overcome with gratitude for the donors and contributors that have made our mission possible. Just this year, we have been able to provide resources and services to over 1000 individuals who were in dire need of help. Many foundations and grantors, as you may or may not know, choose to fund programs that offer long-term sustainable solutions as opposed to those that meet emergency needs.

Although I understand this perspective in theory, after witnessing firsthand the deaths and suffering experienced by children that, to no fault of their own, have become destitute, I am even more steadfast in continuing to do everything and anything that I can to provide immediate resources.

Without the support of IGO and our partners, many of the children and families in our Sponsorship and Nurturing program would have nothing to eat and nowhere to go. Bethleham and Abraham are two very clear examples. Both children are orphans after losing parents to AIDS and they are both also HIV positive.

Bethy & Abraham's Story - When a Child Loses Sponsorship

Meet Bethleham..

This little girl’s tragedy is an example of the devastating effect of losing support. She is an orphan who was in good health and thriving while receiving funds through a nonprofit organization. When the organization no longer had funding, 50 HIV positive orphans lost their lifeline. During the period when she received no support, Bethy's health declined drastically & life became terribly harsh for her. She became very frail, lost all of her hair & was deteriorating physically and emotionally

Meet Abraham...

Abreham, an 11 year old boy whose mother died of AIDS and whose father is ill with the disease, is also HIV positive. In spite of his sad circumstances and due to support from a nonprofit benefactor, he was doing well living with the virus. When the benefactor could no longer provide funding, life for Abreham became terrible harsh, leaving him extremely malnourished alone and distraught. Now that he's enrolled in IGO's Sponsorship and Nurturing Program, Abreham has shown amazing signs of improvement and has regained his self-esteem.

Financial Stewardship & Long-Term Sustainability

As you may imagine, the need to ensure solid financial stewardship and the long-term sustainability of IGO is of utmost importance to me. A significant piece of this strategy is the IGO Endowment, (started in 2015 as a reserve), which is primarily funded by proceeds from our annual Walk for Humanity and personal donations. All personal sponsorship dollars are directly used to support our Sponsorship and Nurturing Program. Our goal is to build a solid principal investment by 2022 that will remain intact; earnings will be then used to help support IGO’s operations and programs in future years.

I have made it my life’s mission to work hard and ensure that The Institute for Global Outreach (IGO) is able to continually change even more lives many years into the future. Throughout this journey, I want to offer ongoing and complete transparency to all current and future donors regarding IGO’s source and use of funds. Here are the facts:

I started IGO with $52,000 of my personal savings; over the past 11 years since we established 501c(3) status, I have donated over $150,000 in personal funds to the organization.
IGO has absolutely NO administrative expenses (including administrative salaries, rent, office supplies, or utilities etc.) paid for with donor contributions, as my personal family business donates these expenses as in-kind. (see CPA letter)
I have NEVER taken a salary from IGO, choosing instead to donate this back to the organization – average salaries in this market can range anywhere from $60,000-80,000 for a full-time Executive Director.

Moving forward, I have decided to make IGO’s annual budget readily available on our website and I'm more than happy to address any questions or concerns you may have on an individual basis. In addition, we will begin to publish an IGO Annual Report in January of each year. I pledge to continue implementing efforts such as these to ensure your generous contributions are utilized to the greatest capacity. Thank you again for your past and continued support of our efforts!!

Blessings!

Our Programs

Sponsorship and Nurturing

Currently, the majority of the children in IGO's sponsorship and nurturing program are orphans due to the AIDS epidemic. In addition to the pain of losing one or both parents, many of these children are also HIV positive and have no food to take the anti-viral medication provided for by the government. In addition to covering expenses for food, clothing and school supplies, IGO takes extra measures to ensure that each of these children know that they are loved and that their life has value……..for a child who’s lost so much, this means the world to them. As a result, their confidence and self-esteem soars! [

After a relatively short period of time, the remarkable difference seen in these now sponsored children is incredible. For example, Nahom the little boy who was found scavenging the garbage for food and extremely malnourished is now thriving and grateful to have a sponsor. The miraculous recovery of this little boy propels us to an even greater commitment to ensure that no child suffers due to hunger. Total Impact – 300

Early Childhood Education & Nutritional Program (ECE)

Currently, over 3 million children under the age of 5 die every year due to extreme hunger. That's over 8000 little children every single day. IGO's ECE center takes desperate young children off the polluted streets into a safe haven where they are educated in a nurturing environment and receive 2 nutritious meals and a snack daily. These children no longer walk the streets with their mothers as they beg for money or work as a daily laborer for less than 50 cents per day.

Student Empowerment Initiative

IGO's latest educational program supports young people who have been granted a full scholarship to attend college, but lack the additional money needed to cover basic living expenses. Beneficiaries are selected from families living far below poverty level who have the greatest need. Students are placed with a self-help group and given a monthly allowance to cover extra expenses including personal hygiene/feminine products, food, transportation, printing costs and internet services. Total Impact – 200
Many young girls in dire need of money oftentimes resort to desperate measures like prostitution to support themselves. This can lead to HIV/AIDS, drug & alcohol addition, unintended pregnancy and/or the guilt and shame associated with performing such acts to earn money