Orphanage Project: Feasibility Period Study
“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” (James 1:27)
"I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the one thing that only I can do." ~ (Helen Keller, A devout, self-proclaimed Swedenborgian)
Who What Where When How & Why
Reverend Carla Friedrich and the Swedenborgian Church at San Diego will spend the next six months writing a feasibility study on the creation of a sustainable orphanage/ Home for Children whose mission it will be to restore abandoned children to health, happiness, innocence, and hope. She and the church will engage with a team of the world’s leading consultants on orphanages, policy, and strategy. The study will set out a month by month plan for the creation and funding of the project. This proposal shows who will produce the plan, how and what she and her team will do, and where the funds will be used.
Study Team
Carla Friedrich, Study Director_
Reverend Carla Friedrich is a minister in the Swedenborgian Church of North America. She holds an M-Div from Pacific School of Religion, part of the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California. She holds a B.S. from Mercer University in Macon, Georgia where she majored in early childhood education. She is the mother of three grown daughters and five grandchildren.
Questions To Be Answered in this Feasibility Study:
Where should this orphanage be located?
This study will narrow down the potential location for the orphanage to four potential locations: The United States, Mexico, Peru, and a Native American & Indigenous Community. During the next six months Carla will travel to view potential sites and meet with leadership and possible local partners.
Who will fund the orphanage?
This study will examine only with orphan models that have proven themselves to be 70% financially sustainable. However, there will be a need for major investors in the startup years. During the period of this feasibility study Carla will engage with potential funders to gauge interest in supporting the vision once the study is completed.
Who will staff this orphanage?
This study will engage with potential employees.
What strategic alliances will be created?
This study will engage with community leadership, local governments, NGO’s and local businesses to see which might offer the best support for this effort.
How much will this cost?
This study will produce a detailed five year budget to launch the orphanage.
Timeline for the Study
Month 1
Set up site visits and interviews.
Month 2
Engage in three site visits and write them up.
Month 3
Engage in next three site visits and write them up.
Month 4
Follow up on site visits and write up results
Month 5
Travel to meet with potential funders and staff.
Month 6
Pull together all aspects of the study to produce a workable and fundable plan.
Consultants for the Feasibility Team: The following are the International Consultants we intend to further engage when funding is available and with whom we have already sought some expertise:
Ongoing Consultation with World-changing Leaders:
o Kent Rogers, Founder Loving Arms Mission/ New Life Home for Children
o Jesus Zarzosa, Founder and Director Proyecto Hispanaya, A.C.
o Shwaran Nepali, Founder Ama Foundation/ Ama Ghar
o Rene Veldt, Founder Hamro Guan/ Eco-Village for Children and Women
o Mario Torero, Founder El Centro Cultural de la Raza
Reverend Richard Tafel – Strategist
o Rich Tafel is an ordained minister in the Swedenborgian Church
o Assistant to the Minister at the Memorial Church at Harvard University.
o At Age 29, Rich was appointed by Governor William Weld of Massachusetts to be Director the adolescent health programs (School based and community health programs in the state)
o While in DC, Rich founded two civil rights organizations, which he brought to national prominence.
o In 2003 Rich founded RLT Strategies offering guidance and planning to world changing leaders.
o Provides strategy work to America’s leading social entrepreneurs in education (College Summit) and health care (Project Health).
o SPIRITUAL ENTREPRENEURS
o Provided strategic help to the US effort to deliver AIDS drugs to Africa
o Worked in conjunction with USAID to create a Business Council in Mexico to combat stigma for employees with HIV/AIDS.
o Partner of a for profit business in Mexico providing best practices to companies on wellness.
Nathaniel Dunigan – Orphanage Director
o Dunigan is a Reynolds Foundation Fellow at Harvard University and Founder of Aidchild
o Deputy Director of the Office of the Governor in Tucson, Arizona
o At 26, Nathanial resigned position / $3,500/ Uganda, East Africa—
o Intention to Identify the Services Most Needed, To Establish an efficient, aggressive, excellent system of delivery of those services—to a maximum number of children.
o Aidchild, the organization Nathaniel founded serves than 3,000 children and families every month—through outpatient and inpatient clinics, academies, comprehensive-care-centers, and laboratory services.
o Aidchild is 70% financially self-sustained thanks to in-country businesses we created under our corporate label.
o 100% administratively self-sustained thanks to a dedicated team of Ugandan leaders
o Moved to San Diego 2010 to work on PhD
Keri Douglas – Orphanage Expert
o Douglas works domestically and globally with businesses, authors, independent filmmakers and non-profit educational organizations to develop working strategies and clear messages.
o Her extensive network of government, media, business, political and NGO contacts around the world PROVIDES her with a strong reputation for building bridges between communities during times of crisis.
o As a consultant KERI created and produced the nation’s Sweet Charity Awareness Campaign to highlight the global crisis of orphans and children living with AIDS.
o Served at the Embassy of Switzerland, Ms. Douglas as Press Secretary where her primary issues concerned Holocaust assets in Switzerland, Swiss banking, money laundering and humanitarian actions (especially ICRC, asylum seekers, refugees, war crimes and the Geneva Conventions)
o Douglas initiated the Swiss Embassy’s annual congressional staff educational program – the first ever for the Swiss government.
o Produced an ongoing series of delegation visits to Switzerland for U.S. media, American business leaders and local, state and federal political officials, which covered issues on energy, environment and women’s issues.
o She also assisted in establishing the Swiss Congressional Caucus.
o Ms. Douglas served as a writer for both Presidents George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan.
o Ms. Douglas managed the volunteer office for President Reagan's personal office in Los Angeles.
o During Bush administration, Ms. Douglas assisted the Director of Voice of America.
o Douglas has lived in Poland, India, Lebanon, Greece, and West Berlin and has traveled extensively on her clients’ behalf throughout Europe, Asia and Latin/South America.
o She speaks French and has studied Italian and Japanese
