Vancouver-based organization and Tebow Foundation open House of Hope in Ethiopia
A new child advocacy center for girls in crisis opened in Ethiopia in August, thanks to the efforts of an organization based in Clark County that is partnering with the Tim Tebow Foundation.
All God’s Children International, headquartered in Vancouver, is celebrating 30 years of serving vulnerable children around the world.
The goal, according to Hollen Frazier, the president of AGCI, is to elevate care for children in need and allow children’s brains and souls to develop as God intended them to grow.
This is the second child advocacy center that AGCI has opened. The first was in Colombia, in 2017, and it continues to thrive. In fact, that home and policy changes that AGCI has helped implement have had a measurable success in that country.
“In the last four years in Colombia, we have seen a decrease in 50,000 children entering the government child welfare system annually,” Frazier said.
That kind of success is the hope for Ethiopia, as well, with the AGCI and Tim Tebow Foundation House of Hope, the first center of its kind to serve in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.
The organizations want to provide a “safe place for girls to live, learn and find true healing while the staff works to locate, and whenever possible, reunite these girls with family,” according to an informational release about the center..
The home in Ethiopia, at its capacity, will be able to care for 30 girls at a time.
“We want this house to be a beacon of light in this community,” Frazier said. “It’s not just about the 30 girls, but also the community outreach and connection with the church.”
There are more than 600,000 orphaned or displaced children in Ethiopia. Many of the girls living on the streets in Addis Ababa have migrated to the city as undocumented child laborers, trafficking victims, or are fleeing regional conflict. Oftentimes, their own families do not know of the dangers their children are experiencing.
The House of Hope will work to reconnect families and provide support, resources and education so that more children don’t enter that cycle, the release noted.
“My foundation and I are excited to have been part of bringing the House of Hope in Ethiopia to life alongside All God’s Children International,” said Tim Tebow, the former Heisman Trophy winner and the chairman of the Tim Tebow Foundation. “We are honored to have been a catalyst that helped get to more lives faster, and we can’t wait to see the impact we’ll have in the lives of the girls we are able to serve together as we share faith, hope, and love with them in their darkest hours.”
Frazier said All God’s Children International is excited about its partnership with the Tebow Foundation. The House of Hope, she said, will be a game-changer for the children, who are essentially forgotten by society.
“Our hope is that this model of home will spread throughout Ethiopia,” Frazier said.
The House of Hope can be the bridge toward healing, she added.
When children cannot be reunited with their families, Frazier said AGCI will look to the domestic adoption route. Ethiopia no longer allows international adoption. There will be education and training opportunities for the girls who are not adopted and age into adulthood. They will not be abandoned, with no direction. The goal is for them to have a path toward independence.
This is Frazier’s 25th year at AGCI. Her parents founded the organization.
“I’ve worn every hat you can wear,” Frazier said. “It’s been amazing to see what God has done and what He can do when we believe Him for more.
“People should know the size of our vision by the size of our God,” she added. “We’re believing God for more. We’re watching Him do it.”
The House of Hope in Ethiopia opened in the summer, but there will be an official grand opening in the coming months. Officials from All God’s Children International and the Tim Tebow Foundation plan on being there for the ceremony.
All God’s Children International has been working in Ethiopia for 15 years.
The home used for the House of Hope has been remodeled to reflect the culture of Ethiopia, using local artists and designers. The home is staffed by Ethiopians, as well, as part of AGCI’s goal of serving by the community, for the community.
