Raise the Roof, Chattanooga

Three years ago, my husband and I lived in a town in Liberia, West Africa. We were teachers in a small Christian college there and felt God’s blessing on our work.  But midway through our two-year term, we became troubled by some news emerging from the community:  there were whispers of girls as young as 9 being exploited and sold into prostitution.  The female population in the local schools began dropping.  We were told that parents saw more of a future for their daughters in prostitution than they saw in investing the time and money into years of education where the chances of their daughter becoming a professional in a male-dominated society were slim to none. The evil that seemed to settle in our community was thick and palpable. Amani was needed here.  Girls needed an alternative. So Amani Liberia was launched with the undertaking of promoting the “girl child” and of giving young ladies the chance to improve their lives.  And even though there were only a handful of women employed at the time, those few women improved their lives and as a result, the lives of their families.  Some even went on to finish high school and on to a college education.  Pete and I were moved by the immediate impact that we saw Amani making in our small community. The tenderness that emerged in each one of the women through the care and fellowship of the others was a testimony to us and to others of the importance of Christian community. Ever since our return from Liberia, we have been praying for Amani’s presence here in Chattanooga.  About fourteen months ago, God provided the opportunity and the means to purchase a building in Ridgedale, a downtown Chattanooga neighborhood. We took this as clear direction from God that he wanted Amani to be a fountain in a thirsty area of Chattanooga.  Pete and I felt hesitation in taking on a project this size until God sent overwhelming local church support.  He has made it clear to us that this is His vision and His plan, we need only to trust and to follow. The immediate plan for the building is to provide efficient distribution for Amani product all over the US. This will be a big boost for Amani Liberia, Kenya, Uganda and Burundi as they depend on US customers to sustain their operations. The large warehouse space will allow us to purchase much larger quantities from the African centers, which will provide reliable work for our sisters and brothers in Africa.  In addition to the benefits this will have on the African centers, we are eager to show the Christ-centered community and friendship that is at the heart of Amani to our own community. We are privileged to share with you the exciting work before us at Amani Chattanooga, and we do have a pressing need. We have managed for 8 months with a leaky roof by putting buckets in strategic places, mopping, and moving product and equipment to places that typically remain dry, but the leaking has gotten worse. We can’t invest in developing our space for retail or any other future endeavor until we can keep the rain out! We will need $30,000 to get a new roof, and we ask you to prayerfully consider giving towards this need. 

Huguette & Lauren
Amani Chattanooga's Warehouse Assistant & Volunteer Coordinator

    Blessings and peace in Christ, who can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine. Joanna Vaughn, Pete Vaughn, Lauren Zilen, Huguette Ciza & Brenda Gwin Amani Chattanooga