Birthday message from Mercy Johnson Okojie

A message from Mercy Johnson's heart as she
turns a year older today. Read below...
Today, I thought of many things I would
love to have as birthday gifts and the
many dreams I am still pursuing. In all of
this I'm not losing sight of the fact that if
not for God I might have ended up on the
street like the many kids and young adults
begging for food and some prostituting to
make ends meet. If we know the
circumstances that force some of these
people on the street, we would spare a
thought for them. I am where I am today
purely by the grace of God and the grace of
people who believed in me from the word
go.
Recently, I was at the Boys Reform Home,
Oregun, Lagos, the discussion I had with the
principal Mr. Kotun and much later with the
Special Adviser in charge of allremand homes in
Lagos set me thinking about the boys and girls
on the street. They have dreams too. Can they
fulfill those dreams on the street? The answer
will likely be no; because I won't be where I am
today if I ended up on the street.
For this reason, Mercy Johnson Foundation will
be doing a lot to get kids off the street. We are
not asking people for money or donation, I will
do all I can with the resources God has given
me, and with the support of my husband to help
get these kids off the street and set them on the
path where they can begin to pursue their
dreams. I want to plead with people, fans,
friends and colleagues to spare a thought for the
children on the street. We can begin by
educating people around us, parents, the
children and people in charge of children (Oga-
house help relationship, teacher-student
relationship, and others) on the need to treat
every child like the future of Nigeria depends on
it. And truth be told, our future will not be all
that enjoyable if we let the scourge of 'street-
children' fester. By then, the rich will begin to
cry. I learnt Lagos State Government has 11
homes where most children picked from the
streets are kept, reformed and reunited with their
families after counseling.
That is an initiative Mercy Johnson Foundation
will be supporting and beyond that we will be
going to different states to help spread the
message-Get kids off the street, save the future.
From tomorrow, I will begin to replay some of
the lessons I learnt at the boys' reform home
and we all can contribute to getting the kids off
the street.
I am grateful to everyone that has sent in a
birthday message, tweet and gifts. Thank you
and God bless you.
Mercy Johnson Okojie