Sarah Ehrlich

As the founder and executive director of Help for Orphans International, Sarah Ehrlich is set on helping as many children as possible. The organization is a nonprofit charity that seeks to create schools and other living facilities for orphaned children who live in underdeveloped countries. Currently, this organization is targeting Africa and Central America, and would like to establish schools in both locations. However, the organization is also focusing on farming and various other self-sustaining activities, in hopes of providing long-term, reliable care for those in need.

In fact, Sarah Ehrlich also directed the building of a ten-room elementary school that housed grades K-9. This school, located in Kisii, Kenya, was built in order to provide orphaned children with an education. Sarah traveled to the area numerous times to guarantee the work was being executed in a well-timed and affordable manner. Furthermore, she oversees countless renovation projects to orphanages and schools for these children. In order to further the goals of Help for Orphans, Sarah is continually organizing widespread events and activities in order to raise much needed funds. She is always researching new and innovative ideas to use in her work. As she looks at specific study procedures and techniques that prove their success, she regularly applies them in the schools and various other areas that Help for Orphans has worked.

Currently residing in Los Angeles, California, with her husband and three sons, Sarah works as an entrepreneur as well as an antiques consultant.

Having traveled to over 60 countries, Sarah Ehrlich is experienced in the culture and history of many underprivileged areas. Some of her travels include Uzbekistan, Myanmar, Peru, Africa, Asia, Europe, and South and Central America. Her efforts to help the underprivileged around the world have taken her to all these places and more.

In 2004, Sarah decided to travel to India in hopes of making a difference. When she arrived, she volunteered her time at an orphanage located in the town of Mysore. The Hindu organization overseeing the orphanage maintained over 300 schools scattered across India, each dedicated to providing quality education for children. Sarah Ehrlich was so moved by this endeavor that she was inspired to begin her own organization in an effort to help orphaned children.

After deciding where she wanted to take her charity and which obstacles were most crucial to overcome, Help for Orphans International was created. Shortly after this, the village of Kisii, Kenya, reached out to Sarah is hopes of receiving help, and requesting a visit from her. She booked the trip in the hope that she would be able to make a difference, and that this journey would be just the beginning of several overseas trips. Kenya is home to more than three million orphaned children in need of help. Additionally, virtually half of these children have lost either one or both parents to AIDS.

Sarah Ehrlich and Help for Orphans International focused numerous projects in Kenya. They teamed up with clean water and sanitation projects, animal husbandry projects, agricultural agendas, the building or restoration of schools, and projects involving solar energy. Every one of these projects was dedicated to positively influencing the surrounding communities and supporting their futures. Ensuring the improvement of children’s lives is an important aim for Sarah Ehrlich.

Sarah Ehrlich believed that educating herself is just as important as educating others. As she researched various issues and conditions that can affect the people in these impoverished societies, she hoped to learn exactly what kinds of realistic solutions would work most effectively in these areas. This dedication to running such an ambitious organization mandated hard work, devotion, and patience. Always open to new ideas, Sarah constantly looked for proof that her efforts were providing positive change.

Creating Help for Orphans International, Sarah Ehrlich created the following mission statement for the organization:

“To provide orphaned children around the world with clean water, nutritious food, education and training with a focus on education and self-sufficiency while implementing sustainable agricultural initiatives and building eco-friendly environments.”

The organization provides help to numerous countries, including Mexico, Haiti, Uganda, Kenya, Honduras, Cambodia, Guatemala, and India. As they look to help orphans in these communities, the organization’s aid is spread through several different programs.

Operation Backpack is the program that provides backpacks for orphans. Each bag is full of school supplies that are required for thorough education, such as writing utensils, rulers, and notebooks. Because the goal of Help for Orphans International is to provide educational facilities and opportunities, it’s just as important to the organization to provide the tools needed to succeed.

Help for Orphans also offers a program known as Healthy Smiles. Teaming up with volunteer dentists, this program provides adequate dental care and supplies to orphanages. Sarah Ehrlich tries to spread the word of this program as often as possible, because there is always a need for volunteer dentists.

Shoebox Gifts are another positive contribution of this organization. This is a popular program, providing shoeboxes filled with both fun and necessary items. Such items include oral hygiene projects, pencils, toys, dolls, and arts and crafts projects.

Give a Flock is another valuable method of assistance Help for Orphans International provides. This program provides flocks of chickens to these orphanages. Furthermore, the residents are taught how to raise the birds as a means of food and income. This teaches the children the most fundamental skills they’ll someday need to begin supporting themselves.

Operation Perfect Day is an entire day dedicated to festivities and activities at each orphanage. This gives the children something to look forward to and a brief break from education and chores. Each day is planned to provide various special pleasures.

Finally, Help for Orphans also provides the program Clothe the Children. This useful program provides items such as clothing, school uniforms, and shoes to each individual orphanage. Some of the children have only flip-flops, if they have shoes at all, and alternate between only one or two outfits. The program’s goal is to provide at least five uniforms, three casual outfits, and a change of shoes every six months for each child.

Always in need of enthusiastic volunteers, Sarah Ehrlich and her organization support numerous individuals and groups interested in traveling to the orphanages in order to offer their help. Sarah hopes to foster her love of helping in all of the volunteers she works with.

She has begun to focus on establishing other businesses, as well, such as Ashieda, LLC, which directly support the organization through sales. Ashieda, LLC produces a line of beauty products made only with natural ingredients. A percentage of the profits from the company will provide education to girls in Honduras.

Before her involvement in Help for Orphans, Sarah Ehrlich pursued real estate development. In her free time, she enjoys scuba diving, and is a licensed scuba diver, as well as a student pilot and a percussionist. She has given numerous lectures and presentations on education topics in India, Africa and the United States.

Sarah Ehrlich also focuses her relief efforts and personal goals toward the benefits of a well-balanced diet. As a firm believer of well-balanced nutrition leading to better overall health, Sarah wants to ensure that all children have access to the essentials needed for a healthy diet.

Sarah Ehrlich hopes to continue providing aid and relief to orphans. In the future, she plans to work to raise awareness of Help for Orphans International and the work the program does worldwide. On a constant mission to help as many orphans as possible, Sarah plans to continue her work to provide educational facilities and essentials to underprivileged children wherever she can.

All help is welcome and needed, from dentists willing to serve Healthy Smiles to groups or individuals interested in donating time at the orphanages and schools. Help for Orphans International will continue to provide support, clean water, food, supplies, educational facilities, and various other living facilities for orphans in need. As they continue to change the lives of needy children, Sarah Ehrlich may expand the organization and its programs to help an even wider spectrum of children.