Our Mission
The Ray of Hope Foundation is dedicated to the promotion of health, healing and education to the global community through exchange of volunteers, technology, training, medical supplies and education programming.
We accomplish our mission with the understanding that we are all interconnected and share universal human values which when recognized and cultivated have the power to transform our global community.
Three Agreements that Guides our work
Capacity
The philosophy
Building and empowerment
- Projects guided by the aspirations and self-identified needs of the communities in our project areas.
- Help individuals develop the skills and focus to enrich their lives and their communities.
- Short-term solutions in service of long-term goals.
- Solving problems. Leaving solutions.
Promote
The work- what we actually do
Health, healing, enterprise and education
- Promote sustainable, community-based projects that improve the basic quality of life for people in the developing world.
- Conduct research regarding community attitudes and practices related to health. Utilize findings to improve future programming.
- Provide and support structured educational and training programs.
- Match skilled volunteers to communities who can benefit from their expertise.
- Support infrastructure of established facilities through financial donations, supplies and materials.
Stewardship
The way we do it
To humanity
- Respect the universal needs and the deep-rooted values shared by people everywhere around the world.
- Bear witness for those communities whose needs go unseen.
- Be the voice for the voiceless populations suffering in silence.
- Use intercultural exchange as a learning tool–an opportunity to discover the interconnectedness of humanity.
- Offer volunteers the opportunity to make an extraordinary difference in someone’s life.
Meet the founder
Dearest Friends,
In 1993 I went to Kenya for the first time. I was a green medical student eager for a challenging medical experience and longing to fulfill my desire to see and feel Africa. It only took a few days for me to realize I’d come home. Back in the States were family and friends, an upcoming residency in Family Medicine and a bright career, but in Kenya I’d found a resting place for my soul. So what’s a girl supposed to do when she finds the location of her life and the location of her spirit are 9,142 miles apart? Well, you get resourceful and combine the two.
Over the years as I have pursued my career I’ve also continued to return, building professional and personal relationships throughout Kenya. The work of the Ray of Hope, founded in 2003, merges my love of Kenya with my passion for medicine and public health. Our work focuses on promoting health, healing, enterprise and education. Our projects are guided by the aspirations and self-identified needs of the communities in our project areas. Our agreement is grounded in the belief that each of us has a responsibility to bear witness for those people and communities whose needs go unseen.
I invite you to join me in the journey- whether through sharing your expertise, becoming a volunteer, joining us on a trip to Kenya, sponsoring a child or helping support one of our programs.
Teresa F Gipson MD, MPH
Founder and Director
The Ray of Hope Foundation
