RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

I met with the HALO Foundation director of operations, Nicole Gerken, and marketing member, Jen Grammer, to learn more about the organization and their mission statement, details about the orphans in need, and their approach to help improve the lives of these children.

RESEARCH RESULTS: HALO’S STORY

The Halo Foundation was established in 2005 by Rebecca Welsh as a result of her eye opening experiences outside of the United States; while working in extremely poor orphanages, she received the opportunity to learn about individual lives and the needs of the children who lived there. Once back in the U.S., the image of these children fighting for survival without a soul to care for them could not escape her mind.

Back in the U.S., Rebecca was a martial arts instructor at Kids2Leaders in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. She developed a “compassion curriculum” to teach her students about the orphans that she worked with in Mexico. The students received the opportunity to learn about another culture and what a day in the life of an orphan was like. Her martial art students came up with an idea to host a fundraiser for the orphans Rebecca worked with.

The students raised close to $5,000 for the orphans in Mexico and the next event they put on with other Kansas City area schools raised $40,000.

These two lifetime experiences of children helping children led to the birth of HALO. HALO developed from the efforts of children and adults providing for the poor while utilizing their determination and talents to make a difference for children in need. These events and others made it possible for HALO to grow from supporting education in orphanages in Mexico to fully supporting 46 children in India, three orphanages in Kenya, programs in Uganda, and local programs. HALO Kansas City recently opened for at-risk and foster youth. They are very excited about their growth and look forward to bringing more children off the streets.

A respectful community collectively improving the lives of children in need while giving them the opportunity to be contributing members of their own communities once on their own. The HALO model is heavily reliant on a mutual growth relationship of its organization and the volunteer as well as an inclusive relationship that inspires the donor to give and share the HALO mission.