Nancy is a joyful girl. She has five brothers, achieves excellent grades at her elementary school in Kenya, and takes care of three goats and a cow. But her mother’s hardships weigh heavily on her heart.
Nancy’s mother always encourages her to keep studying well. She even inspires Nancy to attend an upstanding secondary school away from home someday. But affording food and school fees for six children is a challenge.
“I don’t have a father who can help my mother with getting food for us and paying school fees,” Nancy said. Her mother’s only means of income is crafting beaded ornaments to sell in a town more than 50 miles from where they live.
Unfortunately, this isn’t always enough. “Sometimes she sells goats that she loves to the market [to provide for us],” Nancy said.
For Nancy’s mother, Convoy of Hope’s school feeding program alleviates the stress of having to make these difficult sacrifices.
“Convoy brings MannaPack [fortified rice and lentils], mung beans, beans, maize, porridge flour, sugar, salt, cooking fat, cabbage, pumpkins, oranges, and carrots to our school,” Nancy said. “We eat food from Convoy of Hope from Monday to Friday.”
In addition to supporting Nancy’s mother in providing her children’s needs, the feeding program is improving Nancy’s studies and physical well-being. “It helps me get energy to answer questions in class and also finish my homework.”
Before the feeding program, Nancy spent countless afternoons walking miles back home to eat lunch. With limited food at home, walking back to school after lunch drained her strength and made it difficult to focus on her studies.
Thankfully, she now has vitality to spare. “During games [at school] I also run and play with my friends in the field because of the food we eat,” Nancy said.
Recently, Nancy’s goats had three kids. Nancy’s mother may have needed to sell these new goats for money in the past, but now their family gets to keep the animals and benefit from raising them. “We have plenty of milk to use for tea in the morning,” Nancy said.
Thanks to your generosity, dedicated parents find relief each day when their children receive consistent, nutritious meals at school. And children like Nancy — in Kenya and all over the world — are learning and thriving.
To learn about how you can help more families, check out Convoy’s Children’s Feeding initiative.
