About KKV
“Out of the forgotten, come the begotten”
Kings Kids Village (KKV) is a ministry where the forgotten are embraced as children of the King of Kings.
We serve children either orphaned or made vulnerable by extenuating circumstances. In Psalm 68:5, God identifies Himself as… ‘A father of the fatherless. Since God sees Himself that way, it is only natural for us to be His hands and feet as we love those He loves.
In June of 2022, The President of Kenya signed a new Children’s Act into law. This law has introduced new guidelines for Children’s Institutions. However, our purpose remains the same: that all of the children who come to us, having faced loss, pain, confusion, and hopelessness, will feel the embrace of God’s love and belonging at Kings Kids Village. While we stabilize them, we will look for possible extended family connections and work toward reunification. If a child has no known relatives, we will work towards finding foster care or adoptive homes. We still believe that “Out of the forgotten, will come the begotten.” Together with family and community we will raise strong, healthy, and well-equipped young people who will impact their culture and world in a positive way for generations to come.
Why KKV?
The number of orphans in Kenya has been rising for the past twenty years, although it has decreased over the past few years. The official count from USAID website was 1.7 Million at the end of 2005. 2006 figures estimate as many as 2.3 million children they classify as OVC (Orphaned or Vulnerable Children). Children are so classified because they are either orphaned or in imminent danger of being orphaned in the near future, because the parent or parents are full blown aids or the like.
According the the Unicef website, children in Kenya (aged 0–17) orphaned due to all causes, by the year 2014, were estimated to be 3.6 million. That figure has dropped to about 2.6 million. Latest stats are available at the USAID website.
Worldwide, 16.6 million children under 18 have lost 1 or both their parents to HIV. 90% of these orphans live in sub-Saharan Africa. Of the 2.6 million orphans in Kenya, 650,000 (25%) are AIDS related orphans.
Most families who suffer from AIDS soon lack not only mom and dad, but many of the smaller children fall victim to HIV/AIDS through breast-feeding by infected moms. Most children who are aids orphans have siblings who are separated into different homes. At KKV, we specifically cater to the needs of siblings. As of March, 2010, we have seven sets of siblings at Kings Kids Village.
Many of Kenya’s most vulnerable children often grow up with either dis-functional fathers or not ever knowing their fathers. We believe that dis-functional fatherhood plays a huge role in the socio-economic problems which bear much responsibility for the HIV/AIDS endemic in Africa.
Our vision at Kings Kids Village goes far beyond providing a nice environment and good education for each child God sends our way. We seek to provide stable father figures for every child who God sends our way, Fathers, who, each with their wife, seek to influence these children in the character and grace that will enable them to be part of the solution to the Africa of tomorrow. At present, we have no fathers specifically assigned to our homes, but have several father figures on our staff.
Founders
Meet “Papa & Mama Stern”
The vision for King’s Kids Village started in 1949, when Paul (Papa) and Eleanor (Mama) Stern were young people entering the ministry. A prophetic word was spoken to Mama that she would one day be a mother in an orphanage; a vision didn’t take shape for more than 50 years of ministry on three continents, including Kenya in the 1950’s and Nigeria in the 1960’s. While visiting Kenya in 2001, a scripture in the Biblical book of Lamentations became like a beacon of light showing the way for them to return to Kenya and begin an orphanage.
In early 2002, they returned to Kenya to look for land. Through the Lord’s miraculous provision, they were able to totally purchase the present location of Kings Kids Village within one month of signing the papers. The first step was to get onto the land, so in November 2002 ground was broken for renovations to the existing house on the land and a new house for Mama and Papa.
2003 – Present Day
They all (Paul and Eleanor, as well as their son, Jon and his wife, Molly and family) moved onto the property in April 2003. Then in July of the same year, they broke ground for the construction of Faith House, our two story building housing four apartments. Just before dedicating it Faith House in May of 2004, the Lord provided our first house parents, Zedekiah and Mary Mkagwa. Soon after that, we welcomed our first two King’s kids.
From May 2004 to the beginning of 2006, we took in a total of six children. The year 2006 will be remembered as one of great change, as we grew from six to nineteen children. Each child came a unique story and a God given purpose stamped upon their lives. We have seen the purpose of God in bringing each of them individually to us. Our staff also grew from seven people to seventeen. In 2007 we grew 25 children and 20 staff. By mid 2008, we had 36 kids and 21 staff.
Today, we have over 50 King’s Kids, about 25 staff, a 4-home complex, an on-site fully staffed school, a farm, and transition housing for our over 18 year old young adults who are building the final foundations for their future.
As we transition our ministry in keeping with these challenging times, we are looking for Kenyan families to adopt or foster children as we facilitate more permanent connections for our KKV kids and others the Lord will bring our way in the future. Please pray for wisdom and guidance as we seek to work for the good of all of our kids.
This is why we do this!
Our Board of Directors
Click on their pictures to read their bio’s
We Need You!
“If you want to go far, go together.” – African Proverb
There are many ways you can pitch in and help, but one of the best ways is to give of your resource. We cannot do what we do without your support! Let’s do this together!
Thinking of visiting KKV? Get in touch with us through our contact page and we will be sure to coordinate with you or your team for a visit.