Betty saw us coming and started dancing happily! One could easily see the excitement on her face when she saw the our vehicle approaching her home in Kumi. She shouted, “Habitat eyalama eyalama” in Ateso loosely translating, “You are welcome! You are welcome!!”
Betty is one of four children, living with her widowed mother, Helen. Helen is living positively and has testified that her smile was restored by Habitat. She said, “My life has been a difficult one. My husband and I were both casual labourers. Even with the two gardens where we grow ground nuts, sorghum, sweet potatoes and cassava, the money from the sale was too little to build a house. We would be luck if we made 20,000 UGX a week as casual labourers.” [Editor’s Note: That is $5.27 US] Helen continued, “With my husband’s death, life became even more difficult. I could not sustain the family as I was always falling sick. I could not handle casual work and therefore could not earn a living; as a result my children were forced out of school. The only home we could afford was an old hut that was far too small for us.”
As a result of working with Habitat Uganda’s Orphans and Vulnerable Children, Helen’s son Okiria was able to go back to school. Helen said, “Okiria has become my hero. Can you believe he makes 60,000 UGX a week? [$15.81 US] With that, I am now able to take his siblings to school and use some of that as transport to Ongino health centre each end of month to collect my drugs. Habitat yoga yoga, [thank you thank you] for taking Okiria back to school.”