Working with The 1010 Project allows us to make our own daily bread. – Phaustine Wekesa

Phaustine Wekesa is a mother, grandmother, and our friend in leadership at Tumaini Pamoja (With Hope Together), a community-based organization in the Korogocho slum of Nairobi.

Tumaini Pamoja has a 4-pronged approach to breaking the cycle of poverty in their community:

• Encourage self-acceptance and acceptance by community members of HIV-positive individuals
• Help orphans and vulnerable children
• Provide microfinance opportunities to small businesses
• Break the stigma associated with HIV/AIDs

Phaustine explained recently in an email that her friends and neighbors are really suffering from hunger. Phaustine continued her message with a request for support, specifically for those living with HIV/AIDS. For these courageous individuals she explained, the problem is compounded because it is difficult to take antiretroviral drugs on an empty stomach.

According to the World Food Programme:

“High food prices have taken their toll on the daily lives of Kenyans. Poverty and food insecurity are highest in urban slums and among pastoralists and farmers in remote, arid and semi-arid lands, which comprise 80 per cent of Kenya’s land mass. Many households in these areas are chronically poor, and there are persistently high malnutrition rates among children under five. It’s estimated that around 5.6 million people [approximately 16% of the total population] have been made food insecure in Kenya because of high food and fuel prices. In order to deal with the high cost of food, people are cutting back on the number of meals they are eating, and buying less expensive food items.”

Despite these challenges, Tumaini Pamoja continues to grow and meet needs. This community-based organization has recently expanded into three separate groups with a total membership of 185 individuals. With the most recent income-generating grant ($270 USD) that they received, Tumaini Pamoja was able buy three orphaned children new school uniforms, purchase a small plot of land for farming, and provide two loans of $25 to small business owners.

This Mother’s Day weekend, empower the efforts of mothers and grandmothers like Phaustine with a gift of $10 to The 1010 Project!