Gift of the Butterfly Charitable Works
Our objective is to help the vulnerable by providing short-term funding while seeking appropriate, long-term, sustainable solutions.
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Our Vision
Often individuals, communities and societies become so overwhelmed with the immensity of need that they fail to act. Because they cannot help everyone, they help no one. We believe that generosity is contagious. Our goal is to take action and then connect with our own network along with local and international partners to provide a sustainable funding solution for St. Bakhita Foundation Orphanage. If we are able to do that, we plan to expand giving to provide funding for similar orphanages or programs where children are at risk.
Meet our team
Dedicated volunteers
Get to know the talented individuals behind our charitable works
Shannon McClain
Founder and Executive Director.
Shannon McClain is a retired naval officer, historian, and writer. She has an unshakable dedication to protecting the welfare of the weak, particularly children and young adults. Her objective has been to improve outcomes for children and young adults through care and education.
Gelin Asante
Operations Coordinator, Ghana.
Gelin Asante has been committed to assisting rural communities in meeting their needs since college. She is passionate about assisting, loving and respecting people as she holds these ideals in such high regard and feels every person deserves them. In 2016, she joined a non-governmental organization to fulfill her calling of aiding people. Once more, she has the opportunity to help others through Gift of the Butterfly’s charititable works in Ghana and possibly beyond.
Our Mission
Protecting the vulnerable to create a better future.
Our mission is to provide a safe place for orphans and child victims to live and learn so that they may grow to be adults who can contribute to their communities, their countries and the world. We provide short-term funding solutions for supervision, safe housing, food, schooling and medical care for children through charitable giving to designated orphanages. Once we meet immediate needs we seek to connect those orphanages to programs that can provide sustainable solutions.
Our beginnings
The Birth of a Butterfly
In 2019, our infant daughter, Yara Ani, died as a result of a genetic disorder. My healthy pregnancy and the two weeks we had had together as a family crystallized how seemingly small things can have a great influence on our lives. The joy and sorrow, we experienced, pushed us to make the most of each moment and cherish the small things. Yara’s gift was the realization that those small moments can add up to so much more than the sum of their parts. Yara, means butterfly, so we offer the Gift of the Butterfly Charitable Works.
Gift of the Butterfly Charitable Works is our effort to enhance the education and socio-economic standing of children and young people. Our goal is to influence young people’s lives by providing them care and education.
My husband and I have spent our adult lives serving our country and our community. Through that service we have had opportunities to travel the globe and work with people of so many nations. Both at home in the United States and abroad, we have seen vulnerable people in need. We have seen how violence can perpetuate violence and how acts of kindness create second- and third-order positive effects.
Recently, Gelin Asante, joined our efforts. With Gelin’s arrival on the team, we have been able to take action beyond our own contributions. She motivated us to expand our efforts in Accra, Ghana. She has a passion for helping others and an acumen for organization and action. We hope her addition is just a beginning of good works to come.
Are you ready to help?
Help make a difference in the lives of the girls of St. Bakhita Foundation Orphanage and then look for ways to help in your own community.
Pledge your support today!
Read The Butterfly Effect
Stay informed about our work with the orphanage. Check in on the girls and follow our efforts to make big progress with small change.
Read blogThe Butterfly Effect →
Contact us
Do you have contacts or expertise that can help us achieve our goals? Let’s connect! Reach out to us today, and let’s turn your ideas into action.