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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.
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Enrollment
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Transfers
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Completed
Newsfeed > Lorna's Profile
Lorna's family
Lorna
landscapeCountry:
kenya
workOccupation:
Small business
faceAge:
30
workCampaign
Kenya Large Transfer
There will be no further updates from this completed recipient.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($493 USD)
access_time almost 3 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My life is different than how it would have been if I never received the transfers in that I was able to complete the construction that I had started using the previous transfer We used to live in a small house which could not host all the family comfortably. When we had visitors there was no extra space to host them. We depend on casual jobs in the village and small business in town. The amount of money that we get through this jobs is so small and could not enabled us buy the building material and started building. I had always wished to own a spacious house. When I received the second transfer I started I bought the materials and started building, I also used part of this second transfer on completing the construction. Currently I own a spacious house and I no longer get stress up on where to host my victors. My children have spacious rooms where they can do assignment without any disturbance. I am so happy because my wish has been fulfilled. GiveDirectly has enable us improve our living standard.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion GiveDirectly does well by giving money to the poor in the community to build better houses and to buy dairy cows . I do not find anything that GiveDirectly did not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent part of the money I received from GiveDirectly on Completing the house that I started building using the previous transfer. The house now is so spacious and we live comfortably. The rest of the money I started poultry keeping project. This will earn me an income through the sales of eggs.
 
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($502 USD)
access_time 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around mid-morning when I received a new message on my phone and upon confirming it was a Mpesa message confirming that I had received money from GD. I felt so happy since this gave me a sign of completing the house extension that I had wished to for a long.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
I spent a large portion of my first transfer to purchase building materials which allowed me to complete an extension room to my house. My intention had been to build a new decent and spacious house to live in with my family comfortably. I have been living in a small semi-permanent house and even though it can comfortably host my young family, I knew I had to add a room for my growing children. I am grateful to GiveDirectly because their financial support has enabled me to acquire building materials which if I was to buy at my own cost, then I wouldn't have gotten at such a moment. This is the biggest difference in my daily life since I will always have it and soon I will my family in more spacious rooms each and every one of us enjoy the comfort of our home.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I had started to build a semi-permanent house that I lived in with my young family. It has been comfortable since my children are young but since they are growing, I had foreseen that it will be a must for me to have a bigger house thus I build an extension on it. With the limited resources, I had not been able to complete it. When I received my cash transfer, I used KES35000 to complete it. I am glad that soon I will a bigger house that can comfortably accommodate my growing family comfortably. In addition and as a way of investing my transfer, I took KES20000 to add stock that will enable me to operate my business without any difficulties. This to me is an investment from which I am expecting a good income that will enable me to meet my financial needs. I am now happy that my business is doing better.
 
Enrolled
access_time over 3 years ago
 
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money will help us as a family improve our home by expanding it. The current house that we are staying in is so small especially our bedroom. Our children are all grown and the expanded room shall be used as their bedroom as we have our privacy as the parents. I also intend to use the remaining amount to improve my poultry keeping project by adding more chicken. The idea to improve my poultry keeping project was informed by the fact that we may have surge in needs for our family going forward especially payment of school fees.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is in the afternoon when I am done with the day's activities and can have time to relax with my family.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship that I have faced is when I had just gotten married to my husband. My husband was working as a security officer and being a first born in their family, he had to meet almost all the needs of the family. There are times that we almost slept hungry when he failed to send some money. I was at the verge of giving up on marriage but I did not have the courage to do it. I however thank God that we have been able to work hard as a family and are currently staying in our land and have built a house in it. We hope to even achieve more with GiveDirectly.