About Bonsai
What Is Bonsai?
Bonsai is an after-school program for children of families in need in Manta, Ecuador. We work in collaboration with families, local schools, and volunteers to promote the well-being and development of participating children. Bonsai is a ministry of Inca Link International in partnership with Iglesia Bíblica Bautista de Manta (Bible Baptist Church of Manta). We began working with children and their parents in February of 2016.
Our Mission & Vision
Mission: Partnering with families in order to promote financial self-sufficiency and the education and well-being of their children in the greater Manta area, and sharing the love and Gospel of Jesus Christ with them through relationship.
Vision: To see generational cycles of poverty broken through education, and to see families transformed by the redeeming love and power of Christ at work in them, both in the city of Manta and beyond.
Our Objectives
1) Furthering education in partnership with local schools as a means of breaking generational cycles of poverty.
2) Promoting healthy families by giving parents the freedom to work, connecting them to resources, and building ally relationships with them.
3) Proclaiming Jesus as the source of all hope and connecting families with the Body of Christ through the local church.
What's the significance of the name "Bonsai"?
The name “Bonsai” is taken from a centuries-old Japanese art form in which miniature trees are attentively nourished and shaped over time. The artist must carefully take into account the individuality of his subject in an ongoing, long-term process, ultimately resulting in a beautiful fusion of natural growth and personal cultivation.
The art of bonsai is, in many ways, a metaphor for the impact we aim to have on the children and families with whom we work. Through the program, we are able to take part in shaping and cultivating the lives of these children and families as they develop, striving together with them to bring about positive change. We aim to engage families with utmost care, treating them with dignity and recognizing their unique family dynamics and circumstances.