About As the Stars of the Sky Foundation, Inc.
“It’s easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.”
-Frederick Douglass
In 2012, Soraya established As the Stars of the Sky Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit foundation to assist with the physical and spiritual needs of children, centering on promoting literacy.
The idea for the foundation stems from Soraya's passion for ministering to and educating children. It is her firm belief that "Reading helps children achieve their divine destinies," and reading books about God and His love for us is one of the most important ways to get to know God and have a close relationship with Him. If a child does not have good literacy skills, the child will never be able to achieve what God desires for him/her.
As a judge presiding over juvenile and adult criminal cases, Soraya observed the poor literacy skills of the people coming through the justice system, especially young African American and Hispanic men. Soraya firmly believes that more needs to be done to promote the importance of literacy in developing the entire child and reducing crime rates.
The name, "As the Stars of the Sky," comes from various verses in the Bible which emphasize faith. In Chapter 22 of Genesis, God told Abraham that, because of his faithfulness, God would bless him and all his descendants, who would be as many as the stars of heaven.
Chapter 11 of Hebrews lists the great heroes of faith. Of course, Abraham is listed among them. It reiterates Abraham's faithfulness and emphasizes that, because of his faithfulness, Abraham was blessed and from him would come descendants "as numerous as the stars of the sky."
Many people do not realize that children are among Abraham's descendants. We actually think that "descendants" simply refers to adults, but that is not correct.
“Therefore, from one man (Abraham)…were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude…innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.”
-Hebrews 11:12 (NKJV)
There is no doubt that Jesus loved children. The Bible states that Jesus was actually displeased when He saw how they were preventing children from coming to Him (Mark 10:13). Jesus once took a little child and held him in His arms. He said that anyone who welcomed a child in His name welcomed not only Jesus, but also God the Father (Mark 9:36-37).
Jesus also said that we are not to look down on children as their angels in heaven always see the face of God in heaven (Matthew 18:10).
“Reading helps children achieve their divine destinies.”
-Author Soraya Diase Coffelt
Giving Back & Helping to Fight Poverty, Gender Inequality & Poor Health Through Promoting Literacy
As the Stars of the Sky Foundation, Inc. is a 501 (3)(c) nonprofit foundation in the U. S. Virgin Islands. All donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent provided by the Internal Revenue Code. Donations and proceeds from book sales will be used to promote the importance of literacy in a child's life - to overcome poverty, gender inequality & poor health. We greatly appreciate your support!
