“Blessed are the poor and honest." ~ Proverbs
28:6
Membership in America’s corporate
elite comes with not just a hefty compensation package but an abundance of
perks. But Edhi had no bodyguards,
personal driver, country club membership or access to a company jet. He took virtually no salary.
From a small tent offering donated drugs and basic medical
care, the Edhi Foundation became a multimillion-dollar enterprise. Run by himself, his wife Bilquis and their
four children, they lived humbly in the same ramshackle building as the
organization's offices located in Karachi’s poorest neighborhood.
Motivated by a spiritual quest for justice, Edhi and his
team created maternity wards, morgues, orphanages, shelters, and homes for the
elderly, picking up where limited government-run services fell short. All for free.
Bilquis, his spouse and partner, helped build his empire. She was also the one who secretly sewed a duplicate
pair of clothes when one of his only two outfits became too old and raggedy. “If he found an old hat, he’d save it,” she noted,
describing how little her husband spent on himself.
Edhi might not have spent on himself, but he spent massively
on the hundreds of thousands he helped over the years. The foundation which he started almost six
decades ago has an annual budget of nearly $20 million today. Funding comes entirely from private
donations. He proudly refused any government
support.
In a country with a negligible public welfare system Edhi
offered cradle-to-grave services. Some
20,000 people have Edhi registered as a parent or guardian after he and Bilquis
began taking in abandoned babies. They placed
cribs outside their offices where unwanted infants could be left, dramatically
reducing the practice of throwing unwanted infants in the trash.
The most visible signs of Edhi's foundation around the
country are its ambulance fleet; more than 1,500 strong. They race across the busy streets, sirens
blazing picking up dead bodies and transporting the injured to hospitals. They’re usually the first ones to reach disaster
sites, including the many bombings Pakistan suffered during the past decade. The Edhi Foundation even donated $100,000 to
the victims of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Up until his death recently at the age of (about) 90, Edhi
might have been considered the world's greatest living humanitarian. He’d suffered for several years with diabetes
and kidney failure, even refusing treatment in the U.S. He preferred to be treated at a public
hospital in his own country. Despite his
atheism, there are few men who have done as much good, and made as much a
difference to all humanity, than Abdul Sattar Edhi (aka Angel of Mercy).
Lord Jesus, teach me to allow Jesus to enter and
possess me so completely that my life, too, may radiate the light and love given
by this gentle giant. Please find a
special place in Your Kingdom for such a humble servant. Amen
