Session Three: Hands at Work’s Model of Care
(Length: 120 minutes)
Story & Prayer
(10 minutes)
Begin by sharing the story of a child or Care Worker and praying
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Emphasise elements of Hands at Work’s layers covered in the previous session (often narrative reports have child, Caregiver, Care Worker and, at times, role of SC; reference take-home sheet from last time)
HIV/AIDS and orphan crisis
(10 minutes)
HIV/AIDS and the orphan crisis is still a pervasive and prevalent issue within the poorest of the poor communities across Africa. Take time to discuss together how you understand it after your readings.
Discuss:
What is the current prevalence of HIV? Why are people still contracting it?
How does HIV/AIDS and the orphan crisis exacerbate extreme poverty and how does extreme poverty exacerbate the orphan crisis and the HIV/AIDS epidemic?
Was there anything in particular that struck you or surprised you as you learned about HIV?
Hands at Work’s Model of Care
(50 minutes)
Hands at Work strives to build resilience in vulnerable children and their families, and the surrounding community, by…
Mobilising the local church in Africa
Fostering a community of safety, belonging and care
Strengthening the local church through relationships (within the community, within the country, and outside Africa)
The Local Church: Care Workers
Care Workers are men and women from local churches who have received a calling from God to be his hands and feet in their own community, actively pursuing the most vulnerable children and their families. They commit their lives to caring for these children and families, wrapping around them with friendship, advocacy, prayer, spiritual support and responding to physical needs. This culture of care enables the family to grow in strength and become more resilient.
As the church, Care Workers take personal responsibility for defending the cause of the weak and fatherless (Psalm 82:3) and looking after orphans and widows in their distress (James 1:27). Like Mama Safi, a Care Worker in the DRC, says: “We can’t ask anyone else to care for him. He is one of our children. We are the ones that must care.” Although they too are poor and vulnerable, and have experienced their own pain and loss, they know the redeeming love of Jesus and are compelled to love others the way that God has loved them.
One of the main purposes of short-term teams is to encourage the work of the local church -- the Care Workers.
Watch this story of Mama Safi, a Care Worker in Kitabataba, DRC.
Whilst you are serving on the ground alongside Care Workers, you have the opportunity and privilege to participate in fostering a community of safety, belonging and care and help strengthen this aspect of the model through your presence in the activities of the LIFE CENTRE. Learn more about each element of the Life Centre model and then discuss how your team can participate well.
What is a Life Centre?
Life Centres look different physically across Africa, from a small hut in the bush to a shared church building to a colourful and established building. Though different in looks, each Life Centre shares the same vision and purpose and is comprised of these important elements:
Together go to Hands at Work’s webpage: Our Model and click on Life Centres to learn more about our vision and hope for Life Centres and to see images of these elements.
LEARNING ACTIVITY: Break off into pairs and assign each group or individual an element of the model to study and present to the rest of the group.
Community gardens:
Reconvene for brief presentations and discuss:
How do the various elements of the model interact with and affect each other? How can lack of one affect another and the overall wellbeing of the child?
Greatest Impact in the Life Centre Model (30 mins)
This section explores how you as a team can make the greatest impact during your time in Africa through your participation in the development of the Life Centre model.
HOLY HOME VISITS (HHV) Invite past team members to share their experience of Holy Home Visits, even consider role playing. If you want to have a little fun and make it interactive, have your team play out this Holy Home Visit skit.
Opportunities:
to hear the stories of vulnerable families, encourage them, and pray together
for families to get to know the team member
to build relationships with, learn from and encourage the Care Workers
What to expect:
receiving visitors is a great honour and visitors can become the centre of attention
cultural norms of giving visitors chairs while others sit on the ground
being asked to share a word of encouragement, scripture and prayer
lots of sitting, silence, and awkward pauses
our own discomfort and feelings of imposition
How to participate well:
be prayerful, listen well to family and Care Worker
go with the flow and be willing to receive
be comfortable with silence and space
use walks to and from home to ask questions about the family, getting the backstory – e.g., “what makes this family the most vulnerable?”
feel free to get to know the family and allow the family to get to know you, but be sensitive to questions around death and illness, pregnancy, and HIV/AIDS
do not promise to come back or to offer any support without express, prior permission from Hands at Work. Simply thanking a family for the visit is enough and doesn’t set up painful or unreasonable expectations.
PLAY
Opportunities:
model play to Care Workers and play as a way to build relationships with Care Workers
cross barriers (cultural, gender, class, language)
establish deep connections with children (play is a child’s love language!)
create opportunity for healing
What to expect:
at times, a hesitancy for Care Workers to interact with the children publicly and play with them outwardly, although they love and care for them
a culture of children being seen and not heard
The most confident children will engage first and easiest
traumatised children sometimes exhibit unhealthy play (very rough, sometimes even inappropriate, very full on, or completely withdrawn). Allow the pace of play to be led by the child.
How to participate well:
invite a Care Worker to join you in an activity or game
see layers of poverty within the Life Centre and look for the child sitting to the side
become a learner too: allow children and Care Workers to teach you songs and games
task and empower young team members to lead in play
See Team Play Resource page for ideas for intentional play
SUPPORT FOR THE CARE WORKERS
Opportunities
build deep and meaningful relationships
empower Care Workers through learning and affirming
learn about experiencing God in a new way
What to expect
Care Workers to treat visitors as guests of honour
Care Workers to see visitors as more knowledgeable, put-together, spiritual, problem-free
How to participate well
get to know their stories, express interest in their families, lives and experiences
share your life with them
provide opportunities for Care Workers to give to you, bless you, speak into your life and teach you about God
be generous with words of encouragement and affirmation
be a humble learner: show interest in culture, family life, language, and the Care Worker as an expert in the ministry of servanthood
See Resource for Care Worker Appreciation Days
3 Essential Services
Committing to supporting the 3 Essential Services remains an important way in which the International Church can participate and ensure the activities of the Life Centre happen. $25/month isn’t about sponsoring a child or funding services, but enabling a place of belonging, life and hope.
Logistics
(15 minutes)
What do we need to know?
Homework
Helping without Hurting series and Worksheet