Erica & Alain were in all likelihood not the typical couple. She was from the north east, he was living in Dallas, both descending from the Democratic Republic of Congo, but having grown up completely different. She was middle class America, he was wealthy Congolese. His dad was one of the then dictator’s - Mobutu Sese Seo - top military officers, and their lavish lifestyle reflected it. Fast forward many years later, as fate should have it, they met in Dallas one day at Erica's family barbecue and the story begins.
After just over a year of knowing each other as friends, they decide to take their long distance friendship to the next level and see if they were destined for more. Their friendship turned into marriage just over a year later. They decided to start fresh in a new city, away from the sweltering summer heat of Dallas and the fast pace of NYC and moved to a suburb of Atlanta, GA. They bought a home, found new jobs and quickly got established there making new friends; the honey moon phase was in motion. A couple of years later their family of 2 grew to 3 and a couple of years after that, they grew to 4. Two bouncing & vivacious boys had brought love, laughter, hopes and dreams into their lives. Now they were working and setting goals, not just for what they desired, but for the future of their children.
After the birth of their second son, they decided to move into a new larger home, in a better school district that would likely be their family home for years to come. Life is never all roses, but at this point, it was going beautifully and everything was in motion. They found that dream house and were under contract to move in in less than a month. The boys who were 10 months and 3 years old at the time were growing healthy and strong. After nearly 6 years of marriage, phase 2 of the honey moon phase was beginning. Then Alain suddenly got sick. They thought it was some sort of virus going around because a lot of their friends had a terrible virus that early spring season. But Alain seemed to be getting little relief from over the counter medications so they went to visit the Dr for additional help. The prescriptions he was given didn’t work so he went back a week later. Those prescriptions seemed to offer him some relief, but not entirely. Essentially, they numbed his pain and gave him a false sense of feeling better. At that point we were relieved that something was finally working.
A few days later, on a beautiful mid Monday afternoon, while Erica was packing up the home preparing for their move, Alain decides to go upstairs for some quiet so he could prepare for a phone interview for a new job. He worked at nights in Alabama during the week and decided to leave for his 2 hour trip after his interview. When he came back down the stairs an hour later, it was with the help of the EMT on a stretcher. He never did have that phone interview. After about another hour at the hospital Alain was pronounced dead. What? Huh? How? Erica felt like a part of her soul died, like she literally lost one of her limbs. She was no longer whole…The doctors at the hospital couldn’t diagnose what happened to a seemingly healthy young man so an autopsy was issued.
A few days later the medical examiner calls Erica to deliver the news that Alain died from a pulmonary embolism. A blood clot that started in his right foot, went up his right leg and into his lung which stopped his breathing. The seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks and months after this tragedy Erica searched for solace in a community that could relate to her experience. She searched for what to do, how to do it, how to manage, how to cope. She searched everywhere and anywhere, but could only find bits of pieces of information here and there. Ever pervading questions in her mind of how does she cope? How can she move forward as a young widow with two very young children? How will she raise her kids with no father? What will she tell them? How does she help them through this trying time? Her normally happy and jovial 3 year old became sullen and quiet. Her 1 year old who was already shy became even more recluse. What were they experiencing? What pain were they dealing with? Where are the answers???!!!
Her church at the time couldn’t help and referred her to a popular recovery class and told her everything was going to be ok. But it wasn't. Her world was crushed! In fact, where was God in all this. How could he let this happen?Silence. Everyone kept telling her she was so strong, that she’d get married again, that Alain was in a better place. None of those comments helped a bit and had absolutely nothing to do with the emotional turmoil, loneliness, sleepless nights and numbness she was experiencing. The pain cut so deep it nearly made her lose her mind. Not having known any young widows in her circle of friends made matters even more challenging. Her immediate family was supportive, but were also at a loss with not knowing how to guide and support her effectively.
Then her dad encouraged her to reach out to a counseling group in her local community, in particular, one called GriefShare. Fortunately, she found a very supportive group with awesome facilitators that truly cared about the welfare and healing of the participants. It was through GriefShare that her life began to turn around. She felt solace in knowing that what she was experiencing wasn’t unique, it wasn’t a sign of her needing psychiatric help, it wasn’t her experiencing her own near death experience. It was perfectly normal - she was grieving. She began to see in color again.
It was through this harrowing experience that Infinity Non Profit was born. To be a guide to other widows and widowers that are lost. To assure them that they are not alone. To help them find the support they need during one of the most extreme times of their life. To help them regain their footing, while at the same time acknowledging that their feelings and emotions are real and should be expressed. To help them begin to see that there is a glimmer of hope in their lives that life can and will get better. The new life you're living may not be the one you planned out, but it doesn't have to be the end of life either. You can and will be happy again, genuinely. Infinity was born from a widow for the widowed.
After just over a year of knowing each other as friends, they decide to take their long distance friendship to the next level and see if they were destined for more. Their friendship turned into marriage just over a year later. They decided to start fresh in a new city, away from the sweltering summer heat of Dallas and the fast pace of NYC and moved to a suburb of Atlanta, GA. They bought a home, found new jobs and quickly got established there making new friends; the honey moon phase was in motion. A couple of years later their family of 2 grew to 3 and a couple of years after that, they grew to 4. Two bouncing & vivacious boys had brought love, laughter, hopes and dreams into their lives. Now they were working and setting goals, not just for what they desired, but for the future of their children.
After the birth of their second son, they decided to move into a new larger home, in a better school district that would likely be their family home for years to come. Life is never all roses, but at this point, it was going beautifully and everything was in motion. They found that dream house and were under contract to move in in less than a month. The boys who were 10 months and 3 years old at the time were growing healthy and strong. After nearly 6 years of marriage, phase 2 of the honey moon phase was beginning. Then Alain suddenly got sick. They thought it was some sort of virus going around because a lot of their friends had a terrible virus that early spring season. But Alain seemed to be getting little relief from over the counter medications so they went to visit the Dr for additional help. The prescriptions he was given didn’t work so he went back a week later. Those prescriptions seemed to offer him some relief, but not entirely. Essentially, they numbed his pain and gave him a false sense of feeling better. At that point we were relieved that something was finally working.
A few days later, on a beautiful mid Monday afternoon, while Erica was packing up the home preparing for their move, Alain decides to go upstairs for some quiet so he could prepare for a phone interview for a new job. He worked at nights in Alabama during the week and decided to leave for his 2 hour trip after his interview. When he came back down the stairs an hour later, it was with the help of the EMT on a stretcher. He never did have that phone interview. After about another hour at the hospital Alain was pronounced dead. What? Huh? How? Erica felt like a part of her soul died, like she literally lost one of her limbs. She was no longer whole…The doctors at the hospital couldn’t diagnose what happened to a seemingly healthy young man so an autopsy was issued.
A few days later the medical examiner calls Erica to deliver the news that Alain died from a pulmonary embolism. A blood clot that started in his right foot, went up his right leg and into his lung which stopped his breathing. The seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks and months after this tragedy Erica searched for solace in a community that could relate to her experience. She searched for what to do, how to do it, how to manage, how to cope. She searched everywhere and anywhere, but could only find bits of pieces of information here and there. Ever pervading questions in her mind of how does she cope? How can she move forward as a young widow with two very young children? How will she raise her kids with no father? What will she tell them? How does she help them through this trying time? Her normally happy and jovial 3 year old became sullen and quiet. Her 1 year old who was already shy became even more recluse. What were they experiencing? What pain were they dealing with? Where are the answers???!!!
Her church at the time couldn’t help and referred her to a popular recovery class and told her everything was going to be ok. But it wasn't. Her world was crushed! In fact, where was God in all this. How could he let this happen?Silence. Everyone kept telling her she was so strong, that she’d get married again, that Alain was in a better place. None of those comments helped a bit and had absolutely nothing to do with the emotional turmoil, loneliness, sleepless nights and numbness she was experiencing. The pain cut so deep it nearly made her lose her mind. Not having known any young widows in her circle of friends made matters even more challenging. Her immediate family was supportive, but were also at a loss with not knowing how to guide and support her effectively.
Then her dad encouraged her to reach out to a counseling group in her local community, in particular, one called GriefShare. Fortunately, she found a very supportive group with awesome facilitators that truly cared about the welfare and healing of the participants. It was through GriefShare that her life began to turn around. She felt solace in knowing that what she was experiencing wasn’t unique, it wasn’t a sign of her needing psychiatric help, it wasn’t her experiencing her own near death experience. It was perfectly normal - she was grieving. She began to see in color again.
It was through this harrowing experience that Infinity Non Profit was born. To be a guide to other widows and widowers that are lost. To assure them that they are not alone. To help them find the support they need during one of the most extreme times of their life. To help them regain their footing, while at the same time acknowledging that their feelings and emotions are real and should be expressed. To help them begin to see that there is a glimmer of hope in their lives that life can and will get better. The new life you're living may not be the one you planned out, but it doesn't have to be the end of life either. You can and will be happy again, genuinely. Infinity was born from a widow for the widowed.
Web Thrift Store
We have partnered with Web Thrift Store, an online store similar to ebay, but for non profits. They turn stuff into cash for charities, tax deductions for donors, and bargains for buyers. It's a way for buyers and sellers to do good, and for charities to engage supporters without asking for money. - closed!
We have partnered with Web Thrift Store, an online store similar to ebay, but for non profits. They turn stuff into cash for charities, tax deductions for donors, and bargains for buyers. It's a way for buyers and sellers to do good, and for charities to engage supporters without asking for money. - closed!
Who We Are
Infinity Non Profit is focused on helping widows and widowers and their family that are held captive by the healthcare system in developing countries. We are currently working in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo in Central Africa. In a world that is increasingly becoming less healthy, we believe the same health care afforded those in the developed nations should be accessible to those in developing countries without duress. We want to help bridge the gap with our hospital payment relief program and entrepreneurship program in Congo. So many widows and their children are needlessly suffering and dying because of lack of ability to afford even basic health care. We believe in a global community and helping those around the world that are in need.
INP was founded by Erica Baruti in memory of her husband Alain Baruti who passed away suddently on March 26, 2012.
INP was founded by Erica Baruti in memory of her husband Alain Baruti who passed away suddently on March 26, 2012.
We work with the local widowed by providing them and their family members with food, new or gently used clothing and house hold goods that have been generously donated by members of our community or companies in our community. At times we're able to help pay for outstanding medical bills &/or prescription medication. What insurance doesn't cover we step in to supplement. This can have a great impact with the elderly because they no longer have to decide between paying for medication or food or gas or other bills. For those interested in working, we also provide them with resources to aid with entrepreneurship or other job training.
Greater Atlanta Area Program
We are an Atlanta, Georgia based, socially responsible non-profit organization focused on helping the widows in our local community and beyond.
If you're interested in giving back by volunteering in either Kinshasa or the Atlanta area, please complete the contact form by clicing here.
Who We Are
Infinity Non Profit is an Atlanta, GA based organization focused on helping both male & female widows and their children that are held captive by the healthcare system in developing countries. We are currently working in The Democratic Republic of Congo in Central Africa and in the greater Atlanta, GA area. In a world that is increasingly becoming less healthy, we believe the same health care afforded those in the developed nations should be accessible to those in developing countries without duress. We are proud to help bridge the gap with our hospital payment relief program in Congo and entrepreneurship programs in both Congo & Atlanta. So many widows and their children are needlessly suffering and dying because of lack of access to even basic health care.
We work with local widows by helping them pay for medical bills & prescription medication. What their insurance doesn't cover we step in to supplement. This has a great impact especially with the elderly widows because they no longer have to decide between paying for medicatin or paying for food. For those interested in working, we also provide them with resources to aid with entrepreneurship or other job training. In the Atlanta area we provide the needy widowed with new or gently used clothing and house hold goods that have been generously donated by members of or companies in our local community.
In Atlanta you'll be helping a widow in the capacity most needed (i.e. pay a bill, purchase items for their home, moving expenses, etc)
In Atlanta you'll be helping a widow in the capacity most needed (i.e. pay a bill, purchase items for their home, moving expenses, etc)
Donation Page Ideas
http://www.gpb.org/support/vehicledonation/faq
