Our Story

While doing research in Lusaka, in 2005, I discovered that section of the population was falling through the cracks of support offered by non-government organization and social services – girls and young women who had been orphaned by AIDS and became pregnant. Because of their limited status, stigma, and vulnerability, these young women are taken advantage of sexually and then abandoned to raise their children on their own. Not only have the young women lost their parents and struggle to obtain food and shelter but they also have to drop out of school when they become pregnant, according to the country’s law. As a result, these young women are unlikely to find a job and earn an income to support their children. Their children, in turn, are unlikely to obtain an education, resulting in poverty and illiteracy increasing in an already impoverished community. After I returned from Zambia my community and I began to support these girls and young women. We soon learnt that stable shelter meant safety to them. They also taught us how to support them in obtaining their hopes for their future. In September 2012, we registered a non-profit society called Noah Logan Society – named after my grandson, in the hopes he and others of his generation will be inspired to care for the wellbeing of marginalized women and children. In January 2015, we obtained charitable status (registration number 84832 0339 RR0001) and are able to offer tax receipts for charitable donations – Penny Fenske