Our Projects
Water Wells
Access to clean water changes everything. Warm Hearts has drilled or restored more than 400 wells in over 100 villages and schools across rural Malawi, providing safe drinking water for tens of thousands of people.
Clean water reduces waterborne disease, protects families from dangerous trips to crocodile-filled rivers, and saves hours once spent walking for water. For many girls, it also means the opportunity to attend school instead of collecting water each day. More than a necessity, clean water is the foundation for healthier, stronger communities. It makes school lunch programs, gardens, livestock projects, and other sustainable initiatives possible—creating lasting change for generations.
Bike Program
For many students in rural Malawi, getting to school means walking six or more miles each day. The long journey often leads to chronic tardiness, lower academic performance, and higher dropout rates. In partnership with Rotary clubs in Michigan and Malawi, Warm Hearts has established bicycle loan programs at four secondary schools, providing more than 300 bicycles to students who live three or more miles from school. Teachers also participate in the program. Each school manages its own bicycle committee, while a traveling mechanic maintains the bikes and teaches students basic repair skills. The results have been remarkable, with improved attendance, stronger academic performance, and greater opportunities for students to succeed.
Girls' Health
No girl should have to choose between her education and her period.
In many rural communities, the lack of menstrual supplies causes girls to miss up to a week of school each month, putting them at risk of falling behind or dropping out altogether. Warm Hearts has distributed thousands of reusable hygiene kits to girls at 10 schools, along with education and encouragement to help them manage their health with confidence and dignity. The result has been improved school attendance, stronger academic performance, and greater confidence for these young women. Our hope is to expand this program to even more schools in the future.
Rural and Maternal Health
Early detection can save the lives of both mothers and babies.
In rural Malawi, limited access to prenatal care means many pregnancy complications go undetected. Through a partnership with Imaging the World, Warm Hearts is helping bring portable ultrasound technology to clinics across Malawi, giving expectant mothers access to life-saving care closer to home.
Ultrasound images can be securely transmitted to radiologists around the world for interpretation, while local nurses and medical staff receive specialized training to provide ongoing care. Together, this program is improving maternal health, identifying high-risk pregnancies earlier, and helping save lives.
Classroom Construction
Education opens the door to opportunity. Since 2004, Warm Hearts has partnered with local communities to build 27 classrooms at 10 primary and secondary schools across rural Malawi. Alongside the classrooms, we've also helped build libraries and lavatories, creating safe, supportive places for students to learn. Before these schools were built, many children attended classes outdoors under trees. Today, thousands of students have access to quality learning environments that improve attendance, academic performance, and future opportunities for higher education, employment, and entrepreneurship.
Goats "Pass On"
A single goat can change a family's future. Through Warm Hearts, families receive goats with one simple agreement: the first female kid is passed on to another family, allowing the entire community to benefit. Each village manages the program through its own Goat Committee. Goats provide nutritious milk and meat, manure to improve crop yields, and a valuable source of income and financial security. Since the program began, more than 600 families in 12 villages have received goats, growing the community herd to over 1,500 animals.
Irrigated Farming
Reliable water means stronger harvests and healthier families.
As drought and changing weather patterns threaten crops across Malawi, Warm Hearts helps communities implement irrigation systems that provide a dependable water supply for local farms. Combined with improved seeds, fertilizer, and sustainable farming practices, these systems increase crop yields, reduce malnutrition, and create surplus harvests that families can sell for income. Today, the program supports more than 300 families, helping them build food security, financial stability, and brighter futures.
Passion To Share
Changing one life can inspire countless others. Passion to Share was founded by Lydia Opiyo, who grew up in Warm Hearts House, the children's home built by Warm Hearts at Kwa Watoto School in Nairobi, Kenya. Today, Lydia partners with Warm Hearts to invest in the next generation. Through the Passion to Share Girls Skills Center, young women from Nairobi's Kibera slums receive training in tailoring, computer graphics, cosmetology, and other marketable skills, empowering them to find employment, achieve independence, and build brighter futures.
Educational Support
A classroom is only the beginning—students also need the tools to succeed.
Warm Hearts provides textbooks, desks, uniforms, and school supplies to schools across rural Malawi, creating better learning environments for hundreds of students. With access to essential resources, students spend less time sharing materials or sitting on the ground and more time focused on learning. These investments improve classroom engagement, strengthen academic performance, and open the door to greater educational opportunities.
Daisy School
Education creates opportunities that last a lifetime. Established in 2013 by a longtime Warm Hearts partner, Daisy School has become one of the top-performing schools in western Kenya, known for its academic excellence and strong record of preparing students for secondary education. As a proud partner, Warm Hearts has helped provide land, classrooms, desks, and other essential facilities, creating a place where children (including many who are orphaned or vulnerable) can learn, thrive, and build brighter futures.
School Lunch Program
For more than 20 years, Kwa Watoto School, located in the heart of Nairobi's Soweto slums, has provided education, hope, and opportunity to hundreds of orphaned, vulnerable, and low-income children. Warm Hearts helped build the school and continues to support it through infrastructure improvements, water systems, classroom resources, and its daily lunch program, which provides a hot meal to more than 450 children each day—often their only meal. With full stomachs and a safe place to learn, students are healthier, more engaged, and better able to succeed in the classroom.
Libraries and Books
Books unlock opportunity. Reading expands horizons, sparks curiosity, and opens doors to a brighter future. Yet many schools in rural Malawi have few books and little or no access to library resources. Warm Hearts has built two school libraries, furnished them with shelves and desks, and donated more than 4,000 books to primary and secondary schools. Teachers report that students eagerly read the books and are more engaged in learning. We look forward to expanding this project so even more children can discover the lifelong gift of reading.
