It’s a bit difficult to know where to start. Six weeks in Sweden promoting Give a Child a Family Africa (GCF) have come and gone, bringing with them many experiences and meetings with wonderful people.

The connection with Sweden has been alive since Monica’s parents arrived in South Africa as missionaries in the 1940s, continuing through the generations. Their passion for people, children, and families, and their well-being has only grown.

Our main focus has been to keep GCF’s important work in the minds of others. We are still here, even though we are phasing out the centre for removed children and focusing much more on prevention and early intervention.

On our “tour” through beautiful summer Sweden, we met with funding organisations. LM International invited us to their Annual Meeting, where we had the opportunity to share why we believe family-based care is the only way forward for vulnerable children who cannot remain with their families. We were able to connect and share our present and future work with the members of Sackeous, who have supported our foster care programme for many years. Without them, much of our work would not have developed into what it is today.

The prayers and financial support from the many churches we visited have carried GCF over the years. Their interest and willingness to continue are humbling. Some began their support with Monica’s parents 80 years ago and have continued until today. That is more than amazing!

Companies have an interest in GCF too. We marketed the organisation’s work at one place and held an information session at another, which has had annual Christmas drives where employees have donated amounts of their choice, and the company thereafter doubled it. We are thankful and believe that together we can continue to make a difference for South Africa’s children.

We also had the opportunity to hold a seminar at Högskolan Väst, a university in the area we spent our time. It was great to share GCF’s experiences with interested people who have an interest not only in Sweden but in countries far away.

We have done so much, and the above is not all. Monica and I have spoken at gatherings in people’s homes, in a second-hand shop that donates its income to projects all over the world, and we had an uplifting meeting with an organisation that supports similar organisations to ours.

We mustn’t forget that Monica turned 65 years old during the trip. This was celebrated with birthday parties arranged by others at four places. People who have crossed Monica’s path in different ways joined to honour her life and legacy.

However, a journey like this must come to an end. The last week was spent at a conference hosted by the EFK denomination (Interact). Thousands of people met to participate in the arranged seminars, meetings, and church services. We spent much time in the Tent of the World, where we could share our work with interested people and also reconnect with those we already knew. We were happy to have a reunion with some of GCF’s past volunteers during the conference. It was encouraging to listen to their stories of how their time with us changed their lives in so many ways.

 It is with great thankfulness that we look back at these weeks, acknowledging how GCF has support from so many in Sweden. We appreciate everyone we have met and trust that we will continue this journey together.

/Anna-Karin Öhrnstedt