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"True worship, acceptable to the Father, is that we care for orphans and widows in their distress........." - James 1:27
Beginnings. . . . .
Written by Sharon Clack (Founder/President of the LoVE Organization)
About a week before my daughter and I embarked on a trip to South Africa to visit family
and friends, in the early hours, I experienced the closest I’d ever heard to God’s audible
voice, certainly a clear directive to “Call the Carpenters”, people I had last seen 7
years before. Dr Steve Carpenter and his wife Mary-Anne have dedicated their lives to
helping the poor, the desperately sick and the disenfranchised people of Africa. This part
of the story alone turned out to be miraculous, but is too long for the present discussion.
The call culminated in a relationship with Lily of the Valley, a little AIDS Orphanage in
KwaZulu, South Africa. It was immediately evident that we were being called to a serious
involvement both as individuals and initially, as a church (Conejo Valley Community
Church in Thousand Oaks, CA) where a small band of people responded to the call to
walk with me in this ministry. Also immediately evident, was the quality of this incredible
place, administered with great integrity, and the vision was born that it might well serve
as a model for responding to the AIDS crisis. Certainly we saw it as a way for
Americans to become involved and know that every penny of every dollar would reach its
specified destination.
My life had been very comfortable and successful up to this point, and apart from the
fact that I chose to ignore the greatest humanitarian crisis in the history of the
world, I was just fine! I had always assumed I was where God wanted me. It turned out
that some humbling was called for, to enable me to be in an obedient place to hear those
3 words. Clearly God had also been preparing our whole family for many years. When
we were called 13 years ago from a large church in South Africa for my husband to
pastor this really small church in Thousand Oaks, California, there were some
unanswered questions, just one being, “why WOULD God call us from a place of great
need to cozy California?” These past three years have answered some of the questions.
A bridge has been built from this wonderful, privileged place to a place quite the
opposite. There is hope in the face of despair, life in the face of death and light, which
can never be extinguished by the darkness, is evident all around – just one example
being that you are exploring this website!
Within one week of that call, in response to the need highlighted by the Carpenters who
live and work in KwaZulu, the very heart of the AIDS pandemic, $10,000 was raised for
us to take over. That was the very beginning. To date, from just a small group of people,
well over $300,000 has gone to the Lily endeavor. With God’s help and the exchange
rate, this is multiplied beyond our wildest imagination. The need to expand soon
became evident. Because of the importance of community involvement, LoVE (Lily of
the Valley Endeavor) a 501c3 company was formed. Lily of the Valley is run on solid
Christian principles, however, one of their most significant financial donors in South
Africa is a Jewish Business Men’s Foundation who support the incredible work being
done. This highlights the need for all of us from every walk of life, to work together in the
fight against this devastating pandemic to save the next generation!
Within a year interest had grown in the story of Lily. Thirty five Californians went on a trip
to Lily in August 2005 and more have gone since. Some young people have spent
months there, others have been back a few times and one family moved across to live
there for 15 months, returning April 2007. Another family of seven will go across as
missionaries on a more permanent basis, leaving California to live in this desperately
poor area. Such is the impact of this place and the call to minister there! In November
2007, my husband Dave took ten people (including three Board members) on a vision
trip to Lily and the entire surrounding area to try to understand both the need and the
direction of God’s continuing call. This had remarkable results leading, among other
things, to community involvement evenings and widespread interest and participation.
Over sixty children (and growing) are sponsored every month at $80 per month by people
(or groups of people) in the USA. The cost might seem high, but where there is no
government subsidy, the amount includes all medication, food, clothes and school as well
as a portion of the house mother’s salary. There is one house mother to 6 children and
they live in a beautiful little cottage as a family. The children arrive at Lily in a desperate
condition with no hope, abandoned, destitute and 90% testing HIV+. The conversion rate
from HIV+ to HIV- within the first 2 to 3 years is very high, in fact miraculous, way higher
than the reported world rate. We know God is at work there.
Most important always are the orphans and each one has a compelling story.
Here are just two:
James was found abandoned on the streets by a social worker. He was in the most
advanced stage of AIDS, desperately ill and starving. She took him for medical help and
was told he had no more than two or three weeks left to live. Because she had heard
about Lily of the Valley and knew there he would at least be comfortable, well cared for
and surrounded by people who would love him, she drove for six hours to find Lily. That
was SEVEN years ago! James fell in love with life and wanted more! Yes, he is still
seriously ill from time to time, but for the most part he is thriving, leads a full and happy
life and is full of mischief!
Sphelele’s mother gave birth to his baby brother and then abandoned both boys at the
hospital. This is not unusual – perhaps she knew she had AIDS and hoped for a better
chance for her boys? The only living relative, a grandmother, took them in but within a
year had become terminally ill. At age six Sphelele took care of his one year old brother
and bed-ridden grandmother. This was eventually reported by neighbors and the boys
were taken to Lily (ages 8 and 3). For the first time, this little boy can be a child, attend
school and know that his baby brother is cared for. They too are thriving in a cottage with
four other little boys and their ‘mother’.
LoVE hosts one major fundraiser, LoVEFest, at Gardens of the World, Thousand Oaks
the last Sunday of every June. Top local musicians perform and the best restaurants
donate food. The first year, $30,000 was raised to provide Lily with much needed
transport for trips to and from schools and especially hospitals. It became evident when
we visited, that the greatest need for Lily and the surrounding devastated area of
Mophela was for a Medical Clinic. The children travel for hours when they need treatment
or to receive their monthly testing and ARVs. They sit in corridors in the hospital in
unsanitary conditions sometimes for a whole day. And these are the lucky ones who get
to go and get to BE on AIDS medication! Our aim, for LoVEFest ‘o6, was to build a
clinic which would eliminate these arduous trips and provide for a community. God was
at work as always, and $100,000 later, the Lily Medical Center building is nearing
completion. Ongoing, will be the need for staff and medication. We partner with another
non-profit organization, CareNow for this and a local Rotary group (Westlake Noon) is
assisting in getting equipment.
Lily purchased a 200 acre farm and we have begun a journey to rehabilitate an entire
community, that of Mophela. One of the many examples, is the farming project or
agricultural tunnels, which not only help towards sustainability for the orphanage, but also
encourage local enterprise. Another is the computer school which serves the local
schools where there is gross overcrowding in each classroom with one teacher, no
computers, text books or even basic materials. (We are talking to local schools in the
US in the hopes of creating partnerships with the schools in Mophela. Our aim is to get
“Buckets of LoVE” for small change and large, into classrooms.) There is a beading
project and we are marketing the beads. We have subsidized a small bakery (father and
son) which provides both a living for them and food for the community. Even the bricks
for the Medical Clinic have been made by a young man who now has the potential of
providing his family with support in this area of 90% unemployment. An amphitheatre
has been built for the gathering of the community. The possibilities are endless.
The vision has always been that once Lily of the Valley is ‘fully funded’, building on that
success, we would, with God’s direction, plant more ‘Lilies’! Apart from new children
coming in and some ongoing general funding needs, this goal has been achieved. So, in
July 2006, Lily Number 2 was planted. Although an existing institution, Makaphutu had
to be started all over again in a sense. There had been much corruption and the children
suffered as a result. Even though there was opposition to the Lily administration taking
over, we went ahead because “this place of darkness desperately needs the light of
Christ” (Noel Wright – Chairman of the Board, Lily South Africa). As with Lily, there will
now be outreach into the surrounding community, the exquisitely beautiful Valley of a
Thousand Hills yet known also as the Valley of Despair. In this area, 150,000 people
suffer from AIDS (without medication) and live in abject poverty and hunger. The orphans
will become part of a ministry distributing food parcels. So we trust in the Lord’s timing
and follow as He leads us step by step!
Lily of the Valley Endeavor now supports two orphanages (children’s villages), the Lily
Medical Center, some essential staff positions in South Africa, community projects,
feeding schemes and local schools in Mophela and Thousand Hills, as well as two brand
new areas where buildings are going up for community centers. All in all we are serving
hundreds of thousands of people. We value every partnership, old and yet to come, and
want to thank those who have supported LoVE in the past. Every effort, large and small
is much appreciated.
Thank you for your interest.
Written by Sharon Clack (Founder/President of the LoVE Organization)
About a week before my daughter and I embarked on a trip to South Africa to visit family
and friends, in the early hours, I experienced the closest I’d ever heard to God’s audible
voice, certainly a clear directive to “Call the Carpenters”, people I had last seen 7
years before. Dr Steve Carpenter and his wife Mary-Anne have dedicated their lives to
helping the poor, the desperately sick and the disenfranchised people of Africa. This part
of the story alone turned out to be miraculous, but is too long for the present discussion.
The call culminated in a relationship with Lily of the Valley, a little AIDS Orphanage in
KwaZulu, South Africa. It was immediately evident that we were being called to a serious
involvement both as individuals and initially, as a church (Conejo Valley Community
Church in Thousand Oaks, CA) where a small band of people responded to the call to
walk with me in this ministry. Also immediately evident, was the quality of this incredible
place, administered with great integrity, and the vision was born that it might well serve
as a model for responding to the AIDS crisis. Certainly we saw it as a way for
Americans to become involved and know that every penny of every dollar would reach its
specified destination.
My life had been very comfortable and successful up to this point, and apart from the
fact that I chose to ignore the greatest humanitarian crisis in the history of the
world, I was just fine! I had always assumed I was where God wanted me. It turned out
that some humbling was called for, to enable me to be in an obedient place to hear those
3 words. Clearly God had also been preparing our whole family for many years. When
we were called 13 years ago from a large church in South Africa for my husband to
pastor this really small church in Thousand Oaks, California, there were some
unanswered questions, just one being, “why WOULD God call us from a place of great
need to cozy California?” These past three years have answered some of the questions.
A bridge has been built from this wonderful, privileged place to a place quite the
opposite. There is hope in the face of despair, life in the face of death and light, which
can never be extinguished by the darkness, is evident all around – just one example
being that you are exploring this website!
Within one week of that call, in response to the need highlighted by the Carpenters who
live and work in KwaZulu, the very heart of the AIDS pandemic, $10,000 was raised for
us to take over. That was the very beginning. To date, from just a small group of people,
well over $300,000 has gone to the Lily endeavor. With God’s help and the exchange
rate, this is multiplied beyond our wildest imagination. The need to expand soon
became evident. Because of the importance of community involvement, LoVE (Lily of
the Valley Endeavor) a 501c3 company was formed. Lily of the Valley is run on solid
Christian principles, however, one of their most significant financial donors in South
Africa is a Jewish Business Men’s Foundation who support the incredible work being
done. This highlights the need for all of us from every walk of life, to work together in the
fight against this devastating pandemic to save the next generation!
Within a year interest had grown in the story of Lily. Thirty five Californians went on a trip
to Lily in August 2005 and more have gone since. Some young people have spent
months there, others have been back a few times and one family moved across to live
there for 15 months, returning April 2007. Another family of seven will go across as
missionaries on a more permanent basis, leaving California to live in this desperately
poor area. Such is the impact of this place and the call to minister there! In November
2007, my husband Dave took ten people (including three Board members) on a vision
trip to Lily and the entire surrounding area to try to understand both the need and the
direction of God’s continuing call. This had remarkable results leading, among other
things, to community involvement evenings and widespread interest and participation.
Over sixty children (and growing) are sponsored every month at $80 per month by people
(or groups of people) in the USA. The cost might seem high, but where there is no
government subsidy, the amount includes all medication, food, clothes and school as well
as a portion of the house mother’s salary. There is one house mother to 6 children and
they live in a beautiful little cottage as a family. The children arrive at Lily in a desperate
condition with no hope, abandoned, destitute and 90% testing HIV+. The conversion rate
from HIV+ to HIV- within the first 2 to 3 years is very high, in fact miraculous, way higher
than the reported world rate. We know God is at work there.
Most important always are the orphans and each one has a compelling story.
Here are just two:
James was found abandoned on the streets by a social worker. He was in the most
advanced stage of AIDS, desperately ill and starving. She took him for medical help and
was told he had no more than two or three weeks left to live. Because she had heard
about Lily of the Valley and knew there he would at least be comfortable, well cared for
and surrounded by people who would love him, she drove for six hours to find Lily. That
was SEVEN years ago! James fell in love with life and wanted more! Yes, he is still
seriously ill from time to time, but for the most part he is thriving, leads a full and happy
life and is full of mischief!
Sphelele’s mother gave birth to his baby brother and then abandoned both boys at the
hospital. This is not unusual – perhaps she knew she had AIDS and hoped for a better
chance for her boys? The only living relative, a grandmother, took them in but within a
year had become terminally ill. At age six Sphelele took care of his one year old brother
and bed-ridden grandmother. This was eventually reported by neighbors and the boys
were taken to Lily (ages 8 and 3). For the first time, this little boy can be a child, attend
school and know that his baby brother is cared for. They too are thriving in a cottage with
four other little boys and their ‘mother’.
LoVE hosts one major fundraiser, LoVEFest, at Gardens of the World, Thousand Oaks
the last Sunday of every June. Top local musicians perform and the best restaurants
donate food. The first year, $30,000 was raised to provide Lily with much needed
transport for trips to and from schools and especially hospitals. It became evident when
we visited, that the greatest need for Lily and the surrounding devastated area of
Mophela was for a Medical Clinic. The children travel for hours when they need treatment
or to receive their monthly testing and ARVs. They sit in corridors in the hospital in
unsanitary conditions sometimes for a whole day. And these are the lucky ones who get
to go and get to BE on AIDS medication! Our aim, for LoVEFest ‘o6, was to build a
clinic which would eliminate these arduous trips and provide for a community. God was
at work as always, and $100,000 later, the Lily Medical Center building is nearing
completion. Ongoing, will be the need for staff and medication. We partner with another
non-profit organization, CareNow for this and a local Rotary group (Westlake Noon) is
assisting in getting equipment.
Lily purchased a 200 acre farm and we have begun a journey to rehabilitate an entire
community, that of Mophela. One of the many examples, is the farming project or
agricultural tunnels, which not only help towards sustainability for the orphanage, but also
encourage local enterprise. Another is the computer school which serves the local
schools where there is gross overcrowding in each classroom with one teacher, no
computers, text books or even basic materials. (We are talking to local schools in the
US in the hopes of creating partnerships with the schools in Mophela. Our aim is to get
“Buckets of LoVE” for small change and large, into classrooms.) There is a beading
project and we are marketing the beads. We have subsidized a small bakery (father and
son) which provides both a living for them and food for the community. Even the bricks
for the Medical Clinic have been made by a young man who now has the potential of
providing his family with support in this area of 90% unemployment. An amphitheatre
has been built for the gathering of the community. The possibilities are endless.
The vision has always been that once Lily of the Valley is ‘fully funded’, building on that
success, we would, with God’s direction, plant more ‘Lilies’! Apart from new children
coming in and some ongoing general funding needs, this goal has been achieved. So, in
July 2006, Lily Number 2 was planted. Although an existing institution, Makaphutu had
to be started all over again in a sense. There had been much corruption and the children
suffered as a result. Even though there was opposition to the Lily administration taking
over, we went ahead because “this place of darkness desperately needs the light of
Christ” (Noel Wright – Chairman of the Board, Lily South Africa). As with Lily, there will
now be outreach into the surrounding community, the exquisitely beautiful Valley of a
Thousand Hills yet known also as the Valley of Despair. In this area, 150,000 people
suffer from AIDS (without medication) and live in abject poverty and hunger. The orphans
will become part of a ministry distributing food parcels. So we trust in the Lord’s timing
and follow as He leads us step by step!
Lily of the Valley Endeavor now supports two orphanages (children’s villages), the Lily
Medical Center, some essential staff positions in South Africa, community projects,
feeding schemes and local schools in Mophela and Thousand Hills, as well as two brand
new areas where buildings are going up for community centers. All in all we are serving
hundreds of thousands of people. We value every partnership, old and yet to come, and
want to thank those who have supported LoVE in the past. Every effort, large and small
is much appreciated.
Thank you for your interest.