Burundi (MNN) — Food for the Hungry (FH) is dedicated to eradicating world hunger while spreading the Gospel. To help reach that goal, FH has just announced a partnership with "God Feet" to distribute shoes in Burundi.
Upon first glance, shoes might seem pretty irrelevant to world hunger. But Andrew Crawford with Food for the Hungry says shoes have a domino effect to starvation.
When a child walks around barefoot, says Crawford, he runs the risk of picking up a number of parasites from the soil. "These worms highjack a child's nutrition [as they are] delivered into kids' frail bodies through what little food they do eat. Worms become a leading contributor to global hunger and malnutrition."
Crawford adds, "Around the world, over 2 billion people are suffering from the scourge of intestinal parasites."
That issue is only enhanced by the large number of kids without shoes: "As we have traveled through Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia, it really is very rare to see children wearing anything on their feet. They've grown up for so long just walking around in their bare feet and thinking that becoming sick is normal."
FH would like that to change! The ministry has just announced that to combat this serious and easily preventable issue, they will be partnering with the shoe company, God Feet.
FH already works with the Burundian government to host de-worming clinics for impoverished kids around the nation. As their clinics are conducted this December, kids will get something extra.
"When the children are being treated for intestinal parasites, they're also going to be receiving a pair of shoes," says Crawford. "That will hopefully prevent them from being infected by parasites such as ascaris, whipworm, and hookworm, which enter the body through the kids' skin or their mouth."
So what does all this have to do with spreading the name of Christ? Crawford says one of the main ways FH gets the word out about the clinics is through the local church. It's vital that the church be seen as involved with this sort of practical need, says Crawford. The church is associated with loving the community's children, opening great doors for eternal transformation.
The God Feet shoe distribution and FH de-worming will take place this December. If you want to help give toward the project, click here.
