Restoring Dignity
Founded in memory and continuity of service offered by Ethel Jimmie, born on 16th March 1945 in Fort Victoria (Masvingo), Zimbabwe, the Ethel Foundation for the Aged emerged as a charitable non-governmental organization seeking to guarantee that older persons in Kenya and beyond survive a life of dignity.
The organization was formed by Fr. Cornel Omondi Oredo C.SS.R to address vulnerable older persons’ plight. Inspired by Ethel Jimmie’s service and ethics towards older persons, Fr. Cornel Omondi engaged the community, initially in Tharaka-Nithi County, to establish the foundation.
Since its establishment in 2018, EFA was officially launched in July 2021 by Archbishop Hubertus Matheus Maria Van Megen, the Apostolic Nuncio of Kenya and South Sudan, with the mission of providing humanitarian assistance and caregiver support for older persons lacking safety nets. The foundation has since expanded beyond Tharaka Nithi to counties including Nairobi, Nakuru, Kisii, and Kisumu.
Our Strategic Goal
To create a society where every older person leads a dignified life free of want, abuse, neglect, and discrimination, ensuring older persons live with dignity, security, and inclusion in society.
Our Approach
We aim to holistically respond to the spiritual, physical, social, psychological, and economic needs of older persons in society through four thematic areas that address the root causes of their marginalization.
Our approach is based on the belief that by improving older persons’ well-being through advocacy, healthcare access, economic empowerment, and community engagement, while fostering partnerships, training caregivers, and promoting policy reforms, older persons will live with dignity, security, and inclusion in society.
Local Steps to Global Goals
The Sustainable Development Goals commitment to “leave no one behind” strongly aligns with EFA’s mission. We recognize that sustainable development cannot be achieved if older persons are among those furthest behind in achieving these goals.
EFA champions a rights-based approach rooted in Catholic Church’s Social Teaching on liberation theology, working to accelerate progress towards the SDGs by 2030, with a focus on the preferential option for the aged and poor, emphasizing human dignity and the sanctity of life.
In this regard, we focus our interventions to address Violence, Abuse, and Neglect (VAN) and the various socio-economic challenges facing older persons. We have adopted a community-based, inclusive approach that reaches out to older members of society regardless of their race, belief systems, religion, ethnicity, circumstances or political affiliation.
Impact by the Numbers
So far, our impact has transformed the lives of thousands of older persons across Nakuru, Kisumu, Nairobi, Kisii, and Tharaka Nithi counties, improving their access to essential services and economic opportunities.