Who are we?
We are Nico and Linda Mellett, with our four children Annika, Max, Declan and Toby. Nico was born and grew up in South Africa, and Linda (and all four kids) grew up in Australia.
As professing Christians, we believe it is our God-given duty to sacrificially serve the most vulnerable. This looks different for everyone. For some it might be serving locally, e.g. blessing a neighbour in need with a bag of groceries. But for us, God made it abundantly clear that the destination was Africa.
And where are we now?
So after living in Australia for 10 years, and growing our family from two to six, we decided to pack up our belongings and move to rural Zambia, in the heart of Africa.
We initially commited to serve in Zambia for a one year period, but that first year was over in the blink of an eye. So, we decided to stay for longer, to continue the much needed work that we had started, and to keep growing the many wonderful relationships that we had created since we arrived.
We have been here for more than two years now, and have fallen in love with the country and its people.
Our Journey
Nico grew up in South Africa, but had spent many years outside of the country working as a Chartered Accountant. He eventually married Linda (an Aussie and also a Chartered Accountant) and they moved to Australia where their four children were born.
Nico had always felt a deep love for Africa, and a calling back to the continent to help alleviate some of the suffering he witnessed while growing up.
In July 2022, after much prayer and confirmation from God, we left behind our home in Canberra, Australia and found ourselves in rural Zambia serving vulnerable children in different communities.
Since then we have been working alongside local communities, learning from them, and striving to serve vulnerable children and families in a holistic way.
What We Do
It is difficult to summarise all of what we view as our Ministry here. We try to live our everyday lives here as unto the Lord (some days more successfully than others!). God has given us many opportunities to minister in the simple everyday things such as opening our home for the local children to come and play here (when there are no toys at home), getting to know and encourage street children each time we head into town, and spending time with and encouraging local Zambians also working in full time ministry.
Our focus is on caring for vulnerable children and families in Zambia through the following activities
Discipleship – Working with A Future 4 Kids School located in Ndola, to develop and deliver different programs. The programs we currently run are a weekly youth discipleship program and an alumni program that follows up children who have dropped out of school. We aim to work with their families to find a way for the children to continue their education.
Compassion Ministry – Identifying vulnerable families in the village closest to us called Baluba. With our ministry partner, who lives in Baluba, we aim to help meet the physical, spiritual and emotional needs of vulnerable children and their families, through:
a. A care program that provides:
i. healthy meals for the children through a feeding program serving a hot meal;
ii. Access to basic healthcare including items such as toothbrushes and toothpaste
iii. Supply of school uniforms, school shoes and schoolbooks as required
b. Regular home visits to share burdens and encourage the families of the children on our feeding program
c. Facilitating regular small group time where families meet together to help support one another
Economic – economic empowerment activities such as supporting small businesses as we run our day-to-day operations, and helping local entrepreneurs access markets in the USA and Australia (see “Subilo Handmade”). Also, financial systems and controls support to help organisations steward their donations well.
Why Zambia?
Zambia holds a special place in our hearts. Its rich culture, vibrant spirit, and resilient people have inspired us in ways we never imagined.
There are many challenges here, Zambia’s economy is not healthy and 60% of the population live in poverty (this has increased from 54% in 2015). In rural areas (where we live), almost 80% of the population live in poverty. Schools, clinics and social services are unable to adequately provide for Zambia’s people (20 million people in 2022).
However, despite all the hardship, we have seen stories of despair become stories of Hope and we are committed to walking alongside our Zambian brothers and sisters, sharing in both their struggles and triumphs.
Get Involved
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Thank you
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Donate’s Impact Across the World in 2020
800,000
Gallons of Clean Water
22
Water Wells Installed
114,000
Children & Adults Helped