February 2024 Update

GRANTEES MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Hands on Houses is living out James 1:27 – “caring for orphans and widows in their distress” – by providing simple, safe houses for widows in India and other developing countries.

They do this because: widows in India face serious challenges.  They face a lingering cultural stigma associated with losing their husbands (imagine!), which makes it hard for them to be accepted into any method of providing for their families.  In addition, they are forbidden or discouraged from remarriage – so they end up very vulnerable and needy.

We were honored to support HoH this past year and were delighted to hear they used our funds to repair existing structures for widows and orphans by replacing two roofs and doing other repairs.  Normally they build new houses, but in these four cases they were able to use the good parts of the current infrastructure and rebuild the bad parts – to help four widows have safe and secure homes.  They made so much impact for so little money!

Here is one of the stories:

Kathirammal’s husband died 10 years ago.  She has one son and two daughters who have all married and moved, and left their mother without support.

Kathirammal’s house is in disrepair and she does not feel safe.  We repaired the front portion of her house, plastering the walls inside and out, replacing the door, and installing new windows.  Now her home is safe and secure and she will be able to live a healthy life because the rains aren’t coming in anymore.

One widow who received house repairs said: “Instead of worrying about the house, I’m thinking more about my life and what I can do with it.”

We are humbled to support this important, life-changing work through Hands on Houses, and hope you’ll take a minute to check out this short video with more stories.  You’ll love it!

ORGANIZATIONS SUPPORTED THIS MONTH

Heart for Lebanon is helping Syrian refugee children get the education they deserve.  Refugee children are not welcome in the formal school system in Lebanon, and many of them have been out of school for more than six years.

But Heart for Lebanon believes these children are some of the future leaders of the Middle East and wants to give them every opportunity to thrive.

Heart for Lebanon’s HOPE Education program gives children the opportunity to learn academic subjects as well as character development based on biblical principles in a loving Christian environment.

We are delighted to partner with H4L again to support those precious children.

For ALL KIDZ is a wonderful organization whose sole purpose is to inspire and encourage the hearts and minds of children.  They do this by bringing helpful and encouraging assemblies to kids at Title One schools across the country.

We had the privilege of supporting FAK last year to bring their “NED Show” (Never give up, Encourage others, Do your best) to kids at 10 elementary schools on Hawaii’s Big Island.  The kids had a great time, the teachers loved the program, and the school administrators were grateful to get such quality, fun content that helps give their students the social and emotional tools necessary to achieve their dreams and secure a brighter future.

We are delighted to support FAK again this year to bring their wonderful NED show (see photo below) to 10 more Title One elementary schools on the Big Island and we can’t wait to see the smiles on their faces and hear the laughter in the air!

July 2023 Update

GRANTEES MAKING A DIFFERENCE

The Bridge Receiving Center in Washington state is changing kids’ lives. We got the honor of supporting their work this past year and there are so many stories of beauty from ashes with the kids they’ve served.

One of the ways they served two young boys entering foster care for the first time is outlined below. Enjoy the story of hope!

A Grandmother’s Love – Parent Partner Impact Story

Our Parent Partner program is making a real difference – literally keeping children safe in ways we never could have dreamed possible:

Over the holidays, two young brothers – 9 and 6 years old – were dropped off one night in a park in downtown Seattle with only one blanket and told to find somewhere to sleep and their mother would try to come back for them. These two half-brothers ended up in our care that evening…traumatized and without anywhere to go as there didn’t appear to be any family members willing to take them in. Because of the Parent Partner Program our donors funded, our Partner Advocate was able to reach out to the 9-year old’s grandmother in Texas to see if she could take the boys into her care – one of whom wasn’t even her biological grandson.

This grandmother was given all the resources and tools our Advocate Erica could put together. Erica walked with this grandmother through the decision-making process and helped her learn how to help both boys when they were triggered and experiencing a PTSD episode. She taught her de-escalation techniques and helped the grandmother know she had ongoing support from our Parent Partner that would be there when she felt overwhelmed.

On one of the calls Grandma found out how scared the boys were to fly and with our Parent Partner’s help, put together backpacks for them to take on the plane…symbols of grandma’s loving care for them…full of toys and treats and ways to help support them as they left Washington for a place they’d never been before.

The two boys left our care together (which wouldn’t have been possible without our Partner working with grandma to take in the 6-year-old)…they left feeling loved and wanted and prepared for what was coming next in their lives. And Grandma received them feeling ready to do so, with tools and support she never had before that made her feel like she could welcome them into her home and into her heart.

Thank you for giving not only these two boys but so many other children – now and in the future – safe nights, healing starts and better futures.

ORGANIZATIONS SUPPORTED THIS MONTH

Advancing the Kingdom (ATK) International continues to educate children, serve widows, and bless their community in eastern Uganda. Although they have completed their school campus and facilities, they felt led this past year to build a medical clinic on their campus.

They wanted to be able to serve their students, but also the surrounding community with good medical care and the love of Jesus.

We were delighted to partner with ATK again in this venture and supported the medical clinic project.

Street Business School continues to innovate and expand their wonderful business training to be used by other NGOs around the world. This year they are working with organizations who serve refugees and other displaced populations.

We were honored to support that work (as Jesus calls us to care for “the stranger”) and hope getting business training will be a hand-up for those who are displaced whether they remain as refugees or get to go home someday.

The Strategic Alliance to Fight Exploitation (SAFE) is continuing to help meet the most critical needs in the anti-trafficking movement in Washington state. This year they are focused on prevention education for young people, advocacy and campaigns to fight legalization of the sex trade, housing for victims coming out of the life of sexual exploitation, and innovative programs that will equip survivors so they never have to go back to the life of prostitution. We are honored to link arms with SAFE and their partner organizations!

Ho’Ola Na Pua continues to lead the way in fighting human trafficking in Hawaii. We were delighted to support their work last year and again this year as they do prevention education on the Big Island and operate one of the best after-care homes for victims of exploitation in the United States!

January 2023 Update

GRANTEES MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Over the past five years, we have been supporting scholarships for single moms to get an education at South Puget Sound Community College (SPSCC).

One of the mom’s recently sent us a note to tell her what the scholarship meant to her:

“I want to thank the Jernigan Foundation with wholehearted sincerity for the awesome opportunity that is being extended to me on behalf of SPSCC. This scholarship is giving me the ability to continue my focus on my grades and not having to stress about whether my tuition is paid, or how I can afford to pay for my daughter’s school clothing and supplies.

I cannot express enough how thankful I am for simply being able to take the financial burden off my shoulders. I absolutely adore SPSCC, as it has been an extremely supportive environment since the beginning. The enthusiasm of all the staff members as they help you reach your goals has been wonderful. As I research more, I discover more and more possibilities for me in my college career. I look forward to exploring different subjects, and discovering my passions.

This is especially comforting for me, considering the past I have been through. I survived an abusive relationship with my youngest daughter’s father, which lead to a long, painfully drawn-out custody battle for my youngest daughter. I ended up with over $18,000 of debt in attorney fees alone; but it has not stopped me or slowed me down, and I have worked hard to pay off most of that debt through working multiple jobs. I am thankful to finally be in a position where I can stay home with my children and focus on my studies; all so that I can provide a more safe, stable, and happier future for them.

What this foundation is doing for single mothers like me, is an absolute godsend. You are allowing us to better ourselves, so that we can create a better future for our children. I will do something that I can be proud of and lead by example for my little girls. This scholarship gives me renewed confidence in my ability to continue trekking forward, focusing on my good grades and happy home life. Thank you for your consideration, compassion, and kindness, it truly is a blessing.”

It is an honor to invest in women who are seeking to better themselves through education, so both they and their children have brighter futures!

ORGANIZATIONS SUPPORTED THIS MONTH

She is Safe continues to do amazing work in many parts of India as they equip young women through transformation groups.  These groups are intended to PREVENT human trafficking, because the young women are equipped with job skills, business education, savings opportunities, and other things they need to avoid the poverty that traffickers like to prey on.  We are honored to support this important upstream work!

Hands on Houses builds homes for in several countries across the world for widows who have undergone hardship.  This year we will are delighted to help them build two homes for Irula widows in India.  See more information about them in our grantee spotlight!

Youth for Christ Uganda continues to make a difference in the lives of pregnant, discarded teenagers as well as young mothers who need a skill to provide for themselves and their babies.  We are delighted to support their life-changing work.

African Hospitality Institute is making a difference in the lives of so many in central Uganda.  They train students who have very little formal education in “the sacred art of hospitality” and those students are getting jobs in great businesses BEFORE they even finish AHI’s program!

In addition, AHI blesses the communities around their school by providing clean water bore holes, food to villagers who have had crop failure, schooling for some of the children, etc.  We can’t believe all they can do on such a small budget and we’re delighted to be part of their important work!

July 2022 Update

GRANTEES MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Northwest Family Life – Penny’s Place used our grant to provide housing for women and children who were victims of domestic violence and human trafficking.

The hope and healing victims receive at Penny’s Place changes their lives forever, and they become survivors who are ready to embrace new chapters in their lives.  We are grateful to support this hope-filled work for those who have suffered abuse at no fault of their own.

SAFE (Strategic Alliance to Fight Exploitation) used our grant to educate at-risk youth and folks in the foster care system about the high number of foster youth who end up being commercially sexually exploited.

Through their partners, SAFE was able to educate 588 youth in the Tri-cities and 445 youth in Kitsap County, plus 66 foster care staff and parents with our grant funds.

These trainings help youth know what to watch out for so they don’t end up being exploited, and help adults in the systems know how to better care for foster youth so they can live healthy, exploitation-free lives.

We are grateful to partner with SAFE to support this important work for vulnerable youth in Washington state.

NEW ORGANIZATIONS SUPPORTED

We are delighted to have found an organization in Hawaii that is well-established and doing good work to fight human trafficking.  Ho ‘ola Na Pua is working on all parts of the trafficking plight – prevention, intervention and restoration, and we know they will make a difference with our grant funds.

We are excited to be supporting Bridge Receiving Center as they do their important work to help children.  Bridge is committed to providing a healing start for children entering into foster care for the first time.

A child’s first encounter with the foster care system is too often traumatic and confusing.  Bridge is stepping in to change that by establishing a welcoming place where kids can feel safe and have access to the services they need.

March 2022 Update

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

Youth for Christ Uganda used our grant to provide counseling and care for girls who are faced with crisis pregnancy and have been rejected from school and home.  The girls often arrive at at YFC angry at the baby they are carrying because of all the upheaval it has caused in their lives.

The YFC staff counsel them to love their babies, love themselves – regardless of mistakes they’ve made or bad things that have happened to them – and to carry their babies to term.

The staff train the girls on how to be good parents, how to take care of a baby/child, and give them practical life skills they can use after delivering their baby.  They also help the girls reconcile with their families, so they can return home after delivering their baby.

YFC also has a vocational training program to help the young mothers learn a trade/skill and better their lives.  They trained 15 young women in a tailoring course this year and 10 graduated and get to leave with their sewing machine and new skills so they can provide for themselves and their children.

We are honored to support the redemptive, restorative, and equipping work happening at YFC Uganda!

March 2022 HIGHLIGHTS

• • We are delighted to continue our support for Freedom Firm in India as they rescue girls out of brothels and help them begin new lives free from sexual exploitation and trafficking.  They rescued eight girls in February!

• • We are excited to be supporting Street Business School for the third time by providing scholarships to some of our grantees to go through SBS’s training, so they too can provide their great business classes and training to the populations they are already serving.  This additive training will help so many women gain skills to start and maintain a business, so she can support herself and her family!

• • We are saddened about the war in Ukraine, and made a grant to the International School Project to provide for both ministry and humanitarian aid for Ukrainian teachers, students, and schools.

December 2021 Update

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

African Hospitality Institute (AHI) used our grant to take their students on a field trip to a hotel/restaurant in Kampala – the capital city of Uganda.

Many of the students had never been out of “the bush” let alone been to a metropolitan city hotel with elevators, commercial kitchens, elegant dining rooms, and huge washing machines for all of the linens they have to process!

The students’ eyes were opened and they were able to SEE the kind of place they could work – and make a living wage to provide for their families – after they complete their course of study/practicum at AHI.

We are honored to support the great work happening at AHI as they create dreams and hope for the future for their hard-working students!

December 2021 HIGHLIGHTS

• • We are delighted to continue our support for ATK International in eastern Uganda as they put a new roof on the church that is the central point of their campus, and remodel their kitchen/meeting space so it can be used to serve the community as well.

• • We are excited to be supporting a new organization to the Jernigan Foundation: Hands on Houses.  HoH builds houses in India and Nepal for widows who have been forced off their land or are marginalized in some way.  They know that housing is an essential step toward re-building a life of hope and a future for the widow and her children.  We are delighted to be supporting this great ministry!

• • We are grateful to provide scholarships for single parents to attend college at South Puget Sound Community College for the sixth year in a row.  Many of the recipients are first generation college students and we hope the scholarships give them a hand-up in life!

September 2021 Update

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

ATK International used our grant to build a dormitory for boys who come to their school, yet live too far away to go back and forth to home each day.

They were finding more and more students needing “boarding”, so we helped them build a dorm that will house nearly 60 boys!  These boys will be cared for at the school, so they can focus on their studies during the day rather than spending so much time walking back and forth.

boys dormitory

In addition to the dorm, our funds helped provide a latrine and bathing room which is essential if you have 60 boys living together!

latrine & shower rooms

We are grateful to come alongside this great ministry to help them bless the youth they are educating in more ways than one!

September 2021 HIGHLIGHTS

• • We continued to support the Southern African Women’s Institute for Migration Affairs as they care for refugees who are seeking safety in South Africa.

• • We were delighted at the great work She is Safe is doing to keep girls from being trafficked in India, and are honored to continue to support their work with transformation groups.

• • We love the way Heart for Lebanon continues to provide for Syrian refugees who have fled their war-torn country.  H4L provides basic supplies, but even more importantly education for refugee children, and spiritual encouragement for the whole family.  It is an honor to come alongside their work.

• • We were delighted to learn about the way Foster Hearts is serving foster children and families with needed supplies and support in four counties in NE Washington state.  We are excited to help them achieve their mission of building a community where all foster children are safe, strong and valued.

• • The Orange Grove School at the iThemba Trust in South Africa continues to be a favorite place of ours.  They are embarking on a project to become power self-sufficient, so they aren’t subject to the unreliable, expensive state power grid in South Africa.  We are excited to help them bring efficiency to their current power demands, and implement more solar overtime to get off the grid completely!

June 2021 Update

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

Rescue:Freedom used our grant to purchase property near a red-light district in West Bengal, India.

As women get sold day and night for sex, their children are vulnerable and also at high risk for exploitation and trafficking.  Rescue:Freedom knew they needed a safe place to go as well as educational resources to keep moving forward in life, so they purchased a facility to provide these important services.

Many children came on the first day it opened, and now 140 children are regularly coming to get safety, educational resources, and recreational fun!

R:F told us: “The combination of education, nutrition, spiritual development and community create strong resiliency among those at risk to be able to resist the normalization of the exploitation around them and to gain the skills and hope that creates a thriving future.”

We are grateful to be helping children across the world avoid exploitation and have bright futures!

June 2021 HIGHLIGHTS

• • • We continued to support Penny’s Place at Northwest Family Life as they care for women and their children who have been abused and exploited.  Penny’s Place is a safe, healing place for them to stay until they are ready for the next step in life.  We are grateful to help provide this deep, healing place for women and children!
    • We continued our support for the Strategic Alliance to Fight Exploitation (SAFE).  SAFE is working to stop the pipeline of youth between foster care and the sex trade.  60+% of youth who are being sexually exploited have previously been part of the foster care system.  We are excited to help SAFE break that victim pipeline, so vulnerable youth don’t get further exploited.
    • As part of our team lives and works on the Big Island of Hawaii, we are continuing to look at several opportunities for investing to empower the vulnerable, at-risk and defenseless toward a flourishing future (our mission!) there.

December 2020 Update

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

Boys & Girls Club of Thurston County used our $25,000 grant to help get their Yelm, WA Club up and running in 2020 – just before the pandemic hit!

The club opened just in time to serve families who were deemed essential workers, but had kids who needed to be doing school at home.  Many of those children were able to come to the club for remote school each day, so their parents could keep serving the community.

The Yelm club adjusted quickly, sanitized everything every day, and is now serving at max capacity (according to health guidelines) to keep kids progressing in school and their community moving.

We were grateful to be part of this heroic effort by the Yelm Boys & Girls Club staff!

DECEMBER 2020 HIGHLIGHTS

• • • We supported ATK International to build a boys dormitory and latrine for boys attending the ATK high school, as well as a soccer pitch for all of the children at ATK schools.  Some of the high school boys have been walking up to five miles to and from school each day, which interferes with their school and homework time.  Having a dorm will allow those who need it to live at school so they can thrive.
    • We supported scholarships for first generation students at Saint Martins University in Olympia, WA.
    • We signed ‘The Pledge’ with Street Business School – affirming our support for their work.

COVID RESPONSE GRANT FUNDING

In the spring, we made a grant to Rescue:Freedom International to help them seize opportunities that were presented due to the pandemic shutting down red light districts and sex trafficking around the world.

RFI used our funds to start the “Freedom Line” in Cambodia – a 24/7 crisis/sex trafficking hotline.  It is the first one of it’s kind in Cambodia and in the first three months, the hotline received thousands of calls from sex trafficking victims, people who were vulnerable to being trafficked, etc.

Local organizations were able to follow up on 2,000 of those calls and Rescue:Freedom provided emergency food and hygiene packages for 993 strategically identified individuals who were highly vulnerable and in need of emergency support.  That support kept girls from being trafficked!

In addition, the Cambodian government has recognized the hotline and is in support of it – which is a huge step in a country where trafficking has run rampant for many years.

September 2020 Update

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

ATK International used our $10,000 grant to build a dormitory for girls who are attending their high school.  Thirty girls are now able to stay in a safe environment while they attend school.  These girls are getting more rest because they’re not walking so far to get to and from school, they have light to study by in the evenings, they have access to bathing and better hygiene, and they are doing better in school.  We are honored to be able to support this incredible opportunity to help these 30 girls (and hundreds of girls to come!) have a safe, healthy environment that improves their education!

SEPTEMBER 2020 HIGHLIGHTS

• • • We supported Heart for Lebanon – which is providing holistic care for Syrian refugee families in Lebanon.  They help meet families’ basic needs in the refugee camps, educate the children who aren’t able to attend formal school, and provide families with spiritual lifelines to help them move from surviving to thriving in life.  Lives are changing everyday because of H4L’s important work and we’re grateful to be supporting them again for a second year.
    • We added the Big Island of Hawaii to our geographic focus areas because several members of the Jernigan family are now living there.
    • We are hoping to do some family service projects over the coming year in the areas where we live and have made grants.

COVID RESPONSE GRANT FUNDING

In the spring, we made a grant to United Way of Thurston County to help meet the needs across the community due to the COVID pandemic.  UWTC did an incredible job leveraging funds from many sources to support community partners across the county.  Families in need were able to get food, eviction assistance, utilities help, and other basic needs met.  Thank you UWTC!

This photo is some of the food UWTC and their partners acquired to share with families in need.

June 2020 Update

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

Heart for Lebanon used our $10,000 grant to provide
schooling and biblical character development for 300
Syrian refugee children who are living in Lebanon.

JUNE 2020 HIGHLIGHTS

This quarter we got to support some great organizations across the globe and in our own backyard.  It is a privilege to stand beside these partners who are changing the world – one life at a time.

• • • She is Safe is empowering women in India to engage in entrepreneurial and savings groups to keep them from getting lured into human trafficking situations.
    • Black Girls Code is teaching young black girls the skills they need to enter the tech sector.
    • Street Business School is training anti-trafficking organizations on their model so those organizations can help women start businesses as part of their recovery from human trafficking.
    • Strategic Alliance to Fight Exploitation (SAFE) is meeting increased needs of trafficking victims and survivors in WA state during the pandemic.
    • International School Project is training teachers to build moral and ethical character in their students based on the teachings of the Bible.

TIMELY GRANT FUNDING

We are delighted to partner with Rescue:Freedom during the pandemic.  They are taking advantage of this time when brothels and red light districts are shut down overseas due to COVID-19 to get women and girls out of the horrific life of commercial sexual exploitation.

This photo is an empty red light district in Thailand.

March 2020 Update

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

SAFE in Washington

Our $10,000 grant was used to help 74
human trafficking survivors get jobs and
another 154 survivors get coached and
trained on their way to employment.

These 11 employers are already hiring survivors!

MARCH 2020 HIGHLIGHTS

• • • We funded $2,000 of food for backpack meals for homeless and low-income students.
    • Jessica & Heather met with staff from the City of Olympia to discuss the Alliance model as part of the solution for the homelessness issue, and we are pursuing next steps.

NEW GRANT FUNDED

Northwest Family Life – to provide care, housing, and assistance to women and children who are escaping and recovering from domestic violence and human trafficking.

December 2019 Update

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Washington
Our $3,000 sponsorship was leveraged into
$342,000 raised at their auction!

Click here to check out their video!

DECEMBER 2019 HIGHLIGHTS

• • • Jessica & Dalton attended a SAFE celebration event and got to meet the organization we funded to help sex trafficking survivors get jobs.
    • We now have updates/highlights on our website to share with friends and family.
    • We are going to explore using an Alliance model in Olympia to tackle the homelessness issue.
    • We made our first India grant!

NEW GRANT FUNDED

Rescue:Freedom International – to purchase a facility to protect, care for and educate children whose mothers work in brothels in a red-light district in West Bengal, India.

October 2019 Update

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

South Puget Sound Community College
Scholarships for deserving students.

Click here for their amazing stories!

ANNUAL 2019 HIGHLIGHTS

• • • We revamped our vision, mission, and focus areas to reflect who we are as a family!
    • We have an all new logo!
    • We have an all new website that highlights our grantees!
    • We funded organizations we’ve loved for years and new ones we’re growing to love!
    • We invested $160,500 in our community and across the world!

NEW GRANTS FUNDED

• • • Boys & Girls Club of Thurston County – to support the new club serving youth in Yelm, WA.
    • ATK International – high school girl’s dormitory in Uganda.