Sara’s family is full of joy and confidence that they can build a bright future together. Photographs by Ephrem Beri
When you sponsor a child, you transform a community
When Sara was little, life was difficult. She had a large family—five siblings!—and it was hard for her parents to feed them all.
Like most in Sasiga, they were a farming family. But despite her parents’ hard work, soil infertility and high acidity produced meagre crops. The rising price of chemical fertilizer made it impossible to overcome this obstacle. As a result, they couldn’t produce enough to put dinner on the table every day.
Going to bed hungry, it’s understandable that education wasn’t at the top of the family’s priorities—with so much work to do just trying to survive, they couldn’t even begin to think about planning for their children’s future. School seemed out of reach, especially for girls.
Sara’s family didn’t have access to clean water and going to the bathroom in the bushes was the norm because at-home toilets were uncommon. This lack of access to healthy sanitation meant Sara and her siblings often got sick from intestinal parasites. Without enough to eat, clean water, or access to sanitation, her family struggled.
Sara’s mom, Diribe, remembers, “I could not feed my children—I was worried and hopeless.”
“My daughter’s interest to attend school was poor because she did not have enough to eat and lacked learning materials. She performed poorly at school.”
A teenager now, Sara still remembers those hard days when she was little, “Our lives were in horrible condition. Land was unproductive, [we had] no clean water.”
With the support of her loving family, Sara is now thriving in school.
Child sponsorship brings new hope
Thankfully, when Sara’s community of Dangali Gongo began working with FH Ethiopia, she was partnered with a Canadian family through child sponsorship. This support gave her family access to agricultural training, savings groups, health education, and so much more!
Life began to turn around for Sara.
“I and my family learned a lot,” she shares. “We learned how to improve our farm. We also learned about hygiene and sanitation. I have by far better courage to pursue my education! I improved my school performance…the school library books provided by FH have been instrumental here.”
As the family’s farm became more productive their income went up. Daily life began to change. They upgraded their house, gained access to a clean water source, and installed a proper latrine at home with a handwashing station. Their health has dramatically improved! Regular visits from FH-trained volunteers provided encouragement and friendship along the way.
And it’s not just Sara’s family that’s doing better! She sees flourishing all around her, now. “The change that happened in my family is true in the life of many of the members of our community. The community now has access to clean water. Everyone sends their kids to school. Agriculture is now a productive business. Everyone has hope.”
“The changes in my life and in my community make me happy! As a young girl, I see a better tomorrow.” — Sara