2021
Impact Report
Table of Contents 4
Beauty Out of Ashes
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Rescue a Girl. Empower a Family. Redeem a Generation.
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Rehema Means Mercy
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Mary Can Hear
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A Ministry to Widows
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2021: Shine, Shine
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Success in the Face of Difficulty
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Refugee Ministry Deepens
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How Fair Trade Friday is Changing the World
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Extra Assistance to Artisan Groups
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Founder’s Letter
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Financial Review
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Our Vision
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Our Model
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Our Values
RECORD YEAR
Beauty Out of Ashes BY FOUNDER, KRISTEN WELCH
On January 24, 2021, a fire burned down one of our three maternity homes in Kenya where nine girls and nine babies live, along with staff. Although this was a devastating way to begin a new year, we are forever grateful to God that all lives were spared. The only wall left standing in the ashes, untouched by the flames, held two framed prints that read: “He makes beauty out of ashes —Isaiah 61:3” and “It is well with my soul,” both powerful messages from our Heavenly Father. We trusted His promises to redeem what had been lost, to take the ashes, the destruction, the loss, and to make it beautiful. Until then, it is well with our souls. We are so thankful to God for His protection. No one was harmed and all moms, babies, and staff were able to escape. This has been a holy recovery story as we have witnessed God turning our ashes into something beautiful. A few hours after the fire, the girls and staff were still among the smoking ashes — praising and praying and thanking God for sparing their lives. We spent the seven days after the fire in prayer and fasting in gratitude to God.
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We experienced unprecedented generosity and raised more than a half a million dollars in the eight weeks following the fire. Within three months of the fire, we found a new home to lease as we continue to save money to purchase a permanent one. Peace. It’s what every teen mom who comes to Rehema House in Kenya seeks: Peace from the sometimes violent and often tumultuous story they have endured, peace from the trauma that has produced a baby in their bellies, peace from constant hunger pangs and fear of the future, peace that only Jesus can bring. I don’t know what kind of dumpster fire you’re facing in your life right now, but I believe the message God has given Mercy House Global is the same for everyone who is in the fire. “I am with you. I will make all things new. Hold on to Me. If you have Me, you have everything you need.” Not only have we witnessed God in a new and personal way through this tragedy, but we know of at least two people who have decided to accept Christ into their lives because of it. God truly is a miracle worker. This is a “to be continued” story as we seek God in 2022 to finish raising funds for a permanent beauty out of ashes home.
Rescue a Girl. Empower a Family. Redeem a Generation. In late 2021, Rehema Rescue Center celebrated its 67th rescue of a pregnant Kenyan teen from dire circumstances. Every situation is different—some are dangerous, others are delicate. All are desperate. The work being done in Kenya, supported entirely by Mercy House Global, is broad in its scope to fulfill the mission to rescue, empower, and redeem, but it is also thorough in its reach to care for every unique aspect of each teen mom, baby, and even staff member. Here are three small examples from hundreds that happened in the past year at Rehema House. Rehema Means Mercy Sarah, one of the residents of Rehema House, lost her mother in 2021. This made Sarah a total orphan since her mom was her last living relative. When Sarah was rescued during the lockdown in 2020, her mother was very ill. Rehema House provided extensive medical care at a local hospital, but sadly, Sarah’s mother did not make it. Upon her death, Rehema offered support in facilitating a burial attended by staff, and ensured that Sarah was supported through her grieving process. Rehema House has become Sarah’s family in more ways than one. After her completion of the two-year program, Rehema will continue to aid Sarah and her child. *Sarah’s name has been changed for privacy
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Mary Can Hear Mary is one of the residents of Rehema and mother to Joseph. She was born with a hearing impairment and suffered from profound hearing loss. Mary did not hear her baby’s first cry when she gave birth to her son. She could only make out some words if they were directly shouted at her within close proximity. Through the generosity of Mercy House Global donors and shoppers in the fall of 2021, Mary was able to receive two major corrective ear surgeries which proved to be miraculous. Mary can now hear perfectly and is actively holding conversations with her fellow residents and children. She talks with her son and can articulate subjects. Maureen, the Director in Kenya, explained what it was like to share the Gospel of Jesus in conversation for the first time. “Mary was so excited! We talked with her about God’s faithfulness. For the first time, she heard worship music, and together, we thanked God for this great miracle!”
A Ministry to Widows Winfred, the longest-serving staff member at Rehema, joined the Kenyan staff in 2011. She is 60 years old and a widow with four children. Winfred has faithfully served more than 60 teen moms and their babies in labor, in sickness, in faith. She is a kind, Godly grandmother to so many. Over the past year, Winfred’s health has deteriorated, causing her much suffering and making it very difficult for her to work. Rehema supported her through medical leaves and doctor’s appointments, but it was time for her to return home and rest. For her retirement, donors helped bless Winfred with one year of salary and will continue to give her partial pay until she is eligible for government assistance. James 1:27 says, “True religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.”
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MERCY HOUSE GLOBAL
2021:
Shine, Shine
When we chose Shine, Shine as our annual theme, we had no idea how dark the world would be. It served as a constant reminder in 2021 to not let the darkness overwhelm. In order to shine, one must reflect light. While the darkness of the world grows, so does the opportunity for us to shine. The spring and fall product collections not only put food on the tables of Kenyans and refugee makers empowered by Mercy House Global—they also served as reminders to share the light. “You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine!” Matt. 5:14-15 (MSG)
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Success in the Face of Difficulty It’s no secret that 2021 held its own unique challenges with post-pandemic issues—rising costs, supply chain interruptions, and delays in global shipping. It’s a miracle that our Fair Trade Friday subscription clubs continued in a time when they were more important than ever. In many ways, Mercy House Global thrived with a banner year of setting records for selling fair trade product, hosting live app sales, and providing sustainability through dignified jobs—all which helped us continue supporting Rehema House in Kenya without interruption.
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Refugee Ministry Deepens In 2021, for the seventh consecutive year, Mercy House Global conducted more than 100 in-home refugee visits. Six of these refugees consistently created product for Mercy House Global and were paid as home workers. With every visit, encouragement was provided, needs were assessed, conversational English was practiced, and help was offered with daily tasks, such as answering questions about bills and assisting with medical appointments. During times of crisis, Mercy House Global held food drives, collected and delivered necessities, provided counsel, and intervened in difficult situations. Mercy House Global has worked extensively for more than two years with a refugee and his family to start a catering business. We supplied the curriculum and tutoring for his food handling and manager’s license over a six-month process. We connected him to a local church, helped procure the use of a food truck, provided marketing and logo design, scheduled catering gigs, hired him for Mercy House events, and offered opportunities for our donors and volunteers to support his business—all as a way to support this family. In the final months of 2021, Texas accepted more than four thousand people seeking refuge from the turbulence in Afghanistan. Many had only a few hours’ notice to flee and arrived with just the clothes on their backs. Mercy House Global saw this challenge as an opportunity for Christians in Houston to welcome our new neighbors from the Middle East. In partnership with YMCA International, Mercy House Global staff and volunteers helped with grocery deliveries, airport pickups, and setting up apartments for our new neighbors as they got settled. We were honored to help them transition to a new life, language, and culture in 2021, and we look forward to continuing this partnership in 2022.
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How Fair Trade Friday is Changing the World In 2021, Mercy House Global ordered 113 custom products from countries around the globe for our five different Fair Trade Friday subscription clubs. On average, each order consisted of 1000 items, took three months to make, and provided thousands of women around the world with dignified work. Just one example is from a group in which Mercy House Global played a critical role in its start up in 2018. Here’s what that founder had to say: “This order will go through the hands of 45 women in five communities in India and create 6800 hours of work. In addition to that, it will allow us to start a sewing program where 10+ women will be trained and then supported with a monthly salary. It will allow us to promote one of our leaders to a full-time salaried sewing supervisor and open a new group with 15+ women in a local slum where women will learn how to kantha stitch saree fabric that will be the fabric for these bags and other products. It will give us the opportunity to promote one of our current women to a leader to lead that new group. This one order will bring a ton of impact!” One hundred thirteen items could potentially provide 750,000 hours of dignified work in one year alone!
Extra Assistance to Artisan Groups In addition to supporting groups with fair trade product orders, Mercy House Global has also been able to come alongside and assist with guidance, encouraging lessons that we’ve learned, collaboration through partnerships, and finances in times of crisis. This past year, we sent funds to India towards Covid recovery, to Ethiopia to help provide food for artisans during their civil unrest, to Afghanistan as an offering to the Underground Church, to Malawi to repair three hundred water wells, and to Thailand to provide ongoing financial support and encouragement to Many Hands. Many Hands is working to bring artisan-made product to the marketplace as a Gospel-driven initiative.
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A LETTER Dear friends,
from our Founder
2021—What a year! It was hard and it was beautiful. We have been so encouraged by your faithfulness to God and to this ministry in these challenging days. Shining our light has never been harder, more critical, or more noticeable in our dark world. More than ever, this eleventh year has shown us how much God cares for the lost ones. We read in the Gospel of Luke about how much attention and time Jesus expends on a single lost item. Whether it’s a coin, a sheep, or a son, He stresses in these parables that when the shepherd finds the lost, he rejoices over it more than the ninety-nine who did not go astray. Whether she’s a scared pregnant teen hiding in a sugar cane field, a person in North America seeking something money can’t buy, someone who shares what they have been given, or an artisan in a remote village trying to feed her family—God cares. He rescues all of us—sometimes from dire situations and sometimes from ourselves. He sends someone to the sugar cane field in the dead of night; He redeems our consumerism; He shows us that it’s better to give than to receive; He provides daily bread, just in time. Sixty-seven teen moms, their babies and extended families, thousands of artisans around the globe, donors, shoppers, club members, staff in Kenya and the USA—countless lives changed through the work of Mercy House Global. The miracles recorded in this report are testimony to the faithfulness of God and His relentless, overwhelming love for humanity as a whole and His loving, never-ending pursuit of every lost lamb.
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Financial Review 2020
2019
PUBLIC SUPPORT AND REVENUE Contributions Gross Profit Artisan Sales Interest Income
$1,183,697 $1,071,796 $2,661,035 $2,234,308 $219 $1,181
Total Revenue
$3,844,951
$3,307,285
EXPENSES Program Services Rehema House Subscription Clubs Retail Store Expenses Management and General Fundraising Expenses
$795,223 $756,108 $1,397,193 $1,180,335 $1,257,536 $1,003,811 $197,614 $193,681 $56,419 $159,281
Total Operating Expenses Other Expenses Depriciation Expenses Paycheck Protection Program Total Other
$3,703,985
$3,293,216
Total Expenses
$3,604,013 $3,300,952
Change in Net Assets
$240,938 $6,333
Net Assets Beginning of the Year Prior Period Adjustment Net Assets Beginning of Year, as corrected Net Assets, End of Year
$639,740 $653,739 $0 ($20,332)
$10,028 $7,736 ($110,000) $0 ($99,972) $7,736
$639,740 $633,407 $880,678 $639,740
*All financial data taken from Form 990 and CPA prepared Financial Review (2020) and CPA prepared audit (2019) 2021 Financial statements are not available until filed with IRS after the end of the current calendar year 2015-2020 Form 990 is available at https://www.irs.gov Legal Name: Mercy Maternity House, Inc. DBA: Mercy House Global EIN: 27-3196267
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Our Vision
Mercy House Global exists to engage, empower, and disciple women around the globe in Jesus’ name. Engage those with resources to say yes to the plight of women in poverty. Empower women and teenage mothers around the world through partnerships and sustainable fair trade product development. Disciple women to be lifelong followers of Jesus Christ.
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Our Model
Mercy House Global is a 501c3 nonprofit organization. Our primary ministry is funding Rehema Rescue Center, which rescues pregnant teen girls outside Nairobi, Kenya. Rehema, the Swahili word for mercy, is a registered foundation and currently owns two residential compounds and leases a third transition home in undisclosed locations. Every fair trade product we sell online in the Mercy House Global Marketplace, in our three local retail stores, and through our five Fair Trade Friday subscription clubs provides dignified jobs in Jesus’ name. All profits from these sales channels sustain these homes in Kenya. We currently purchase products from over 100 artisan groups in more than 30 countries, empowering more than 5000 women.
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Our Values
We value the gospel: to make God’s glory known by living out the redemptive story of Christ. It is the power we rely on for transformation (emotional, physical, psychological, and spiritual) of the broken lives we seek to rescue. We value the dignity of all life, from unborn babies to aging widows. We believe every life matters and is precious to God regardless of the circumstances under which that life was created. We value keeping families together, preventing orphans and supporting the vital role mothers serve in the lives of their children. We value telling the story of Mercy House with dignity and grace to engage others to say yes to God right where they are in order to make the Great Commission a daily mission. We value education and equal rights for oppressed girls. We believe every girl deserves the right to an education. We value integrity and transparency in our role as stewards of the financial and physical resources, so we do not detract from the overall mission. We value economic empowerment of women as means to better the lives of their families and halt poverty. We value prayer, servanthood, hard work, and sustainability.
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8000 Research Forest Drive, Suite 115-110 The Woodlands, TX 77382 info@mercyhouseglobal.org mercyhouseglobal.org
