What's the Story Behind Endowed Prosperity?
It all started in 2008 when Lonny became dissatisfied with his agriculture management career and decided to resign. The entire family supported Dad as we decided as a family to jump off the edge of a cliff. Well, not literally, but it sure felt like it at the time! Lonny had no immediate job prospects when he resigned from his promising career and I (Erika) was a full-time mother, caring for our seven children aged 4 to 16. It's hard to explain, but we didn't feel like Lonny should pursue an "ordinary" job - of course, we did all the right things - going to employment counseling services, updating the resume, signing up for job search websites - but we had a strong feeling that there was another path that we needed to pursue, that it was not an ordinary path, and that we'd know it when we saw it.
As we searched for new employment for several months, we lived off of our savings that we had thankfully amassed over the years. On one hand, we were scared to death, but we also strangely felt at peace, trusting in God, and knowing that there was a specific path that he wanted us to take. We knew that He would guide us as we put our faith in Him.
Our Ethiopian Experience
To make a long story short, this time of searching eventually led Lonny to take a job with Morrell Agro Industries who was working on business development programs in Ethiopia. Lonny's role was to help them build a dairy program in a small village and start an embryo transfer program. Other initiatives of the company included a dry farming operation destined to make a huge impact on Ethiopian food supply. The story of Lonny's work in Ethiopia is an amazing adventure which we knew fulfilled the Lord's will as an experience he wanted our family to have. Despite the long absences from home, I always felt protected by the Lord, and we retained close contact to our Dad through Skype and lots of great journal entries that he emailed home every few days. The story of this Ethiopian journey, along with public versions of many of Lonny's journal entries, are outlined in detail on our blog at www.EthiopianCowboy.com.
Our Ethiopian experience was incredible, and the lessons we learned were invaluable. As Lonny worked with the Ethiopian people and reported home about his experiences, we gained insight into many of the core problems facing Ethiopians. As we visited with our associates involved in other underdeveloped countries, we found similar problems and solutions. Our experiences with the people of Ethiopia gave us a new perspective on the world and opened our eyes to so many possibilities. As we found our passion for helping those in third-world countries, we have had a desire to do more.
Starting Our Own Business
In the fall of 2010, Lonny and I started Lonny Ward Consulting so that Lonny could travel less and spend more time at home with the family. Since our love for the people of Ethiopia was still strong, we retained Morrel Agro Industries as a client and have continued to be involved with their incredible business-building which is making such a difference in the lives of the Ethiopian people. I joined Lonny as a business partner and we began offering business development and website services to small businesses and the agriculture industry.
As we began to establish our client base, we continued to feel pulled towards those working in Third World countries. We discovered that there are hundreds of charities, entrepreneurs, religious organizations and families who are working hard all over the world, trying to solve the tragedies of poverty with charitable programs and business ventures. There is so much experience, knowledge and expertise available in the minds and hearts of these people and organizations, and yet many of these efforts are short lived, under-funded, or run out of steam.
As we began to establish our client base, we continued to feel pulled towards those working in Third World countries. We discovered that there are hundreds of charities, entrepreneurs, religious organizations and families who are working hard all over the world, trying to solve the tragedies of poverty with charitable programs and business ventures. There is so much experience, knowledge and expertise available in the minds and hearts of these people and organizations, and yet many of these efforts are short lived, under-funded, or run out of steam.
The Endowed Prosperity Network Initiative is Born
One day we realized that the best way to make a difference in this world would be to find people working in underdeveloped countries and gather them all together into a huge network where we could all help one another accomplish our joint goals. This network would consist of people and organizations who support the same principle that we do - the goal of providing impoverished individuals with the skills they need to establish a permanent source of income that will lift them out of poverty and into a successful, flourishing condition - financially, emotionally and spiritually.
And thus began the Endowed Prosperity Initiative - a massive effort to bring together volunteers, entrepreneurs, businesses, churches and families into a network where we can help one another achieve daunting goal of endowing prosperity across the globe. We hope that you will join us as we seek to make a difference by sharing our ideas and experiences with each other so that we can change the world, one person and one project at time.
