JACKY FINALLY ACHIEVES HER DREAM

When FALCCO first interacted with Jackyline Munezero, it was a tale of sorrow and despair. Envisioning a bright future for her was not easy. She lost both her parents about 7 years ago. She lives in a home without a caring adult figure to give her care and guidance in life. Only her younger brother was in school. She had dropped out of school about 6 years ago, having attended only six classes.
All hope seemed to be gone. We asked her for her plans for the future and there was nothing much she could talk about.
However, after more discussions with her, she agreed that if she could get tailoring skills, she could use them to take herself forward in life. So we enrolled her for a two year tailoring course which she completed successfully. We really are thankful for her loving and caring sponsor who has supported her through her journey.
She was supported with the tailoring machine pictured here and has now started off her own tailoring business. Her family is so grateful because their sister is now living with a sense of purpose and self esteem.

During the 4 years that she has been in the project, she has not only got the vocational skills to make her economically independent but she has experienced a great transformation of mind and behavior. We connected her to mother figures who continue to mentor her and walk with her through life. She is more confident and makes positive decisions. 

Thanks Linn and all our sponsors for your dedication that is creating success stories like this one!

Miriam makes dinner

Here is MIRIAM CYIMPAYE also preparing dinner for herself and her grandmother. Our field team caught up with her in the evening and the excitement to see us could not be hidden. She smiled broadly when we complimented her for being a good cook!
In our workshops with the parents, we advise them to prepare the children for adulthood by giving time to them and imparting values and skills to them.

THE GIRLS AT HOME

As we have been visiting our beneficiary families, we thought we should bring you some images of what our children do when they are at home. Its holiday time now and the children get to assist at home with a number of chores. We encourage the care givers to allow the children time to rest and play, but its also an opportunity for more parent-child contact. Through that the child learns several life skills which prepare them for adult life.
The boys normally help in fetching water(most families dont have running water at home and have to fetch from a common source some metres or a kilometre from home), grazing the animals esp goats and cows if any and fetching firewood for cooking.
The girls normally assist with taking care of younger children at home, preparing and cooking food and some light chores around the house.
Below is DEBORAH MANIRIHO peeling potatoes for dinner at her home. She is a hard working girl and the mother has only praises for her...

MIRIAMS HOUSE

Greetings from all of us here at FALCCO!

We are in mid term here and our children are reading hard. They have recently written to their sponsors and we hope your letters should soon be at your door.

In this time, we have set ourselves to intervene in a housing emergency of one of our families.
Our girl MIRIAM CYIMPAYE stays with her grandmother (pictured here) in a house that has been there since the eighties. The house has grown old and has started to bend over, threatening to fall down.
The old lady told us the roof leaks whenever it rains.
FALCCO doesn't build houses for our beneficiaries, but we consider this an emergency situation that recquires urgent attention. We are trying to talk to friends locally for contributions towards the construction of a new house for Miriam and the old lady.They have told us the house would cost about $2000.

Anyone interested in making a contribution will be highly appreciated. Please send us a mail at falccokisoro@hotmail.com and we will guide you on how to proceed.
Thanks.

Field fellowship

Had a good time interacting with our children after a hectic first term. They are now in holidays and we caught up with them in their community to discuss their term and know how its going at the school. Each child shared their story of how the term went and we discovered that there is transformation taking place not just in their academics but also in their behaviour. Some are now better able to state their ambitions for the future. There was a general improvement though some need to improve in some subjects.
Generally, they reported that the teachers are good and they care for each of them individually. We will follow up on the areas that need improvement with their parents/guardians and the school.

Testimony Time

We are doing a series of home visitations with some of our new volunteers. In these visits, we have tried to interview the families about the impact that FALCCO has had on their lives so far.
We first headed to the home of RICHARD MANIRINDE and spoke to his mother.

She gave us a picture of how she and her son Richard, together with the whole family have benefited from the program. Here is a translation of her testimony:

" I thank God who brought this program to us! I had lived a desperate life trying to sustain my children single handedly. Though my husband is working in the city, he doesnt send us any support. However, i have been greatly encouraged by the parental care and advice i have got through FALCCO since 2009.
My son Richard had almost dropped out of school because of very poor study conditions. He would go early on an empty stomach and sometimes return home for lunch and find no food. This had demoralised him and his perfomance had dropped considerably.
However, through the support of FALCCO to him, he regained interest because of the assurance of school fees. His perfomance has also greatly improved. He now takes lunch at school and is able to concentrate.

His behaviour has also changed positively. He is now focussed and the advice he gets from the project staff is guiding him towards a more disciplined life.
Furthermore, i was in the first group that got a goat through this project. It has boosted my income since then because it produced and i have more goats now. I also sold off one and added the money into my small business which is helping me to take care of my family.
Thanks a lot our sponsors"

CLASS TIME

It was great hosting our Swedish coordinators, Linn Hultin and Linnea Larsson, for 5 days. We visited some families, our office and the school where our children study. The school is a private school in the village where most of the children live. It targets low income earners and offers a package of improved educational services while keeping it affordable for the poor families that cant afford the more affluent private schools in town.

When we first met our children, they were studying in government schools whose standard is very low. They offer no lunch at school and most of the children would study on an empty stomach as their families could not afford a daily lunch for them. Additionally, it was exhausting for them to walk the long distance home for lunch and come back to school for the afternoon classes. Most of them also did not have school uniforms. However, as a result of this sponsorship programme, they now are getting a better quality education, they all have school uniforms and get lunch and break porridge at school. This has greatly increased their morale to study.

This term, as we continue to invest in the holistic development of the children that are presently in the programme, we have started on an expansion programme to enable us reach more OVC households and increase our impact in the community. Our work is now acknowledged by the local leaders who have appreciated the transformation in the children's lives.

We continue to greatly appreciate our sponsors and partners that have enabled us to reach this far. We believe that alone we can do something but together we can do great things.
We are now seeking sponsors for the new children that are being registered in the programme. Their photos and profiles will be posted here in a few days. With $30 per month you can sponsor a child and give them a better education to secure a better future. The package also includes empowering the household with an income generating project; health improvement, and spiritual/social development programmes for the children.

Here are some class time images from our visit at the school.