Uganda – Living in extreme poverty makes life hard and causes overwhelming anxiety in a person’s heart. Especially when you’re a child, and you have no control over your family’s future.
With four children and not enough income to send them to school, gardener James and his wife worried that their first-born daughter Gilfa would get stuck in poverty’s trap and that her siblings would follow.
Thankfully, through one of Bright Hope’s partner churches, James and his wife received an invitation to attend an Asset-Based Community Driven Development (ABCD) training.
James felt skeptical before the training. He explained: “At first, I thought it was one of those usual training that organizations call us for that never yield anything. But when I began implementing what I was taught, my family life changed. My garden yields increased, and my children’s education became affordable.”
After the training, James received soybean seeds to plant in his garden. As soon as his soy crop started to sprout, he enrolled his children at Nimaro Education Center, a school supported by Bright Hope. Gilfa and her siblings were offered a full scholarship for a year to allow their parents time to harvest their first crops.
James and his wife exhibited incredible tenacity to work toward a sustainable lifestyle. After a successful soy harvest, the family added sunflowers to their garden. They have also started keeping chickens (up to 200 last year!) and selling them for a profit.
In February 2021, Gilfa passed her primary school graduation exams with flying colors and enrolled in one of the best secondary schools in the region. As a result, Gilfa no longer lives with anxiety about the future. Now, because of committed Allies like you, she has bright Hope for the future and confidence that she will achieve her dream to become a midwife.
