what happens when you buy Streetwise?

I am writing today's blog for two reasons.  I want you to meet Bruto.  And I want you to know what a valuable role you are playing in his life and in many more likes him!

Bruto, as you can see from this picture, has had a rough time of life.  He is only 20 and has been living on the streets since he was 8.......EIGHT YEARS OLD!!!!!!!!  What were you doing when you were EIGHT YEARS OLD!?  I was not fighting for survival in unspeakable odds....thats for sure!

He came across our radar at Streetwise because we found out that he works during the day doing odds and ends wherever he can (carrying grocery bags for people, digging up gardens for others.....) and then uses his wages to buy food for the kids living on the streets with him.  We have begun to ask how can we come along side him, love on him, point him toward Jesus and support what he is wanting to do among his peers?

Long story short, he only came to the shop once a couple of weeks ago, then fell off the radar.  We couldn't find him!  Our team felt VERY STRONGLY that we needed to go find him on Monday and find out what was going on with him.  So, Tim, our outreach guy, went out and found Bruto!  He found him in a suicidal, emotionally tormented mess!

YES THATS RIGHT!!!!!  Bruto was about to go fling himself into traffic when Tim found him!!!!!!!!!  You guys, Im not trying to be dramatic when I share this.....but I want you to know that the situations these guys are living in is desperate.  Bruto had reached the end of his tolerance and he was so desperately alone and afraid and wanting to end it all!  And here comes Tim!  Ready to love him and show Bruto that his life is valuable and purposeful!   Tim got him into a cab and took him to the hospital because he learned that Bruto had a terrible fever.  Tim sat with him ALL DAY, talking with him, praying for him and treating him with love and dignity.    Through out the day Bruto was remember different scriptures our team had shared with him and the impact they have made on his life.    Scriptures that he and Tim had spoken about in times past were coming back to Bruto's memory and he spoke of the hope that it gave him and how much he has appreciated Tim taking the time with him.

What would have happened if Tim hadn't found Bruto when he did!?  This would be a very different posting!

This brings me to the second point I wanted to talk about.....YOU!!!  What happened on Monday in Bruto's life was made possible because YOU purchase our Streetwise Craft Co product!!!  Because you spent you money with us we had the resources necessary to send Tim into town, we had the resources to arm Tim with to meet what ever he found.  Because you bought Streetwise we were able to get Bruto the medical care and the food he desperately needed!  Because you purchased Streetwise you helped save someone's life!!!!!!!!!  THINK ABOUT THAT WHEN YOU LOOK AT YOUR PIECE OF ART HANGING ON THE WALL OF YOUR HOUSE!!!!!  That piece of art holds value beyond the monetary!


THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL YOU DO ON BEHALF OF THE KIDS LIVING HOMELESS IN LUSAKA!!!!!!!!!  Thank you!!!!!  You may not think that your 20 dollars will make a difference, but BELIEVE ME IT DOES!!!!!!!!!!!  Tim was armed with the equivalent of 70 dollars on Monday, and that was enough to buy food, transportation and look after Bruto's medical expenses.

If you would like to donate you can go to tscnyc.org...click on GIVE and follow the prompts to MORALES FAMILY / ZAMBIA 

If you are interested in seeing more of our pieces for sale you can go to our instagram @streetwisecraftco or visit our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/STREETWISECRAFTCO/

You can also visit the following link if you want to buy a t-shirt!  Represent with your streetwise swag!!!  WOOP WOOP! 

https://www.bonfire.com/streetwise-craft-co-t-shirts/
https://www.bonfire.com/streetwise-craft-co-t-shirts-2/

one purpose one child at a time!

Why do we do the crazy things that we do?  Our missions statement says it all......ONE PURPOSE ONE CHILD AT A TIME

What is the one purpose?   To bring the love and light of Jesus to a group of people who are lost, forgotten and literally cast aside.    These are some statistics found online that I find pretty eye opening to the situation at hand in Zambia.   

• over 30% of all children under the age of 15 are orphans, mainly AIDS orphans
• 80% of the people in rural areas live below the poverty line
• half a million young children are living on the streets, with no one to look after them 
• http://www.street-children.org.uk/african-street-children/zambia

Those numbers are staggering and I immediately feel overwhelmed upon reading them.  I have faces and names that can be assigned to these statistics.  Kids that we have brought into our hearts, kids that we have hugged, kids that we have bandages wounds for, kids that we have cried over.  SO, that is why our missions statement means so much.  

We have to constantly remind ourselves of what the ONE PURPOSE is.  Years ago when we started God told us the purpose was to simply bring Christ to them and allow the kids to make the choice.  All their ability to make choices in their lives was destroyed the day they moved onto the streets.  

Understanding that in that, on a need by need basis, bringing Christ means spending days in the hospital with a kid who has a severly broken finger for two months,  or wading through the muck of a poverty ridden neighborhood to find a street girl and her severly malnourished baby, or simply giving a tired weary boy a safe place to sleep for a few hours and some healthy food.  ONE PURPOSE is an outside of the box statement for Streetwise.  It doesn't look the same every time.  But the PURPOSE remains the same!  

ONE CHILD AT A TIME is simply that.   We can't solve the problem for the 500,000 kids living homeless in Zambia, but we can pour our resources into that one kid who needs love.  We believe whole heartedly that one life SO valuable and worth all the resources heaven has placed at our disposal.  So, that is what we do.  One kid at a time!  

ONE PURPOSE ONE CHILD AT A TIME!!!! 

In order to do this we need your help!  

1. We are actively searching for a place to rent so that we can conduct street outreaches.  Currently we go to the kids, but we see that we need a place where we can control the environment.  The place needed should be near the center of town so the kids will be able to walk there.  

2. We are also actively raising funds to purchase a ministry vehicle.  Hence the logo you see at the top!  In the next week we will be launching a bonfire.com campaign to raise funds.  Its really exciting!!  You will be able to purchase a t-shirt, tank top or hoodie with the above logo on it.  The funds raised from selling shirts will help us buy a bus!!!  We need 10,000 usd in order to accomplish this!  So, you buy a cool t-shirt, and you help a street kid at the same time!!!  GROOVY!!!!  What colors would you like to see? 

3. AND AS ALWAYS!  We need prayer!  PRAYER IS KEY!   We are only as effective on the streets as the prayers we pray!  It is in prayer that we find God's heart, His mind and his strength to accomplish the seemingly impossible task!  

Thanks so much for your consideration in reading this!!!  PLEASE pass it on to your friends and help us spread the word about the street kids!!!!  

If you want to donate for our bus fund you can go to paypal.com using streetwisezambia@gmail.com or you can buy a t-shirt within the week!  ROCK ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you would like to give toward our living expenses you can go to tscnyc.org and click on GIVE follow the prompts to MORALES FAMILY /ZAMBIA