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