It was a lovely day today, somehow not so hot, and we visited two more amazing ladies doing incredible work.
Our morning was spent at the Kawanda Islamic Junior School that our good friend Hanifah has opened and directs. She has 50 students from baby class to P5. Each morning she arrives before 7:30am with her 3 daughters (one is 5 months) and she stays until after 5 to ensure the school is running smoothly.
Her biggest challenge is securing rent as her student population is still low. When asked what items her school needs, her answer was reading books and toys for the nursery classes.
I’m hoping to be able to fulfill those requests when I return in July. If you have duplo or blocks or other toys for small children (not stuffies or dolls) or picture books and easy readers, please let me know and I will arrange to collect them from you!
Our next stop was to see Hadijah who has now opened a popular bar. She was sponsored two years ago for a chapatti stand, then opened a restaurant in July 2018 that was forced to close in December but she had saved enough to rent a small space for a bar with her home behind it. She requested a chest freezer that was sponsored and now her business is going along very well.
She said she faces some challenges as a woman as sometimes the patrons don’t clear their tabs but as she is the owner of the establishment, she has power to demand payment or ban the patron. She has employed another woman in her community to help her run the business as well and is keeping meticulous records of her sales. We are thrilled by how well she is doing.
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy so we spent part of the afternoon in the pool. It was lovely to be able to just relax for a while.
More Mama visits to come tomorrow!
Hope you are all well.
In friendship,
Erika
