I am deeply grateful that the transfers arrived at a critical time when I was unwell and unable to access medical services due to financial constraints. I was able to use $14 of the transfers to seek medical attention, which has helped me make significant progress in my recovery. Although I am not yet fully recovered, I am optimistic that I will continue to improve. In addition to addressing my health, the transfers also helped improve our food crisis. We had run out of food, and I used $39 to purchase essential food items to ensure our family did not go without meals. Furthermore, I have been working on repairing my 4-bedroom house to prevent it from collapsing. I used $20 of the transfers to buy necessary building materials, which has enabled me to complete two rooms. I still have two rooms remaining, but I am confident that I will be able to complete the repairs soon. Lastly, I decided to invest in livestock farming by purchasing a goat and three chicken with the remaining $29 of the transfers. I hope that these animals will multiply and increase in value, providing a sustainable source of income for my family in the future through their sale.

My four bedroom house is in urgent need of completion, with two rooms already repaired and the remaining two still pending. Despite the challenges, I am grateful for the progress I have made so far. To finish the remaining rooms, I plan to save a portion of my transfers and gradually acquire the necessary building materials. I am aware that this will be a gradual process, but I am determined to see it through. Completing the repairs is crucial not only for my personal safety but also to ensure the long term stability of the structure, preventing any potential collapse in the future. I am deeply grateful for the financial assistance provided through the transfers, which has given me the opportunity to work towards this goal.

I used to engage in the laborious task of cutting tree stumps and producing charcoal for sale. However, the physical demands of this work, coupled with its meager returns, depleted my energy rapidly. As a result, I have discontinued this occupation, as I no longer possess the strength to undertake the demanding task of digging up tree stumps for charcoal production. Presently, I rely entirely on monthly transfers to sustain my daily necessities. Recently, I allocated $30 towards purchasing building sand to facilitate repairs on my house. My intention is to apply plaster and construct sturdy stone pillars around the house to enhance its structural integrity and safety. Additionally, I invested $53 in acquiring two goats, recognizing that these animals will serve as a future source of income once the financial assistance concludes. Furthermore, $15 was designated for the purchase of food items, including sugar, maize flour, tea leaves, and vegetables, to ensure a nourishing diet. I am deeply grateful for the ongoing transfers, which play a pivotal role in meeting my basic needs and improving my quality of life.

Over the next few months, my priority is to utilize the transfers to finalize the ongoing repairs on my house. Completing these repairs is essential not only for my personal safety but also to ensure the longevity and stability of the structure, preventing any potential collapse in the future. I am extremely grateful for the financial assistance provided through the transfers, as it enables me to take care of myself and accomplish goals that were previously hindered by financial constraints.

My grandson fell ill and couldn't cover his medical expenses. However, upon receiving recent transfers, I was relieved that I could afford his treatment, which cost me $34—a sum that would have been difficult to gather at the time. In addition to the medical bills, I also spent $34 to acquire a goat and expand my existing goat shed. Currently, I am proud to own six goats, which I consider valuable assets to rely on in times of financial need. My aim is to breed them and sell their offspring to address my financial responsibilities. I also allocated a significant portion of the funds to purchase building poles for constructing a kitchen that will double as a storage area. This addition will free up space in my main living quarters, allowing me to avoid cooking in my current, cramped living area—a tremendous relief. Moreover, I also bought some essential household items to fill the gaps in my household supplies.

At present, I lack a consistent source of income to support myself. While I engage in farming primarily for household consumption, I believe that investing in goats would be a wise choice. Livestock, particularly goats, offer a reliable means of securing my financial future. I currently own six goats, and my intention is to acquire more in the coming months. My goal is to raise and breed them, generating income to meet my basic needs and future financial obligations. Additionally, I am in the process of constructing a kitchen that will serve as both a cooking area and a storage space. To complete this project, I plan to acquire some iron sheets and intend to save some money for this purpose in the coming months.

From the last three transfers, I made up my mind to invest in livestock farming. I decided to do goat farming as an investment because goats are inexpensive to maintain and can be easily converted to monetary value due to the availability of markets. In addition, goats can withstand the harsh climatic condition that we face from time to time in our area. Therefore, I managed to get four goats from the previous transfers. When I got the most recent transfer, my line of thought remained intact, and bought a fifth goat for $28. I am optimistic about having a huge flock by the end of the year because the gestation length in goats is an average of 150 days. For the remaining $6, I used it to seek medical attention after falling sick.

My current objective is to construct a kitchen. This is because I also utilize my house as a store and a kitchen. By doing this, I will not have to stay outside the house until very late at night to wait for the smoke to clear before going to sleep, which is how it is now, and I won't be disturbed by smoke after cooking. In addition, I will prevent the iron sheet from absorbing soot, which detracts from the house's aesthetic appeal. The kitchen will also serve as a shelter for my goats which currently stay in the open area at night despite the heavy rains this season. To ensure they remain healthy, I will be sheltering them in the Kitchen.

Since most of the available economic occupations require a lot of energy, we are too old to even attempt them. Most of the time, we do farming, but the crops rarely prosper because of the protracted droughts we have been experiencing. As a result, we typically rely on our son, an electrician. He also has a family that depends on him for everything, which causes him to be overwhelmed. I spent $37 on three chickens and a goat for rearing in an effort to increase our household income. Given their low maintenance costs and quick reproduction, both goats and chickens are smart investments. We are hoping that by the time the program is up, we shall have a large number of them and maybe even sell some of them to help with our household expenses. $31 I used to buy food for my family. It's a huge move that I've taken to have purchased the goats and chickens, and I owe it to the organization. I'll use my transfer for this month when I get it to buy food, which is quite difficult right now because of the drought.

Investing in my goat farming is what I have been longing in life. After receiving my transfer, I used $25 to improve the livestock rearing by acquiring one goat. This intention is to make goat keeping a reliable source of income for my family. Previously, I use to rely on crop farming and sometime charcoal burning. Nowadays, they are no longer sustainable due to the drought that we had been experiencing for over 3 years now. Additionally, I used the remaining amount to purchase sufficient food for the family due to the famine and high cost of food that we are experiencing.

In my opinion, coming to our village and helping us with the cash transfer aid is what Givedirectly did well. Moreover, the officers were very polite during the enrollment stages. I feel there is nothing that they did not do well, and I wish the program could continue to reach other poor individuals in our community.

I provide all of the family's financial support. My husband is unable to work because he is quite old and ill. Selling charcoal in the village allows me to support myself. I am responsible for two of my children. The youngest child is in sixth grade in primary school, while the oldest completed his secondary education and has not yet enrolled in college. I only make enough money from my source of income to buy food. Because I cannot afford his tuition with my meager income, my oldest son has not yet started college. I spent KES 600 on meals when I got my first transfer. Since I didn't have any money to buy food, the empty food basket in the house gave me a lot of worry. I also purchased two hens for future investment in addition to the meals. In an emergency, I could sell some of it and use the proceeds to take care of it.

I'm glad I got my first transfer because it changed my life significantly. The hens I purchased are a wise and long-term investment that will help my family and I achieve financial stability. I'll sell some of them once they start to reproduce and use the proceeds to cover my son's college tuition, who is still at home and hasn't started his studies.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, I was tending livestock in the field. My son was sitting next to me when I received the text message, so I asked him to read it. He told me I had gotten my first transfer, which was great news. My heart was overjoyed as I felt my emotions overwhelm me. My cheeks were dripping with happy tears. I held my hands up, looked up into the sky, and mumbled a brief prayer of appreciation to the Lord for the miracle.