meet vikas

India - Vikas grew up in the slums of Chandigarh, where he and his friends were fascinated with the Bollywood culture that is so prevalent in India. Unfortunately, drug use was the only part of the Bollywood lifestyle that they ever achieved. By the age of 12, Vikas was hopelessly addicted to drugs, and his parents were terrified about his future.

Three years ago, Vikas had hit rock bottom and knew that he needed a change. He enrolled in our sewing school and quickly learned a new set of skills. He also discovered a new group of friends, and the loving support of our team, who helped him break his addiction to drugs.

After graduation, Vikas immediately found employment as a tailor at a local shop. But when the pandemic struck,, the shop closed down and Vikas lost his job. Determined to provide for himself, Vikas consulted with our trainers and counselors and secured a small loan for his very own mobile sewing cart. He now runs a small tailoring business on the corner of one of the busiest streets in Chandigarh. His father beams with pride as he tells everyone about his son, the tailor.

Vikas' story is one of hope, transformation, and freedom. He went from being a hopeless addict to a successful small business owner. We are so proud of Vikas and everything he has accomplished!

Every year, Impact Nations trains hundreds of young men and women just like Vikas, providing them with the skills that they need to overcome crippling poverty. You can be a part of their story. You can help someone gain marketable skills and start a business of their own.

meet Jovan

Uganda - Years ago, Jovan’s father left home to find work in another town. He never returned. Instead, he found himself another wife and started a new family, leaving Jovan and her five siblings to be raised in poverty by their now-single mother.

Life was difficult in their Ugandan town, but Jovan’s epilepsy and mental disabilities were an additional strain on the family. Her seducer, a 19 year old man, wasn’t aware of her medical conditions when he convinced Jovan to run away and marry him. They had only been married two months when he decided that she was too big of a burden. Just like her father before him, Jovan’s new husband left home to find work and never returned.

Seeing an opportunity to take advantage of a defenseless 17 year old girl, Jovan’s father-in-law defiled her and caused her to become pregnant. Deciding that he didn’t want to deal with her pregnancy or her epilepsy, he sent Jovan back home to her mother, who was also overwhelmed and unsure of how to care for Jovan in this state.

One of our partner hospitals encountered Jovan and quickly referred her to our Community Based Care Program. Our team of experts were able to care for Jovan throughout her pregnancy, providing prenatal medical attention and ultrasounds while also treating her epilepsy. Impact Nations was able to cover all of her medical bills, including the C-section birth of a healthy baby girl.

With help from our family reconciliation team, Jovan has returned home to live with her mother and her other siblings. She is able to focus on raising her baby while her mother works as a gardener to support the entire family.

Countless young girls like Jovan face the horrors of family abuse and child marriage in Uganda every year. Without intervention, they end up on the streets and their babies may die. You could be the one to rescue a teen mom and her unborn baby.

meet Binsa

Nepal - Abandoned and alone, Binsa Kumal thought she had no future. But God had a wonderful plan in store for her…

Binsa’s early years were spent watching her father wrestle with alcoholism. At the age of seven, Binsa witnessed the end of his battle as he committed suicide. Filled with fear and uncertainty, her mother abruptly eloped with an abusive man, leaving Bipina with a neglectful uncle. For years, Binsa grew up without any love, care or attention. Her uncle wouldn’t even enroll her in school.

Fueled by rage, Binsa eventually turned to drugs. As her addiction got the better of her, she attempted to take her own life on several occasions. But God had other ideas and spared her life each time. Eventually, she found herself taking sewing classes in a village where her cousin was a pastor. When Binsa learned that Jesus was with her in the midst of her pain, she believed and received Christ. She even enrolled in a one year Bible school!

Meanwhile, Binsa’s mother had returned with her abusive husband. He hated Christianity and was determined to make Binsa’s life miserable—she had to find a new place to live in a hurry. She discovered a sense of belonging when she was welcomed as the newest resident of House of Hope, where she completed the trauma recovery course and received ongoing mentorship, along with skills and business training.

After graduation, Binsa was given an internship with At Home Furniture, a Christian owned business in Kathmandu. Her new employers are discipling Binsa, and she has begun preaching occasionally at the church that they started in their shop. She has also learned to weld and recently recruited other girls from her villagethe House of Hope to join her in welding. Since her time at House of Hope, Binsa can’t contain the hope that she has found in Christ, sharing Jesus every opportunity she gets.

Every year, the House of Hope ministers to dozens of women like Binsa. This one year program provides a safe place for Nepal’s most vulnerable women to discover their destiny through ongoing discipleship and skills training. You can help!

meet Grace

Uganda - When Grace was 15 years old, it was time for her to start earning an income to help her family survive their brutal life in the slums of Uganda. Though just a girl, she took a job as a bartender at Best Hotel in Kampala, but it wasn’t long before she learned that this was no ordinary job.

She soon discovered that the hotel was actually a brothel, and her job description was not what she had anticipated. Her new employers required her to perform as an exotic dancer and it wasn’t long before she was recruited as a sex worker. There were days when she was forced to service as many as 20 men. Suffering from the emotional pain and trauma of her new life, Grace turned to drugs and alcohol to cope.

Unbeknownst to Grace, Impact Nations’ partners were working behind the scenes to shut down Best Hotel, a location infamous for human trafficking. Despite their best efforts, however, the brothel continued to operate, doing incredible harm to dozens of women like Grace every year. It turned out, Best Hotels’ best customers were government employees who had no interest in seeing the doors close on their favorite haunt.

When the pandemic shut down the Ugandan economy, women enslaved in forced prostitution were left to starve. Seeing an opportunity to build relationships, our team began to feed the hungry girls. Eventually Grace found the courage to join four other brave young women in fleeing the hotel.

Our partners provided shelter, counseling, and medical treatment as Grace and her friends went through drug withdrawal and rehab. Each day, the girls experienced the love of Christ as our team cared for them, met their physical needs, and shared the gospel with them.

Free of drugs and no longer under the control of the hotel, Grace discovered a talent for hairdressing while attending our School of Purpose. In fact, she has excelled to the point that she is now the teacher’s assistant! Grace dreams of partnering with Impact Nations to establish a for-profit hair salon that would employ other women who are escaping sex trafficking.

Every year we encounter women like Grace and rescue them from a life of forced prostitution and terrifying violence. Will you help us provide for them as they discover their destiny in Christ?

meet Maria

Uganda - For as long as she can remember, Maria Luwazi has been dealing with filthy, unsafe water. Maria and her husband live with their 10 children in the village of Budibaga in rural Uganda, where access to safe water was never a possibility.

Knowing the dangers of contaminated water, Maria would spend three hours every day over a smoky fire, trying to bring the water to a boil in order to eliminate diseases such as typhoid. But the children weren’t always patient enough to wait for boiled water, and frequently suffered from severe stomach aches and fever. The family couldn’t go a week without spending money on medicine, and at least one of the ten children would miss school each week.

When Maria and her husband learned that Impact Nations would be distributing water filters in their village, they were thrilled. Their excitement quickly turned to disappointment when they saw how small the filter system was—they were expecting a big machine! But it didn’t take long before they were convinced that the filter was effective. As our team demonstrated the filter, Maria watched amazed as the filthy brown water she was accustomed to turned into clear, safe drinking water right before her eyes.

Maria says the filter has changed her life. She is no longer wasting money on firewood and her medicine budget has been reduced by 70%. “My children can now complete the entire semester of 3 months without missing a single day of school and I also use the savings to pay their school fees.” She has also started a new business, making juice with the filtered water, adding nearly $120 to their monthly income.

Somewhere, there is a mother like Maria who is in desperate need of the safety and financial freedom that can come through the gift of a water filter. Others are simply waiting for a meal. You can make that gift today!

Meet Mutoni

Mutoni is a 19 year old refugee from Rwanda. Having lost her parents and siblings in a fatal accident, she ended up in the camp lonely and hopeless. Without an education, she wondered how she was going to survive in a new country all by herself.

After joining our farming program, Mutoni discovered her passion for agriculture and quickly became an expert in growing cabbages and carrots. She is now learning how to turn her passion into an income.

“I never thought farming would bring me so much satisfaction.”

meet Pastor Nathan

Undisclosed Nation - With his wife and son, Nathan left his home country and traveled thousands of kilometers to spread the gospel in a neighboring nation. They had experienced abundant life in Christ, and they were determined to share that life with others.

Pastor Nathan was clearly anointed to preach the Gospel, and soon he found that many people were gathering to hear the Good News about Jesus. The Gospel began to spread like wildfire throughout their small village.

It wasn’t long, however, before they faced violent opposition. Zealots representing the national religion were determined to put a stop to all Christian activity. With the backing of the government, these thugs had free rein to terrorize Pastor Nathan and his growing community of Jesus followers.

One day, while Pastor Nathan and his wife and young son were praying in their home with fellow believers, their meeting erupted into chaos. Suddenly, four men, filled with rage, stormed into their small wooden hut to terrorize all who were gathered. No one was spared. The men even lashed out at the women and children, beating them and throwing everyone out onto the street.

Satisfied that they had put a stop to the prayer meeting, the thugs next turned their attention to Pastor Nathan’s home. Soon, the small wooden structure was ablaze while he looked on, bleeding and broken.

When it was all said and done, Pastor Nathan and his family were left without a home. The community was so filled with terror that no one was willing to house them, afraid that their house would be next. The family spent several days sleeping in the streets until we could bring relief.

Pastors like Nathan face severe persecution in several countries where Impact Nations is working. Your gift will ensure that they can continue to bring the hope of Christ to people who need to hear the Good News!