Our Blog
By Bruce Main, President
UrbanPromise International
When Jeff Peterson asked to accompany me on a trip to Malawi 2 years ago, I knew God was up to something significant. It did not take long to realize we shared a desire to develop a viable businesses solution in economically impoverished communities. Bringing this in to fruition entails merging Jeff's business talents and philanthropic passion with the UrbanPromise International's vision.
Jeff's day job is owner and operator of the iconic Geoffrey's Restaurant of Malibu, consistently ranked as one of the most picturesque and fine dining places off the California Coast. Perched on the seaside cliffs of Malibu, overlooking the majestic Pacific Ocean. Geoffrey’s is home to Jeff, a self-built entrepreneur. His vision for kindness and truth is embodied in his restaurant and staff.
Many Hollywood celebrities, entertainers, international dignitaries, politicians are regular patrons that enjoy the peaceful surroundings and escapism that Geoffrey’s offers.
Jeff’s charities and charitable causes, helping others achieve their goals, providing people with an opportunity to live prosperous lives is extremely close to Jeff’s heart.
"In my youth I thought life was an all you can eat pie eating contest," he confesses. "But no matter how much I tried to fill myself I was never satisfied." So what is Jeff's remedy for perpetual consumption? "Helping others achieve their goals, and dreams is what I believe is God's purpose for my life."
As Jeff walked through Malawian villages, having the visual and talking to young leaders, villages where families exist on less than a dollar a day, this wrenching at Jeff’s heart strings, he asked himself what he could do to for these families and children to prosper? What kind of businesses could turn a profit and become an economic force for good in the community?
Currently Jeff works with a couple of Malawian leaders who desire to create viable businesses. Using his own money, Jeff has provided the start-up capital to launch a chicken business and a corn mill. Both projects are with Urban Promise International and affiliated ministries. These endeavors are particularly exciting as Jeff can also provide guidance and mentoring for these young entrepreneurs from the ground up.
"Much of my success can be attributed to others taking the time and energy mentoring me in business," adds Jeff. "In turn I find great happiness giving back to others."
Jeff is now challenging other business men and women to use their talents to help others break the cycle of poverty. Charitable gifts are critical and important, but making investments in viable businesses can provide long term resources for families and communities.
If you're interested in investing in this kind of mission work, please reach out to Jeff directly at jpmalibu222@gmail.com or contact Bruce Main at bmain@urbanpromiseusa.org
I was born into a family of three, and I lost my parents while still young. My dad died when I was 9 and my mom when I was 16. Life became hard and I lost all hope of continuing with school. I finally got a chance to go to school because family members and other well-wishers agreed to pay my tuition fees. However, my sister never got the opportunity because she was a girl child. I was given the opportunity because I am a man and my community valued me as someone who would have more to offer something to the community and family than my sister who would one day get married. My sister is now 23 and did not finish even high school. She can’t get a job, and she can’t go back to high school because of her age. Seeing the struggle my sister has gone through gave me a passion to help women in my community.
I believe women in Malawi should have an equal opportunity to go to school, have food, and have shelter just like any other man can have,
Voices Awake Organization is creating that platform, and it’s a privilege to be part of the change.
This November, I was approved by the UPI board to launch Voices Awake Ventures. This is a social enterprise that will use a mini bus business to provide financial support to Voices Awake Organization.
I believe business is a good tool for the sustainability of Voices Awake Organization. I am passionate about business and ministry. I have got over five years of experience in the Public transportation business in Malawi, and I want to use the same experience as a ministry at Voices Awake. Voices Awake Organization believes in sustainability to achieve its full potential and effectiveness.
This is important because with this enterprise, Voices Awake would be able to support its programs including:
• Paying tuition fees for the girls in the girl empowerment program
• Providing food for the girls living at the Voices Awake Girls home
• Paying salaries to the staff
• Providing Micro-loans to women
The potiential of this enterprise is exciting! Not only could this enterprise bless Voices Awake, but when this model proves successful, it could be a tool for our other UPI ministries in Malawi to join in and build a more sustainable source of revenue for their ministries.
It will take $25 000 to launch this enterprise and buy the mini buses. If you are interested in supporting this venture or talking to me about it, I’d love to meet with you.
Email Alex or donate now!
My name is Gilbert Mfitundinda, an UrbanPromise International Fellow from southwestern Uganda. I was born to a family so poor that even the poor people in our community looked down on us. At a young age, I did not think that the future had anything to offer me. As the eighth child in my family, I had seen my siblings drop out of school. I was so hopeless.
My family survived on less than $1 per day. Life was a daily struggle. Our house was a makeshift house made of mud. I slept on a mat on a dirt floor and covered myself with another mat. Mattresses were unheard of and blanket never existed in my family’s dictionary.
At the age of 7, I was invited by my local church and community leaders to participate in a child sponsorship organization called Compassion International—who later changed my life. Compassion have me a mattress to sleep on and a blanket that I could use to cover myself. This was the first mattress that my family ever held.
Can you imagine how might have felt having on mattress in a family of ten? (Eight kids plus mom and dad). The blanket and the mattress became the most treasured items in our house at that time. Since Compassion had technically given the mattress to me, I had a bigger share on it.
However, my parents could not entrust me with the only treasure in our house. I was still young and irresponsible. I did bed wetting almost every night. When my parents justified why I could not use the mattress, I had no objection. My parents decided to keep the mattress until I was old enough to use it. For a period of time, whoever felt sick in my family was the one to use the mattress. It was a shared treasure.
During this season of Thanksgiving, I would urge you to take a moment and ponder your blessings. Can you name them one by one? It is easy to take a small thing like having a mattress for granted, yet it could mean the whole world to a child in Malawi, Uganda or any other developing country. I would also like to request you pray for a child longing for a mattress or blanket sometime in his/her lifetime. Perhaps you could be an answer to the prayers of this child.
Gilbert Mfitundinda, Founder and CEO of Love Restoration—a non-profit organization that he started to help his community. Gilbert holds a degree in information technology from Uganda Christian University. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in organizational leadership at Eastern University in Pennsylvania, USA.
So I found myself in the United States for the first time in my entire life. Although I had an idea of what to expect, I remember getting off the plane, looking into the sky and wondering what the future may hold. Sincerely, there was a little bit of self-doubt as I wondered if I was good enough for the Urban Promise International (UPI) fellowship. What had I really done to deserve a fully sponsored trip to the USA, to get a fully sponsored Masters’ degree and an opportunity to gain first-hand experience in ministerial work? One constant thought though was that God had me here for a reason and somehow, I had peace knowing that only his will would be manifested.
Now, here I am; about a month into the program and I feel like I have had the time of my life: From meeting amazing leaders from other African countries, to the beautiful staff of UPI who are quick to shower us with all the love. So, this last month has been a time of reflection, learning and community building. As I try to balance my commitment between school, camp and other UPI obligations; there has been a conscious effort to open my heart to all of the experiences, and it has truly been amazing!
First, there was the experience at Eastern University which quite exceeded my expectations. Beyond theory, each class was practical with the professors acting like consultants, willing to discuss unique problems of our organizations and jointly proffering real solutions. Also, contrary to the school system that I have been used to, the classes were more of discussions than lectures. They presented a platform for every member to share his views and an opportunity to learn from diverse experiences.
However, my favourite part of school would have to be the carefully selected pile of books we have to read for the semester. I won’t deny that they were quite scary initially, but diving into each book started to change my perception about leadership. In fact, one statement from Overstreet (2011) has been lingering in my mind. She noted that “when measuring performance, the only standard that truly matters to a follower of Jesus is what God thinks of our leadership” pg. 12. Truly, it has been a wakeup call for me. Beyond skills, beyond hard work or the busy schedules, I am now drawn to inquire each night how the Lord feels about my leadership. After all, that is all that really matters.
Another beautiful experience would have to be my camp involvement. The camp director was kind enough to explain that many of the children there have had traumatic experiences and our afterschool program is aimed at creating an atmosphere of love and joy for the kids. This however became clear on my first day at camp when one of the kids said to me: “Sarah, camp is the only time I truly get to be happy in a day.” This single sentence made all the difference for me. I realized then that beyond learning how to run a ministry, the UPI fellowship journey has presented me with an opportunity to be a part of the life of these kids. Trust me, I am enjoying every bit of camp: from getting to know to kids, to having lots of fun and learning at the same time. Through camp, I’ve gone for fishing for the first time in my life and I even caught a fish #SMILES.
What more can I say, my experience as a UPI fellow has been great so far even if I am still recovering from the culture shock. For one, I have had a taste of a variety of great American meals but I have been really shocked by the combinations.
Well, I had never imagined that it was possible to have ham burger, sweet corn and chips on the same plate!
And for the weather, my friends are wondering how many jackets I would likely wear during winter, considering that it is still fall and most times I have a jacket on. In all, it has been fun to learn about a new culture and see life in an entirely new perspective.
Today, I am reminded of a life lesson I learnt after I lost my biological father. I have come to realize that life is definitely beyond getting born into a family, going to school, maintaining a good job and possibly starting another family. It is more about letting each day count by putting smiles in the faces of those around us. To me, this is what Urban Promise International is all about. The fellowship seeks to empower us to be leaders that would make each day count for children in our local communities. It seeks to equip us with all the skills and knowledge we need to be Christ-like leaders in our respective countries.
So, I am grateful to be a part of this fellowship and I am looking forward to both spiritual and professional growth. In two years, I hope to be fully self-aware, to have my vision clarified and be empowered for the future that lies ahead. Above all, my desire is that whenever I go to inquire of the Lord, I am rest assured that He is pleased with my leadership.
Dear Friends,
To celebrate 29 years of marriage I've promised to take Pam on a "river cruise"....down the Delaware in a canoe. Sound like fun?
Pam has been a great sport over the years to put up with me. We actually got married one month before officially starting UrbanPromise in 1988--so she's been part of all the ups and downs and an amazing partner in building this ministry. In a few weeks we'll be putting our marriage to the test by spending 8 hours in a canoe together--something we've never done!
Pam's a city girl, so a day on the water is a big stretch.
But Pam has seen our work in Africa and believes kids in Malawi and Uganda deserve an amazing summer camp experience.
We hope you'll support "Team Main" as we strive to raise $20,000!
Every dollar raised will go directly to feed children, cover trip costs, pay for staff and provide an amazing 6 week summer camp experience for close to 2000 children. These programs are truly life saving and life transforming.
For a gift of over $500, Pam will call you from the canoe and say thanks--and maybe ask for a little marriage counseling.
Thanks for the many ways you have supported our efforts over the years. Your generosity will be a true source of inspiration.
We love you!
Bruce and Pam
PS. Click here to learn more about the amazing work UrbanPromise is doing around the world.
PPS. Canadian donors! Click here and choose Paddle for Promise- Bruce & Pam
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