On opening day of the Maliarette campus in January 2019, thirty-six caregivers and their beautiful babies joined the Love In Action Family. Two of those children were Alexa and Alexandra Nelson – two and a half year old twin daughters of Mathias and Rusunie Nelson.
The two sisters play well together and are each other’s best friend. They like the colors pink and yellow best though Rusunie does not worry herself about making sure their clothes always match. Alexa and Alexandra are learning to talk but they prefer to do so only within the familiarity of their own home. As the youngest of seven children, the twins are cared for by the entire family.
“Alexa and Alexandra love their family,” remarked Rusunie – the girls’ mom, “When their father comes home they run to him yelling, ‘Papa, Papa!’ They do the same for me, ‘Mama, Mama!’”

Alexa and Alexandra are not identical twins. “Clearly not!” Their mother laughed, “Alexa takes after her daddy. And can’t you see that Alexandra has my coloring?”
Alexa and Alexandra are not identical twins. “Clearly not!” Their mother laughed, “Alexa takes after her daddy. And can’t you see that Alexandra has my coloring?”
As the head of the household Mathias Nelson provides the family’s sole income working part-time as a seventh and eighth grade teacher at the local school. With a large family it can be hard to make day-to-day ends meet but Mathias chooses to dwell on the positive things in life. Mathias summarizes his core values as a love for God and a love for education.
Mathias testifies that being born into a Christian family didn’t make him a Christian. He had to put his faith in Christ on his own accord. Knowing that his children will one day make their own decision about God, Nelson strives to set an example that leads them to Christ.
Echoing his wife’s desire for the girls to pursue a higher education, Mr. Nelson believes that education empowers people to care for themselves while strengthening the foundation for the following generation. This is a big reason the Nelson family supports the First Thousand Days Program. From the first day, Mathias valued the benefits of the First Thousand Days Program for his family which is why Mathias himself sometimes attends towing Alexa and Alexandra in hand.

The Nelson family chatting with Many Hands staff during their first home visit
The Nelson family chatting with Many Hands staff during their first home visit
“Mathias and his wife were the very first people to enroll and they are very faithful to participate,” shared First Thousand Days Coordinator Liz Clarke. “They are doing everything in their power to do the best for their kids. They see this as a really great opportunity and they’re not going to miss it.”
“If my wife cannot attend on a certain day, I make the effort to bring the girls to the program myself,” Mathias emphasized.
Mathias consistently invests in Alexa’s and Alexandra’s future by diligently working to provide for them in the day-to-day. He knows the foundation that is set today will shape his daughters’ lives tomorrow and, as their father, he takes this responsibility very seriously.
When you sponsor the First Thousand Days program you are partnering with fathers just like Mathias, who are working hard to lay a solid foundation for their children.

Mathias carrying the twins to the First Thousand Days program
Mathias carrying the twins to the First Thousand Days program