400 Donna Werner: Finding Purpose in Kenya

Founder and Executive Director Donna V. Werner’s humanitarian journey began in 2016, when she attended a conference in Toronto, Canada, as an international delegate from the United States. There, she met a gentleman from Kenya who had recently started a school and invited Donna to help support the children. She traveled to Kenya in June 2017 to see the needs firsthand. Upon returning she noted, “I am no longer the same person. Visiting Kenya changed me.”

Donna soon established a 501(c)(3): Dorcas Destiny International. DDI has since grown from one relationship with one school into an organization with Kenyan staff and programs serving communities in several parts of the country. Today, DDI coordinates daily feeding for more than 700 children and also provides educational enrichment, social work and home visits, scholarships, and emergency assistance.

DDI's scholarship program helps students continue into high school, with the larger vision of helping young people not only complete secondary education but have the opportunity to pursue university, vocational training, and productive futures.

One of DDI’s most significant next steps is the development of Beloved Destiny Children’s Home in Lodwar, Turkana County where DDI currently supports 36 vulnerable children, many who experience life on the streets, hunger, abandonment, or severe family hardship. The vision is to establish a safe, stable home while working with local authorities and families toward education, care, family tracing, and reunification whenever possible.

What began with one invitation to visit one school has become a growing international ministry—and Donna continues to ask others to find their place in the story.

Dorcas Destiny International (DDI) is a thriving nonprofit providing tangible support to children and women in Kenya, East Africa, since June 2017. DDI serves hundreds of children and families living in extreme poverty through daily nutrition, education, scholarships, crisis assistance, community development, and other programs designed to create lasting impact.

Website: https://DorcasDestinyIntl.org.

You can reach Donna directly by calling her at 773-505-3378

or via email at [email protected].

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