African Orphan Educational Foundation: Helping a Whole Generation of Young Students

August 2, 2026

An Interview with Founder Kathie Kreh

By Krista Martinelli

*Founder Kathie Kreh presenting her book Mercy’s Magnificent Dreams*

Meet Kathie Kreh! She began doing mission work in Africa in 2009. She says it took about 10 years to truly understand the needs in the region and how to best help. What began with healthcare and community support gradually moved toward education.

Unfortunately, only about 50% of young people go to school across Africa. That’s 98 million young people who do not go to school. She explained that there are layers of issues to address when confronting extreme poverty and it’s not uncommon for organizations providing support to get caught up and overwhelmed trying to solve everything at once. While a lofty ambition, Kreh notes “I realized we just need to educate one generation of these kids.” So, she founded African Orphan Educational Foundation [AOEF] in 2019.

In the video below, Kathie Kreh gives a few of her favorite success stories.

Since its inception, AOEF has awarded 212 annual education sponsorships. They typically take on 35 students at a time. “We carry these students all the way from kindergarten to college,” says Kreh, and “most are orphans.” She explains that they receive one hot meal at school each day. For most kids, this is the only meal they’ll receive.

How often does Kreh get to Africa? She aims to visit once a year, but some travel has been interrupted by regional conflicts, war, and disease. She notes their programs touch seven different nations, and they maintain teams on the ground in Uganda and Kenya, where most of their work takes place. In addition to sponsoring students, they maintain literacy and leadership programs.

Individuals, small groups or businesses can sponsor a student for $1,000 per year. “This allows for a continuum of support,” says Kreh, “keeping students enrolled when costs escalate in junior and high school and when boarding costs come into play. We have never dropped a student.” With effective fundraising, communication, and careful planning, all of the young students are carried from kindergarten through high school and post-secondary vocational programs.

The organization distributes an email newsletter called “Breakfast on the Nile” to update supporters on coming events, share information about Africa, sponsored students and youth leaders. It also serves by connecting individuals across global communities.

In addition to more traditional methods, AOEF gets the word out through their children’s book and literacy tool Mercy’s Magnificent Dreams, and Mercy the plush African schoolgirl^TM who now accompanies the book. “These are tools and calling cards,” says Kreh. The book was an outcome of Covid. “We didn’t know when the schools would be open again,” says Kreh. “We didn’t want to sit on our hands, so we wrote a book, a book that helps students learn and encourages them to dream.”

“The children we serve are the neediest of the needy, living in extreme poverty. Many are abandoned kids. They always come last. They are typically told that their dreams don’t count, that they’ll never come true.”

The AOEF team pours into these kids and encourages them to dream big! “They should imagine the most magnificent outcomes possible…because we know that if we can get them to school, many of their wildest dreams will come true. We didn’t want them doubting; we want them believing!”

The book has been out a few years now but was reprinted to coincide with the launch of Mercy the plush African schoolgirl^TM who debuted in May of this year. Kreh advises, “Mercy is more than a doll. Mercy is an ambassador across cultures and continents informing all nations that 98 million children don’t go to school in Africa.”

The “First Edition” Mercy plush African schoolgirl^TM is available in the local market while supplies last. Discussions regarding future orders and shipping across the U.S. are underway.

Most importantly, every Mercy plush ambassador and book set purchased puts a second book into the hands of a child in need in Africa.

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