ABOUT US
Our Mission and Vision
OUR MISSION is to provide Christian oversight and sustainable support to Upendo Children’s Village in Mzuzu, Malawi through prayer and spiritual support, periodic on the ground engagement, and accountable financial partnership that supports holistic care and education for each child through High School (Form 4), and defined transition support thereafter that equips young adults for employment and independent living.
OUR VISION is to see vulnerable children in Malawi, Africa raised to follow Jesus Christ, growing into spiritually grounded, healthy, educated, and resilient young adults who are equipped for work, independence, and service, and who contribute to the betterment of Malawi for the glory of God.
Our History
The founders of Upendo Children’s Village, Bishop Samuel Mkisi and his wife Florence, live in Mzuzu, where they pastor Church On The Wings and oversee a growing number of branch churches all over Malawi. Every Sunday, the children are driven into the city of Mzuzu where they worship at Church On The Wings and are taught the Word of God by Samuel and Florence. Many of the children help lead worship during the service.
In 2012, by God’s divine arrangement, and with the help of Christian churches and ministries headquartered in Rochester, NY, Samuel and Florence began an orphanage in Mzuzu to meet the needs of orphaned, abandoned and endangered children in the area. Today, this orphanage is called Upendo Children’s Village and is currently home to more than 60 children.
Church On The Wings
The children of Upendo are under the care of Bishop Samuel Mkisi and his wife Florence, and we all worship together at the Church on the Wings in Mzuzu, Malawi.
Directors
David Branch
Lynda Cowie
David Peschell
Martin Siegrist
Candy Giles
Thomas Johnson
Michael Vaughn
Susan Pierce
Nicole Tones
Jason Tones
“Gogo” Lynda Cowie, Head Missionary