2. 2 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report
Note from the Director
3. Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report | 3
A journey towards wholeness is never
as easy to document with facts or
figures. It isn’t easy to show the internal
transformation within a heart that is
evidenced in an ability to dream again.
These are things which reports will never
narrate to you, but things I’ve seen.
The moment of encounter when a girl or a
woman who has been abused in the worst
ways imaginable, knows herself as loved.
The crushing hug of a mob of little girls
who have been rescued and now laugh
and play instead of staring emptily off into
the distance.
Love looks like many things. But mostly,
it’s a relationship.
A ride to the hospital.
A safe home.
A piece of bread.
An ear to listen.
An offering of hope.
This is all part of what we do, how we
love, but most importantly how we see
change in broken lives, and ultimately the
sweetest redemption of a life restored and
launched into destiny.
This is God’s work.
And we’re happy we get to be a part of it.
Thank you for faithfully joining us.
Love,
Sarita Hartz Hendricksen
Founder & Director, Zion Project
The
holiest of
moments
when God
inexplicably
touches
a life with
healing.
A life
which will
never be
the same
again.
4. 4 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report
Who We Are
5. Our vision is to:
See hearts, lives, and communities radically
transformed by inner healing, the Father’s love,
and the Kingdom of heaven so that the
broken might walk in wholeness and fulfill
their God-given destinies.
Since 2006, Zion Project has been working to see hearts healed and lives restored
in the war-torn region of northern Uganda and see God’s Kingdom invade the
darkest places.
We began with a simple Rehabilitation Home for girls who had been used as sex
slaves and child soldiers, and this grew into a dream bigger than we imagined. We
now bring healing through counseling, education, love, and relationships to the
sexually exploited, trafficked, and broken in war affected regions.
Our dream is
to continue to
expand our
counseling
programs and
curriculum
into other
regions such as
Congo,
Rwanda,
Sudan,
and
wherever
else we
feel led.
7. Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report | 7
War leaves devastating effects on a region including brokenness from sexual
violence, losing a generation of children as child soldiers, a rise in prostitution
due to poverty, alcoholism, domestic violence, hopelessness, and a break-
down of the family structure leaving many orphans and street children. War and
sexual violence require a response which is loving and offers healing counseling
in order to break these cycles and ensure peace and healthy futures.
Often the cycle of war continues because issues of the heart were never
addressed. If development and transformation is to be successful, then we
must help people work through the emotional and heart issues first.
We must
join together,
in relationship
and in
partnership
with the
Holy Spirit
to end
injustice and
offer space
where God
can heal up
hearts.
9. Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report | 9
We believe in the power of love and
relationships to change the world.
We believe in the supernatural power of God to transform lives,
hearts, behaviors and physical conditions through His miraculous
Holy Spirit.
We believe in being led by the Holy Spirit in everything we do.
We believe that God is a good and loving Father who is seeking to
restore all His children to Himself.
We believe it is our duty to partner with churches and individuals in
missions to be the hands and feet of Christ.
This is the core of what we do. Our Counseling Center is a safe
space where we host counseling seminars and support groups
for survivors of war and sexual violence. We don’t just provide
counseling and education, but we develop a relationship, which
forms a long-lasting supportive bond.
Last year, we hired a trained, local counselor who is working full-
time to provide trauma counseling, play therapy, and art therapy to
our children.
Christine was trafficked from Congo
when she was only 16 and was
traumatized by all the violence there.
Because she didn’t have any money
she used to sell herself on the streets
of Gulu. She even locked her children
up in her home when she went to the
brothels as many women often do.
She was so brokenhearted she used
drugs to help her forget. All this
contributed to a deep shame inside her.
When she went through our Counseling
Program she says, “My life was
transformed.”
Christine now leads our worship in the
mornings with such JOY!
Loving one person at a time truly is the
key to the Kingdom.
11. Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report | 11
Our mentors spend 5-10 hours a week counseling our women and helping them
develop plans for their future.
We spent over 520 hours counseling the broken
hearted, over 300 hours in discipleship, 320 hours
in training and leadership development and
healing through our counseling and outreach
programs.
There are over 79 children we reach on a
daily basis.
All our staff went through training in several different counseling curriculum including
Theophostic prayer, Father Heart of God, Sonship, Transformation of the Heart, and
Attachment Disorders which they are now utilizing to transform the region.
We hosted three Counseling Seminars and reached over 120 people.
We
reached
1,030
people
last year
with
God’s
love.
12. 12 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report
“Now we no longer see women
prostituting themselves on the streets
or causing trouble. We no longer see
children who are abandoned. We see
people who are loving each other
and helping one another. We can only
attribute this to your work and to God.”
–LC1 of Gulu town-
“My spiritual
growth and
emotional healing
has brought a lot
of change in my
life. Now I can
connect with God
through the love
He has for me.”
–Pauline, former
child mother,
now Staff
13. Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report | 13
Outreach
Outreach is a weekly event where we take
our Imani women and children, to give
back to the community. We pray for the
sick, share about God’s love, we listen,
we counsel, and often we provide food
or medical treatment and invite them to
come for further counseling at our center.
In 2012, we reached an
average of 1,040 people
through this program.
14. 14 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report
Rescue Home
& Education
15. Our holistic after-care home for young girls who have been used in child prostitution
and trafficking. This home is helping to end the cycle of sexual exploitation. They
receive counseling, education, medical, tutoring, discipleship, and a chance to
dream.
Educating girls is central to our vision of
changing a nation.
In 2012, we rescued 2 additional girls and we moved our children into a much larger
home with more space for living and playing.
One of these girls was Lucy who we were able to rescue before she was forced into
sexual exploitation. We now have a total of 17.
Out of that seventeen, fifteen of our girls were in
the top five in their class in the most prestigious
school in our district.
“I’m grateful
for Zion
because of
the safety
and because
I can go to
school. I
know I’m not
going to be
raped ever
again.”
Janet- age 9
16. Our girls also received classes in purity, their bodies, and other
prevention education to keep them It has been proven that
educating girls will
• reduce poverty
• reduce child mortality
• reduce population growth
• reduce HIV infection rates
• change the conditions that lead to terrorism
• reduce corruption
Our girls also received classes in purity,
their bodies, and other prevention
education to keep them safe from
future trafficking risks.
16 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report
18. 18 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report18 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report
Imani is our jewelry empowerment program that frees women from the global sex
trade through teaching them a trade so they can provide for themselves with dignity.
Major successes in 2012 were that all our women now have tin-roofed homes
instead of grass thatched which can easily catch fire, they have started secondary
businesses to support them through money made from Imani. All Imani women
are responsibly putting their own children in school with a total of 32 children now
receiving education.
There has been a ripple effect of love from our women into their local community
and they are now the ones who are bringing in abandoned children into their homes
to love them, and helping other women in prostitution, get off the streets and
ministering to them.
One of our Imani women, Elizabeth, takes care of 10 children in her home and
another one takes in women who have no place to sleep.
We hired two new women last year and
12 women received training in business
development, savings, discipleship and
leadership, and domestic violence.
Niclete,
an Imani
employee,
is now
buying
her own
land and
building
her own
home for
the first
time in
her life!
19. Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report | 19
All Imani women have broken free of the devastating
cycle of poverty and are carrying their families into
greatness.
Finally, we provided consistent maternity and
health care to 65 mothers and
their children last year.
We also aided 2 Imani women to
successfully receive prenatal
care and give birth to two
healthy babies.
20. 20 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report
Stewardship
21. Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report | 21
We spent last year leading into this year ramping up our accountability systems to
track data better and develop better systems for stewardship.
We updated our website with new information and easier ways to give, we began
a CRM through Salesforce to track donors and donations, and put accountability
systems and software in place to more accurately track our expenses by
programs and categories.
It’s been an exciting year in our organizational development.
We are
building
up our
team and
infrastructure
in the USA
and will be
launching a
US office
this year.
22. 22 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report
Our Team
23. Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report | 23
A family built on love and relationships.
Though we have a small team of only 10
core staff and 2 long-term volunteers in
Uganda, and 3 core volunteers in the USA,
they are mighty and they put their heart
and soul into this work. For that, we are so
grateful.
We also want to thank the YWAM team,
Alethia Church Harrisonburg Team,
Oakbrook Church team, Father Heart team,
and the 10 volunteers who came to serve
with us last year, as well as the countless
others of you, who volunteered in the USA
on special projects, to host jewelry parties,
and to give of yourself and your time.
Board of Directors
Sarita Hartz Hendricksen,
Counselor, Founder & Chair
Rick Schryber, Pastor, Oakbrook Church
Dr. William & Cynthia Evans,
Licensed Professional Counselors,
Alethia Church
Nicole Kuhl, Missionary Director,
Harvest Renewal Church
Bethany Corrigan, MPH, CHES
Craig Hartz, Treasurer
Obadiah Olalobo (Uganda)
At
Zion
Project
we
are a
family.
24. 24 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report
Core Staff
Sarita Hartz Hendricksen (Founder/Executive Director)
Brittany Dunay (Uganda Country Director)
Pauline Alobo (Finance Officer)
Christine Oyite (Imani Director/Mentor)
Jackie Birungi (Counselor)
Joyce Adokober (Rescue Home Director)
Harriet Nakimuli (Rescue Home Caregiver)
Wonderful (Rescue Home Caregiver)
Janet Aber (Baby Caregiver)
Lucy (Imani Child Caregiver)
Volunteers
Marlene Frazier, Imani Coordinator USA
Bethany Corrigan, Sponsorship Coordinator, USA
Craig Hartz, Accounting, USA
Tyson Hendricksen, Financial Reporting, USA
Christine Bolander, Special Events, USA
Hailey Huebner, Rescue Home Intern, Uganda
Laura Bond, Imani Jewelry Designer, Uganda
McKenna Berkowitz, Imani, USA
Erin West, Imani, USA
Amanda Rossen Imani, USA
Beth Fluker Imani, USA
Judy Montgomery Imani, USA
Kim Shellhorse Imani, USA
Kim Rexer Imani, USA
25. Thank You!
We cannot accomplish this work of healing in Uganda
and throughout the globe without your help so thank
you for joining us as such faithful supporters.
Your time and your dollars
directly impacted the lives of
all those mentioned in this
report, and so many more.
Thank you so much for helping us purchase a vehicle
this year for our programs!
Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report | 25
26. Ways to Help Us
26 | Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report
27. There is still so much brokenness in some of the darkest places
on earth that need our help. As Gary Haugen, Founder of IJM
said recently, “The work of justice is a long obedience in the same
direction,” we too must be willing to continue this long and tireless
effort to bring heaven to earth and to see God’s Kingdom come
with light and love.
This year as we expand our counseling programs and our scope,
our projected budget is $190,000.
Please join us as a:
Monthly Giver
Child Sponsor
Imani Club Member
Church Partner
Zion Project • 2012 Annual Report | 27
