But behind the façade of happiness is a story of betrayal and hopelessness.

Judith, not her real name, is HIV positive and lost both parents through Aids.

After her mother’s death when she was aged 5, Judith’s father re-married. That marked the beginning of a harrowing experience for Judith who was fast-tracked into adulthood through constant beatings by her step mother.

She was forced to clean the house like an adult, wash clothes and do other house chores.

There was no one to protect her, so the abuse continued with severe beatings which left her with both physical and emotional scars. One day Judith’s step mother poured hot water on the little girl’s body.

The young and sickly Judith somehow survived, and when her father died, she was taken into the care of relatives who released her to the Mother of Peace Community orphanage in Mutoko.

Judith’s touching story has attracted the attention of US-based Zimbabwean gospel singer, Sandra Karanda, who has now adopted her through her Yamurai Children’s Foundation.

Karanda, 27, has swapped celebrity with a personal crusade to help Zimbabwean children like Judith.

She said: “I’m trying to show people that it’s never too late to make a difference. The Aids scourge in Zimbabwe has created literally hundreds of thousands of people like Judith, and Yamurai Children’s Foundation and Sandy Ministries’ vision is to sponsor as many children as possible and eventually have a way to get College Scholarships for these children. “

Sandy has used income from CD sales from her new album, Apple In His Eyes, to set up Yamurai Children’s Foundation. Judith became the first child to be sponsored by the Foundation.

Sandy admits she has been moved to tears by Judith’s heart rending story of betrayal, neglect and abuse and fears she may be permanently damaged emotionally.

She told New Zimbabwe.com: “Judith is an amazing fighter. She was born with HIV and is currently on some antiretroviral drugs which have helped her and will continue to help her live a normal life.

“However, because of the disease and as a 5th Grader, it is sometimes difficult for her to attend classes. When I spoke with the mother of the orphanage (Jean Cornneck) over the phone, I could sense a parent’s love. She kept on talking about the pain that Judith has been through and that she trusts that this Ministry will take good care of her.

“Jean and others have been working hard to provide a comfortable home for Judith and others like her, but she remains closed and shy. She is a very strong girl who is doing very well in school, but because of the abuse that she went through and living with AIDS, the struggle continues.

“It can be difficult to live a normal life when you have gone through so much emotional and physical abuse at such a young age, but I am determined to help her all the way.

Mother of Peace Community orphanage director, Cornneck, said: “Judith’s school performance is quite pleasing although she fails to go to school at times due to ill health. Her health has vastly improved since she started taking antiretroviral drugs.”

In Zimbabwe, it's estimated that nearly 1 in 5 children has lost a parent to AIDS. Often it's just a question of time before the other parent dies. Some experts fear that within a few years, half of Zimbabwe's children could be orphans.

Said Sandy: “There are a lot of kids back home who need our help and there are equally a lot of people overseas who would like to help and probably don’t know how to go about it.

“I would like to encourage others to reach out to these children. If anyone is interested in being a sponsor where you will have direct contact by phone or letters with the child, they can contact me and I will be more than happy to connect them with a child.”
TO SPONSOR A CHILD, CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE YAMURAI CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION
TO VISIT SANDY MINISTRIES WEBSITE, CLICK HERE
JOIN THE DEBATE ON THIS ARTICLE ON THE NEWZIMBABWE.COM FORUMS
shapiro@newzimbabwe.com