Where it all began…

If you ask us how Luyando began, we would tell you it started by the belief that we are all here for a greater purpose. This belief spurred us to help our community in Zambia realize their potential. 

Our founders, Wilfred Kapapa and Kelsey Weeks, met in 2009 when Kapapa was partnered with Kelsey as her translator. Their friendship grew over the years, and they shared their visions with each other for more action in the rural villages of Zambia. In October 2011 Pastor Kapapa pinpointed Simukale Village as a good place to start.

In January of 2012, after months of strategy, Luyando launched its first program. We started with a pressing need: hunger. We fed 150 kids that first day and held a kids club. Since that time our numbers have grown immensely, and the ways in which we serve the community of Simukale have been strengthened.

What began as an afternoon kids club has grown to a full-fledged organization. Luyando reaches over 300 kids in a village with a population of over 2,000. While we have seen a difference in our kids because of better access to nutrition, the biggest changes are even deeper.

Because of Love, we have seen many hearts and lives changed. We have seen mothers, victims of rape, who have reconnected with their own children after learning their true value.  We have seen fathers give up their alcohol addiction to lead their families.  Families have been strengthened, a community has been unified, and people are choosing to live out Love in their own lives. 

Luyando's story is one of faithfulness and unwavering love.