When I got the money message, I was bereaving my co-wife who had just passed on. My helper is the one who informed me of the transfer message. I felt so excited and happy; in fact I felt condoled and strengthened since I knew I have somewhere to start from as far as the death strike was concern. I was overwhelming since the assistance came just when I needed it most! You gave me hope when I thought hope was gone. Initially things were bad, our living situation was pathetic, my shelter was not something to be proud of; no school fees, no food. My daughter-in-law family was stressing me up and I was sure one day they would come for their daughter and I would be left lonely with no one around me. But since the day I received your support am seeing life, there is hope. My family and I live in a good house not as before, instead of a nylon paper on the roof there are some iron sheets and my daughter-in-law is happy and am happy too having her around knowing that the loneliness is not there. Again am saying thank you Give Direct for having a greater positive impact in my life and family. I lack words to tell you how much this has meant to me but we are touched by the generous heart you showed us; we thank you very much.

Givedirectly is enhancing peoples lives and equipping well, it also assists in eradicating extreme poverty.

As a widow, my life was taking an opposite direction which no human being would love their life to take such an angle. I depend on my elder son who is a casual laborer who fends from hand to mouth and it’s not a daily guarantee. Therefore, I took KES 4000 to pay school fees for my other two children who are still in primary school. I had to prioritize this because they are usually on and off due to school fees. Also, I bought poles and rafters worthy of KES 2400 and cleared a debt of KES 2800 to my house contractor. Previously, I have been leaving in an unsecured house covered with nylon paper on the roof to guard ourselves against direct rains. In addition, my elder son had hadn’t paid the dowry for my daughter-in-law and it’s against our norms and traditions so I took KES 30,000 and paid part of my son’s dowry. We were also bereaved, the 1st lady to my husband passed the exact day. In fact, my helper informed me of the transfer when I was mourning the death of my co-wife. In that, I had to spend KES 10,000 on her send-off and the remaining amount I bought was 4 chickens as my assets.

It was around 9 AM when I was from the dam with my daughter then my phone started vibrating. I opted to ignore it since I had a jerrican on my back which was tiring. However, after arriving home, I asked one of my children, to confirm what the notification was all about. On checking, he realized that it was the Mpesa message that I had anxiously been waiting for. I honestly couldn't contain my joy becasue I knew at long last I will sleep in a better shelter.

For all those years I have been sheltering under a small temporary hut with a very old roof. I have been aspiring to construct a modern one but because of financial difficulties could not afford to purchase the necessary materials. Being a widow and a family breadwinner has not been easy at all. I have been straining to make ends meet which was not attainable most of the days. Therefore having a spacious house would take years for me to accomplish this goal. For all that time some of my children had to seek shelter from their friends since they are adults and they needed privacy as well. Also according to my culture, it is taboo to share a room with your children who are mature. This situation frustrated me alt as the parent but then I had no option. I am happy and proud own because I managed to construct a decent spacious house that can accommodate all my children and even host a visitor and I feel it makes the biggest difference in my daily life.

I spent part of my first transfer on buying some building materials which include iron sheets, building poles, nails, timber, and threads. This was purposely for the construction of a new house becasue the previous one was a temporary hut with old roofing and very small. With a family of four, it couldn't accommodate us all and they had to seek shelter from friends and relatives. I also paid the mason KES 9000 as his labor charge. Also, I cleared school fees fr my children who are in primary school ad they are now studying peacefully unlike before. With the remaining amount of money, I bought enough foodstuff for the family.