Their faces are unforgettable. Their plight heartbreaking. Their future uncertain.
They are children, some of the more than 11 million Ethiopians who are at risk for starvation.
Garry R. Flake will always remember holding them on his lap and offering them a small cup of nourishment as part of the Church's efforts to help them.
The director of Church Humanitarian Emergency Response visited Ethiopia March 11-18 to coordinate the delivery of more than 160 tons of food, sent to the country by the Church at the request of the Ethiopian government.
Severe drought in Ethiopia has caused what some experts believe to be the worst hunger crisis in history; agriculture constitutes 80 percent of the total Ethiopian economy.
In response to the crisis, the Church air freighted 80,000 pounds of Atmit, an Ethiopian porridge mix based on a centuries-old recipe, to the country March 12. The porridge— made of oat flour, sugar, powdered milk, and a vitamin/mineral mix verified by nutritionists at BYU — will help malnourished children and the elderly who cannot digest whole grains and food made with coarse flour.
An additional 120 tons of Atmit has been produced at Welfare Square and has been shipped to Ethiopia in ocean-bound containers.
"I sensed in the country there was a gratitude and recognition that we are back to help them again," said Brother Flake.
In 1984, Church members joined a global outpouring of aid for Ethiopia, fasting and sending donations and food to the African nation. Since that time, the Church has been involved also in irrigation and potable water projects in the country, sent books and other aid, and provided medical and dental training. In June 2000, Latter-day Saints in England packaged more than 4,000 tons of wheat for the drought-stricken region.
The help has and will "literally save thousands and thousands of lives," he said. "The product is needed. It is relevant. We are getting it to the end of the line."
In addition to Atmit, the Church contracted with an Ethiopian supplier to produce 3,000 metric tons of Unimix, a corn-soy mixture with added sugar, salt and vitamins. That food will supplement the diets of more than 225,000 Ethiopians for five months and will be distributed by both Project Mercy, a nongovernmental relief agency, and Catholic Relief Services.
While in Ethiopia, Brother Flake met with leaders of the relief agencies, as well as U.S. Ambassador Aurelia Brazeal, Commissioner Simon Mechale of the Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Commission, and Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi.
Each thanked Church members for their efforts. They are aware, he said, that the Church's effective welfare system is the result of faithful Latter-day Saints donating fast offerings and other humanitarian funds and giving service. They have great respect and reverence for the Church and its members, he said.
Brother Flake also said that after visiting the country the images of those who are helped will never leave his memory. He walked across the dry wasteland that the inhabitants of this land once farmed. He met mothers who walk 2 1/2 hours each way to find water, and families who survived on 15 kilos of grain a month. He held a malnourished 5-year-old who could not walk and weighed less than some infants.
"What could be a better response than to reach out to a child?" he asked.
Simon Mechale of the disaster commission agreed, "How can you put a value on a child?" he lamented to Brother Flake while discussing the huge amount of long-term needs in Ethiopia.
Dale Bills, Church spokesman who also traveled to Ethiopia, said Church leaders want to step forward in these types of situations.
"We can't do it all, but what we can do makes a difference," he said.
And because of the Church's partnership with other relief agencies, it is making a bigger difference than ever before, said Brother Flake.
"The Church's ability to render well-organized, appropriate assistance is increasingly noticed, appreciated and requested," said Brother Bills.
Perhaps it can best be described by a Catholic priest, he added, who said the Church's efforts — combined with the efforts of many others — form a "web of love, help and life."
Brother Flake said the Church will continue to examine appropriate ways to help those in Ethiopia.
"When you hold a child in your arms and you are giving him nourishment that is the product of our welfare system, you realize that we are all children of God," he said. "I will always remember the difference we made to each individual child."
Atmit, an easily digested porridge from Welfare Square, is cooked over open fire for malnourished children.
Humanitarian volunteers weigh Ethiopian children, determining who most urgently need assistance from relief agencies.
Atmit porridge helps malnourished children and the elderly who cannot digest whole grains or food made with coarse flour.
Garry R. Flake, director of Church Humanitarian Emergency Response, distributes Atmit among Ethiopian children.
Humanitarian service missionaries, Elder Jon Hunt and Sister Jackie Hunt from Blanding, Utah, work at site of Unimix distribution.
