Aida* is one of our Family Empowerment Program (FEP) mothers and she has five children, three are boys and her youngest are twin girls. When AJ first met Aida, she was a single parent raising the children without anyone’s support on an average monthly income of $60 USD.
Grade seventh is the highest-grade Aida completed and she depended on daily jobs to earn as much as she could to support her children.
When we met Aida she said, “I have five children- three boys and two girls. In my last pregnancy, I gave birth to twin girls. Their father left the home on the second day after I gave birth to the twins. He disappeared unexpectedly and the responsibility of raising the children was then placed on me.”
Aida added, “When the twins were little, I used to do laundry by going from on house to the other. I used to carry one baby on my back and the other in the front while working because I had no one to help with the babies.”
Once the twins began attending preschool, Aida began doing any type of daily job she could get and help her bring money home to feed the children. She used to work as a day-time cleaner for different homes and also used to prepare homemade snacks and spices to pack and deliver to homes. Aida worked during the day so that she could return home to the children in the evenings.
This was how Aida’s life has been for some years until her arm began hurting and prevented her from doing the daily work she used to do. Since daily work was her sole source of income, she had fallen into financial problems. She became to the point where she was not able to pay for food and rent. There came a time when Aida reached a critical point and her good neighbors had to step-in and help. One month’s rent was covered by money raised by the neighbors but in the second month, Aida was preparing to be homeless.
Remembering this critical time back with tears in her eyes, Aida said this to us, “It is during this time that Addis Jemari reached out to help me. When people from Addis Jemari knocked on my door and said they are there to help, I was left dazed and stood with complete disbelief. I assumed those who knocked my door that day are people sent from God.”
Currently, Aida’s two older children, Girma and Dawit have completed high school and Dawit is now in College Preparatory school. Girma got the opportunity to join college. But her three youngest children, Leyu, Tensae and Blen, are in middle school and are in need of support. They are being supported by Addis Jemari through school materials and tutoring sessions. All of them now attending school, and like the other children in our Family Empowerment Program, Aida’s children were provided with shoes, socks, and bookbags filled with necessary school materials. The children are also participating in the three days a week tutoring sessions available at the FEP center.
Aida’s family is also receiving a monthly stipend to help them cover basic expenses of food and shelter until we work with Aida to create sustainable income-generating opportunities for her.
Aida is now saving 20 percent of her monthly stipend which she can use for a rainy day. She is also earning a small monthly income from Addis Jemari working at our FEP center as a cook and a cleaner. This is helping her to further support her family.
Aida said, “There are many things Addis Jemari has done for me so far. It has solved the housing problem and I am hopeful to be able to sustain myself in the near future.”
To become a monthly sponsor of our Family Empowerment Program for just $60/month (only $2/day!!!), please visit https://addisjemari.org/give/#sponsorfep.
To give a one-time donation to our programs, visit https://addisjemari.org/give/#donate.
Your generous gifts make a real difference in the lives of the families we serve in Ethiopia! Thanks for your consideration.
(*We change the names of our beneficiaries to protect their identities.)