Gifts of Hope

The Beaverton Valley Times
Apr. 1, 2010
By Christina Lent

After adopting from Ethiopia, family unites to build school, health clinic in village

Two children are at the heart of one Beaverton family’s mission to bring hope to Dali.

	Siblings Mihiretu and Tigist Greene inspired their parents, Jeff and Kristen, and a community of supporters to raise funds for seven water wells to help Ethiopian families avoid sickness from unsafe sources.

Located in the southern region of Ethiopia in the Dawro zone, Dali is much like the village where Tigist, 6, and her younger brother Mihiretu, 3, were born.

It’s been nearly two years since Jeff and Kristen Greene traveled to the African country to bring their adoptive children home. And since that time, they have been inspired to help the community that blessed them with the two little ones that have filled their Sexton Mountain home with laughter and joy.

“We were very, very blessed with these two children,” Jeff Greene said. “We knew we wanted to do something in the southern part of Ethiopia, where not a lot of aid is being given and where our children are from.

“We had a strong calling to give back to the country that has given us so much.”

In researching relief efforts in the country, Greene learned about A Glimmer of Hope Foundation, which is the only agency completing projects in Ethiopia.

In order to view the organization’s work firsthand and locate a community in need of aid, Greene and his brother, Scott Greene, traveled to Ethiopia last August for two weeks.

Traveling from village to village, the brothers found that the living conditions for the people of Dali were by far the worst they saw on their trip.

“We found overcrowded schools that were literally falling apart,” Jeff Greene recalled. “We found people filling their water jugs from dirty ponds and streams, and we found no health care at all for the 75,000 residents of the Dali community.

“How could we not help after we’ve seen what we’ve seen?”

The brothers returned to the United States with a renewed sense of purpose and an ambitious mission to raise $297,500 to build four school blocks housing 16 classrooms, seven spring protection developments for safe drinking water wells and the first Health Post for the people of Dali.

They shared their discoveries with Kristen and Scott’s wife, Laura; their parents, Tina and George Greene of Beaverton; as well as their sister Jenner Hildenbrand and her husband, Ryan, of Raleigh Hills.

The entire family rallied behind the project and committed the first $115,000 toward the overall goal before reaching out to hundreds of friends, coworkers and other families who have adopted children from Ethiopia.

As of March 24, the campaign has raised $255,826.

“All of this is inspired by our children,” Jeff Greene said. “We have the happiest, most incredible kids and there are kids just like them in every village who need our help.

“We have been blessed with the opportunity to drastically impact the lives of the people of Dali. And, it’s been pretty amazing to see so many people come forward who want to help.”

Construction on many of the projects is under way and the entire effort is expected to be complete in October. To date, enough money has been raised to build the water wells, a three-room health center and two of the school blocks.

Greene plans to return to Dali later this fall to see the finished projects.

“I’m hoping to find new projects for next year and more sustainable, long-term projects for the future,” he said.

One day, he hopes Tigist and Mihiretu will join the effort.

“That would be my dream,” Greene said. “They understand thankfulness and we want to continue to instill a sense of appreciation for what they have and an empathy for other people.

“We will continue to help the country where they are from. We want them to be proud of Ethiopia, understand their culture and where they come from. I can’t wait to take them back for a visit when they are older.”

A Glimmer of Hope is a nonprofit making a sustainable difference in the lives of some of the poorest people in the world.

- Since 2000, A Glimmer of Hope has helped more than 2.5 million people improve their quality of life in rural Ethiopia.

- The foundation supports programs in these areas: water and sanitation, education, healthcare, income creation, micro-finance, micro-irrigation and veterinary clinics