Stories: Agriculture Training

Peter has a big family: two wives and sixteen children all living together. His children attend a school that is very far from their home.

“It has been very hard to provide enough shelter for all of our children,” Peter explained.

“We do not have enough space and we all stay together in a very small home. Now, we are building a bigger home because it is important to our family and children to have space and a strong shelter.”

Peter attended an agricultural training program through the local church supported by Bright Hope. He received seeds and training which gave him hope about raising enough money to improve his home.

“…if we grow enough it can become possible,” he said. “You see, my house is not finished yet, but we hope to continue building the walls and add a roof. We hope that this season will bless us with enough to finish our home.”

When Peter and his family received the seeds, they felt overjoyed, blessed and relieved because the seeds were enough to feed their family, plus sell some of the harvest for an additional profit. Without this gift, they struggled to feed all of their children and send them to school.

“We are proud [of our small farm],” he said.

“We continue to thank God each and every day because it has blessed our lives and the training taught us many things and brought us closer to God. As a group, we would pray together and we would also learn the importance of caring for our children.”

While Peter’s family feels very blessed for all they have received, they have also faced hardships during the last three seasons since they received the seeds. Each season has been different: the first was hard but the second season produced much crop used to feed the children and continue building on the house. The most recent third season brought much rain and washed away many of their crops.

“When we were given the seeds, we knew that we would continue to face challenges but at least we can plant more and hope to yield more also,” he said. “We can continue to work hard and pray to God and hope that he will provide us with a fruitful season.”

When they are able to grow enough for their family, they are also able to bless other families with seeds.

“…we feel that our neighbors should benefit the way we benefited from the church,” he said. “We are thankful and hope that others can benefit. It is very important to us as we would not have been able to build a new house and give our children the resources they need without the church’s help.”