Our world is changing at a rapid pace, but now more than ever, we must understand that poverty has plagued humanity since the world's beginning. Poor social structures and indifference from the political class primarily create poverty in the modern era. We all know that completely eradicating world poverty and hunger will be extremely difficult, if not impossible. However, I believe we can minimize the immense suffering that hunger causes in Angola.
The volunteers founded and legally registered the Ochoa Arez Foundation, named after my family, in Angola. Most of the of the finances for our monthly food supply come from my small pension. The project grows and expands quickly due to the overwhelming needs, and we cannot ignore the immense suffering.
The African continent boasts an abundance of natural resources, yet politics and policies neglect to properly, compassionately, and humanely develop and support human resources. We strive to directly assist the most vulnerable street children by providing daily nutrition, medication, clothing, and spiritual support.
Our world is changing rapidly, but now more than ever, we must acknowledge that poverty is not a new issue. It has plagued humanity since the beginning, but today, poor social structures and political indifference primarily perpetuate poverty. We all understand that totally eradicating world poverty and hunger will be an immense challenge, if not impossible. However, I believe we can strive to alleviate the immense suffering that hunger inflicts on people in Angola.
Why Angola? I, Emilia Ochoa Arez, was born and raised there until immigrating to Canada 43 years ago. The volunteers founded and legally registered the Ochoa Arez Foundation in Luanda, Angola, dedicating it to my family name.
Most of the finances for our monthly food supply come from my small pension. The project grows and expands quickly due to the overwhelming needs, and we cannot ignore the immense suffering.
In late 2019, I began feeding the homeless in Hamilton, west of Toronto. It felt deeply wrong to see so many adults living and sleeping on the streets due to drugs, personal misfortunes, traumas, etc., going days without food. I cooked for them once or twice a week, loaded my car with packed meals, and distributed the food. Then COVID-19 struck, and authorities forbade such activities under the threat of jail.
In 2020, the O.A. Foundation launched a project to feed street children in Angola with the help of Pastor Clement from a small church in one of Luanda's poorest shantytowns. The needs overwhelmed us, so we gathered what we could by buying and borrowing kitchen utensils to facilitate food production. We never stopped, and today we serve three to four times more than the initial numbers. We intend to continue expanding our services to reach even more people in need.
Most of the finances for our monthly food supply come from my small pension. The project rapidly grows and expands due to the overwhelming needs, which we cannot ignore amidst the immense suffering. We strive to directly assist the most vulnerable street children by providing daily nutrition, medication, clothing, and spiritual support.
Initially, the needs exceeded our expectations, so we purchased and borrowed kitchen utensils to facilitate food production. We were amazed by the collaboration and efforts of the church congregation who helped us, despite almost all volunteers having very little food at home themselves. We have never stopped our efforts. Today, we serve three to four times more people than our initial numbers, and we intend to continue expanding our services to reach even more in need.
We are collaborating with provincial governments to assist us in securing land where we can build a facility to house some of the children who want to leave the streets. This facility will also provide schooling, medical assistance, and skill development to facilitate their future. The O.A. Foundation is open to receiving donations from anyone worldwide who wants to help. Every dollar or euro counts toward our cause.
