Why Our Stories Matter
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.
1 Corinthians 1:3-4.
Friend,
I hope that you had a chance to read Cindy’s announcement of my great fortune to join the RiverCross team.
I worked in Sudan and South Sudan for nearly twenty years. During that time the organization that I founded and led built three orphanages - one in Darfur, during the height of the Darfur genocide, one in Eastern Equatoria, nearer to the borders of Kenya and Uganda, and one in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan, where the children are still regularly bombed by their own government.
Not only did I see children I love experience horrific atrocities, but I also experienced trauma. Within a two-year period, I survived three personal attacks. I came face-to-face with what trauma does to a person. How it remaps our brain.
Between the three orphanages, we provided what I then called complete care for some 2,000 orphans. The reason I say then called is this - after receiving excellent counseling back here in the U.S., I began to understand something critical. A major piece was missing in our orphan ministry.
Trauma-informed care for our orphans and the many women we employed after rescuing them from human-trafficking and other atrocities was missing.
If we want to save a child’s life, food, clothing, shelter, and medical care are essential. If we want to transform the life of the child we have saved, transform a community, and even transform a nation, support for them as they process their trauma, tell their stories, and journey toward healing is essential.
RiverCross’s gentle, yet intentional approach opens a supportive way for this transformative work to happen.
Key for this work is compassion. Being in touch with our own stories helps us to experience and show genuine compassion toward others. When we process our pain and tell our own stories in a supportive environment, we can get a glimpse of the comfort God has given us. Our compassion grows and we are able to comfort others with the same comfort we have received.
This is what happens with RiverCross.
It is hard to explain the joy I felt upon learning about River Cross –they, now we, provide the missing piece needed to truly help the many whose stories are laced with suffering, brutality, and trauma.
In June, Cindy and I will meet Tino and Micah in South Africa where they will be training 50 staff members who serve vulnerable children in Ya Bana Village. I look forward to seeing with my own eyes the work of RiverCross and will certainly write a full report when I return.
Each Thursday, Cindy shares a powerful story of how the mission of RiverCross is growing thanks to your ongoing support. Almost daily, we get word of how the ministry is spreading through everyday ordinary people who have learned that their stories matter. None of this would be possible without you!
Over these next weeks, I am reaching out to RiverCross donors to hear what you love about RiverCross and how I can pray for you. I am looking forward to talking with you by phone and hopefully meeting you soon.
In the meantime, please feel free to reach out to me to connect and share your story at khighland@rivercrossglobal.org or 205.784.6120. Your story matters.
Love, your sister along the journey,
Kimberly
Kimberly Smith Highland
Development Director