Support Those Who Helped Me When I Was Orphaned in Ethiopia

My Journey of Gratitude:

I want to help the Ethiopian couple who took me in when I was orphaned as a baby and gave me a second chance at life. Please help me help them, as they continue to support abandoned children in Ethiopia to this day. They are true angels and I wouldn’t have the supportive, loving, adoptive family or the opportunities I have today if it weren’t for the kindness of these strangers.

Because of them, I honestly aspire to be the best footballer and person I can be, every single day. I am determined to make them proud and so I work extra hard on and off the pitch so that I am sure to take full advantage of the gift I was given. I know other children in my same situation have not been (and will not be) as fortunate as me, and so I live with a moral obligation to work hard and cease my opportunities in their honor. For me, it feels like I am living the Maya Angelo quote that says, “I come as one, but stand as 10,000.” I do not feel that I ever stand alone. I stand for every orphan out there who came before me, and will come after me, who did not or will not have the chance to follow their dreams.

Please read my full story below and donate if you can. Although I can never truly repay this couple for their kindness, I am hopeful that my actions will show my gratitude and help them “pay it forward,” as they continue to give selflessly to others, even when they do not have much of their own.

My full story and some more thoughts are below if you want to learn more. Meanwhile, thank you for considering contributing to my Go Fund Me…

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My Full Story:

For some children, waking up to see another day is a true blessing, not a given. Especially for those born into war, political unrest and poverty. The hope of a bright, prosperous future feels like a fleeting illusion or distant dream that is impossible to obtain.

My name is Japhy Axum McGuinness. My story began in Axum, a small town in the Tigrayan region of Ethiopia, where trials and tribulations overwhelm many families and cause great hardships. For some children, like me, this leads to abandonment, as parents do not have the health or wealth to sustain a family.

For me, every day was a struggle from the day I was born. I went from being abandoned near a trash can one day, to being left at a bakery on the next. I was only a few weeks old and I had become an orphan, with no one in the world to look out for me. The odds were against me from the start, but I realize now, I was one of the lucky ones. The Ethiopian couple who ran the bakery are the reason I survived, got adopted by two loving and caring souls, and have a good life filled with opportunity today. They are true angels.

Out of the kindness of their hearts, and with no help from the government or any other sources, they chose to spend their lifetime helping as many abandoned children as they could manage. When I arrived, there were already 5 other older children who had been abandoned living there, plus the couple’s natural born children. The week I came, 2 other babies were also brought to this couple’s home as a safe, temporary place to keep us. This couple took us in with open arms, though they were already living beyond their means. They took good care of us, and all the other kids helped too and this bakery became our home until the police could figure out an adoption plan for us babies.

We lived there for almost a year before our adoptions were sorted and they took us to an orphanage in the capital city of Addis Ababa for adoption proceedings. I am sure this would have been a physical and monetary relief for the family at the time, but I have also come to learn that it was absolutely heart wrenching for this couple who had come to love us 3 babies as their own.

I was almost one year old when I was taken from the bakery to Addis, and when I was about 6 years old, I had the opportunity to return back to Axum and visit the bakery for the first time. Words can’t describe this experience; reuniting with this couple and all the other children that were still there, my only “brothers and sisters” in Ethiopia. They shared pictures and stories of me as a baby that I had never known. My adoptive mom said that when we left the bakery that day, I said very excitedly, “Now I have more pieces to my puzzle!”

The couple too was overwhelmed with joy, sadness, shock and relief when they saw me. They had no idea what had happened to me or the other 2 babies, because once we were taken to Addis they never got informed of our new lives or told that we were adopted. They were extremely joyful that day when we appeared out of nowhere and they found out I was adopted into a family who shared the same unconditional love they provided me when I was at the bakery.

Although the bakery wasn’t extremely financially wealthy, I saw more smiles in that place than I have seen in many nice houses. Despite the financial circumstances, every kid was smiling ear to ear. At this moment in time I realized that the definition of a home was incorrect in my mind. A home isn’t just a shelter or a physical structure or the “things” we have, but a place of unconditional love, hope and compassion. I wish I could attach some of the pictures from the day we were reunited, so you could see what I am describing, but to keep their privacy and the privacy of all the children and teens living there, I decided not to add them. But since that day, I knew I had to take action, I was just too young still to understand how.

I am so grateful that I ended up in a safe and kind home filled with unconditional love and kindness at my most vulnerable moment, because later in life, I lived in Ethiopia for 2 years with my adoptive parents and I actually witnessed what can happen to kids who don’t get the chance I did. Because of this, I try to do my best at everything I do. I know not everyone has been blessed to have the same opportunities as me. Like I said above, I chase my dream because I know someone back at the orphanage had a dream too, but may not live or be able to chase after it like I can.

At a young age, I have realized that I am not living for myself, but instead to honor the people who have paved the way for me and to leave a legacy for those who will come after me. Not only that, I feel that I represent all of the children in Ethiopia who didn’t get to know their birth parents and who ended up at the mercy of strangers, some good and some bad. So I live honestly, I work extra hard and I try to do right in the world.

Over the past couple of years I have been playing football (soccer) at an academy in Spain and trying so hard with the goal of becoming a professional athlete. Since I was young, I have pictured myself “making it pro” to let the couple in Ethiopia know that even though it was hard to give me up for adoption, their selfless sacrifice paid off. I also dream of making it pro so I can start earning money of my own that I could send back to them, and that is still my plan. However, I really wanted to help the couple now, as they are still supporting 5 orphans in Ethiopia who are very close in age to me, and I know they need help getting them started in their next phase of life. This is why I thought I would start a Go Fund Me and send every cent to this couple.

In other words, I have realized that I do not have to be a famous or rich to start giving back to my community. My “Why,” or my life's purpose isn’t just to achieve my dream and show to the world anything is possible and it doesn't matter where you come from. My “Why” is also to give back to the place that gave me so much when I had nothing. I want to honor everyone at the bakery who took me in with willing and loving arms and continue to help all the children they still care for today.

I also want you to know that I don’t view this as just another charity or something I can brag about for myself. This is about fulfilling a life purpose that drives me every day, to wake up and do better than I did yesterday. And so if my story can help others in need in Ethiopia, it brings me back to that moral obligation to share it in order to help.

As as I write this all out, in the back of my mind, I keep worrying that people will think I want sympathy or think, “why don’t your adoptive parents help them instead of asking us for money?” and these worries almost stopped me from creating this Go Fund Me. But then I decided that it doesn’t matter what a few people might think of my character as god, and those who know me best, know that I am genuine and also know that my parents do already help people back in Ethiopia. What is important for me at this moment in my life is that I take action to give back, without my adoptive parent's financial assistance. My childhood dream has always been to return back home and look into this couple’s eyes to see the pride they would feel, knowing what I was able to accomplish and the person I have become because of their sacrifice.

In closing, I wanted to share a fact that proves how waking up to see another day is much more than an underrated blessing, it’s more like a miracle. The probability of being born is 400 trillion-to-one. It's an astronomical odd and a statistic that can act as a reminder of how priceless and precious life is for all of us. We are the lucky ones, and now we have the opportunity to help another child live a future life that currently feels like a fleeting illusion or distant dream that is impossible to obtain. I hope you will be able to help me increase the possibility of seeing someone you don’t even know, have the blessing to wake up to see another day and reach their full potential.

I appreciate the time you have taken out of your day to hear my story and for donating if you can. Not even words can describe how grateful I am for your support, and I’m sure the lives you touch will feel the same. Together, let's open a door to a better future, a future with opportunities and hope for the children who need it most. Please donate now to help continue the angelic work being done at the bakery that has given me, and so many others, a second chance at life.

Thank you,

Japhy Axum