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We check in with people at each stage of the cash transfer process to see how things are going. Take a look at some of their stories as they appear here in real-time. Learn more about how recipients opt in to share their stories.
Stages:
 
Enrollment
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Transfers
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Completed
Newsfeed > Ruth's Profile
Ruth's family
Ruth
landscapeCountry:
kenya
workOccupation:
Raising livestock
faceAge:
68
workCampaign
Standard Kenya
There will be no further updates from this completed recipient.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($525 USD)
access_time 4 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
The transfers enables me to build a decent house for my family. Because of this, we now enjoy our privacy and my house is big enough and I can my neighbors children and come and sleep over at my house. Also it enabled me to do some farming on time and I am now hoping that I will have a good harvest that will last us till the next harvesting season.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
GiveDirectly does well by giving people cash transfers so that they can decide on how to spend them and I do not see anything that they did not well.
What did you spend your second transfer on?
I spent KES 30000 from my second transfers to pay school fees for my children. I settled on this so that they would continue with their studies without any interruptions. Also, I spent some amount on farming. I bought all the necessary farm inputs and hired a tractor for land preparation purposes. I spent the remaining amount to buy food, decent clothes and bedding for mg family to replace the old ones that we had.
 
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($529 USD)
access_time over 4 years ago
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Describe the biggest difference in your daily life.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that I have built a better hand spacious house for my family. I used to live in a small mud house which was leaking from the inside. It was a big problem during the rainy season because it was leaking from the inside, We used to stay in one corner of the house where it was not leaking until when the rain was over. I feared to welcome visitors to my house because the house was in bad condition. There was no space and no seats. At times when I had my siblings, I used to make a tent outside the house to host them there as we discuss family issues. Currently, I have a better and spacious house. I no longer fear to welcome visitors to my house and We are no longer exposed to cold. I am so happy because GiveDirectly has completely changed my living standards from grass-thatched house to an iron sheet roofed house.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I felt very happy the moment I received GiveDirectly transfers. I heard my phone ring and it was a message notification. It was quite unusual for my phone to ring especially at such times of the night. I quickly checked to confirm the contents of the message and I was quite amused when I saw that I had received some good amount of money from GiveDirectly. I was happy because there and then I knew that my dream of building a bigger, better house would now be a reality. My children too were very happy since they had known how hard I worked to make extra income that would allow me to build a new house but always unsuccessful.
What did you spend your first transfer on?
I spent part of my first transfer to build a better and more spacious house for my beloved family. For a long time, we had lived in a small grass-thatched house and this often made me feel like I had failed in my primary responsibilities of providing the basic needs like shelter. I also used part of the transfer to pay school fees for my son who is in college and the rest of the money was used to buy food for the family.
 
Enrolled
access_time over 4 years ago
 
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I have always desired to practice dairy farming for long, an activity that is resourceful in our locality since the climatic condition around this place favours livestock keeping. I will therefore buy two dairy cattle which will boost my financial status as a widow who depends on her children for upkeep. I will then build myself a new kitchen since the one i have is too old and leaks in water whenever it rains. The remaining part of my transfer will go to buying furniture and new beddings, thanks to GD.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Evening is the happiest part of my day since its the time i get to rest and relax after having a long day engaging in tedious activity of fetching firewood in the forest during daytime which i usually sell in a nearby secondary school at the end of the day before heading back home
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
After the demise of my husband 17 years ago, Life has been a struggle to me. He left me with six children who were still too young by then. I've struggled alot to meet their needs more so education . Ive sold a larger part of my land which i used to farm initially to pay their school fees. I even ended up engaging in selling illicit brew which landed me in trouble severally times after being arrested by the authorities. The struggle continues since my four children are still in school, two of them in the university and two in secondary school. For me this is the biggest hardship i have faced