July 2003 - Adventist.org - Lake Union Conference

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MakingSomebodyout of aNobodyBY REGGIE JOHNSONLook at the painting fromthe cover of the MayLake Union Herald,reproduced here. It’s a simpleportrait of a homelessman. But look deeper. Lookinto his eyes. See the story lurkingbeneath the surface—the sadnessthat runs along every line ofhis face and form. But then, sensethe quiet dignity that glows softlyfrom his face. See this man as heis—one formed in the very imageof God our Father and Creator.The emotion in the eyes of thishomeless man on the streets ofSan Fancisco reflects the experienceof the man who capturedhim forever with oil paints andcanvas: Harry Ahn. Once homelesshimself, Harry feels movedout of compassion for this humanbeing and burns with a desire toshow the world the divine sparkin each individual.Harry Ahn is painting a homeless woman.Now jump back to 1953—theKorean War. Harry recalls his daysas a young student in North Koreaduring that time. Separated fromhis father who was taken to workfor the northern army, he was leftat the age of 14 to take care ofhimself and six women familymembers. He was almost caughtbefore his family fled to the south,in hopes of a brighter world.But when they got to SouthKorea, they had nothing—no safetynet to catch them. “There wasno way to survive, so you had tobeg from house-to-house,” Harrysaid. Sleeping under a bridge andgoing door-to-door asking forfood, Harry determined that hecouldn’t live his life that way. Hewanted something more, and heknew that education was the key,and knowledge power: “If I can’tbecome educated, then I don’twant to live; I want to die becauseit’s a terrible life,” he thought.This painting by Harry Ahn published on the cover ofthe May Lake Union Herald is just one of the manyportraits Harry has painted of the homeless.Anxious to learn wherever hecould find a teacher, Harrylearned about the message ofJesus from local churches. “I heardso many wonderful things,” hesays, “things that weren’t allowedto be taught in the north.”Through God’s providence,Harry was reunited with hisfather. While living in a refugeecamp, an Adventist gave clothingto his family and invitedthem to church. Also, whenHarry’s brother was in a seriousaccident, localAdventists paid for hisurgently-needed medicalcare. Impressed with theirkindness, Harry eventuallyaccepted the Adventist message.He became very involved in hislocal church and attended nursingschool in Seoul.It was during that time that hecame across the illustrations ofHarry Anderson. He realized whatpowerful ministry art could be. “Ithought maybe I could be the nextHarry Anderson,” he says, notingthe similarity of their names.Inspired by Anderson’s work,Harry attended art school inSeoul, and later moved to Canadawhere he studied more. TodayHarry teaches drawing and paintingat Andrews University. “Idon’t know what I would do if Ididn’t paint,” says Harry. “Godcreated me and gave me talent, soI want to glorify Him.”And when you look at his portraitof this homeless man, you realizethat Harry has made a somebodyout of a nobody ... just likeGod has done with each one of us.Reggie Johnson is a Lake UnionHerald editorial assistant.8 • Lake Union Herald, July 2003 Now you can read the Lake Union Herald online.
BloomingtonElder’s CompassionLeads to NewNyaka AIDSOrphan SchoolBY TERRY SELFAccording to the new report bythe UNAIDS, 14 million childrenhave lost one or both parents dueto AIDS. Approximately 80% ofthese children, 11 million, live insub-Saharan Africa—1.7 million ofthese children live in Uganda.Recent studies in Uganda confirmthat orphans who have lost bothparents are left destitute. Theydrop out of school and are draftedinto child labor. One man’s compassion,the efforts of volunteers inUganda, and international supportin the form of time, money, andprayer, resulted in the opening ofNyaka AIDS Orphan School.Twesigye Jackson Kaguri,native to Uganda and currently aBloomington (Indiana) Churchelder, is the director of the school.Located in Nyaka, a small ruralvillage in the Kanungu District ofUganda, the school officiallyopened on January 2 of this year.Speeches by several governmentofficials and school organizers,songs from the Zeituni AdventistChurch choir, shouts of happiness,and tears of joy characterizedthe occasion.Original plans had been toaccommodate 30 students. Byopening day, there were 67 registrationsand more were stillcoming. There are currently 50 studentsenrolled, and if moreresources were available, nonewould be turned away. Nyaka isthe only school in Uganda providingfree education to AIDS orphans.Brijati, 12, is currently the oldeststudent at Nyaka. Her dad died ofHIV/AIDS in 1997, and her momdied two days later. She and heryoung brother, Bosco, were put ona truck the next day with whatwas left of their possessions afternearly everything was sold to buymedicine for their parents.Brijati had a great grandmotherwho was still alive in her 90s.When Brijati arrived in her newvillage, she was charged with theduty of taking care of her greatgrandmother and young brotherin a mud, grass-thatched shack.Brijati’s job was to wake up early,fetch firewood and water frommiles away, do house work, tillland, prepare lunch, get food fromthe garden, wash clothes, washdishes, build a fire, and all thewhile make sure her grandmother’sneeds were met, as she hasbeen unable to walk for the pastfour years.Brijati had just begun attendingschool when her parents died.When her grandmother learnedthere was an AIDS orphan schoolopening in the area, she toldBrijati to come ask if she could beadmitted. Girls are more at riskbecause they are expected to takecare of their siblings when theirparents are gone. Brijati said, “Youhave saved me, because my unclehad started telling me that Ishould get married soon. He waslooking for a man to marry me.Now that I am in school, that willnot happen.”Through the efforts ofTwesigye Jackson Kaguri, his colleaguesand volunteers, and thefinancial support of many, Brijatiand 49 other AIDS orphans havebegun a new life. Prayers havebeen answered and much hasbeen accomplished, but so muchmore needs to be done. For moreinformation about Nyaka AIDSOrphan School, contact TwesigyeStudents in their new school uniformsare ready for the first day of classes atNyaka AIDS Orphan School.Orphans and other opening ceremonyparticipants celebrate with joyful dance.Volunteers help dig the foundation forthe new orphanage.Orphan girls enjoy time for recreationduring their daily routine.at twejaka@hotmail.com., or visitthe school Web site athttp://php.indiana.edu/~tkaguri/nyaka.html.Terry Self is the Bloomington (Indiana)Church communication leaderVisit our web site at luc.adventist.org Lake Union Herald, July 2003 • 9
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July 2003 - Adventist.org - Lake Union Conference

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