The woman holding the little boy in her arms is the Mom in Ethiopia we sponsor through Because Every Mother Matters.
What you see in front of her is her business.
She has a "big" business selling coffee (my fave!), barley, corn, chickpeas, vegetables and eggs from the three chickens she recently purchased.
If you remember, she started her business with just a half-month's worth of sponsorship money before we agreed to sponsor her.
Her motivation and drive attracted me to her and her dreams--I wanted to stand in the gap. I think that's how things work best. I can't fix everything, but I can fix one thing. And, nearly 100 moms are no being sponsored by people who think that making a difference for one is better than not even trying because you can't fix it all.
Her business is turning her a profit of 600 birr. That's $33.81 in USD. In Ethiopia terms, that's a healthy profit and makes a huge difference to a single mom and her kids.
She has been able to obtain and ID card and will soon open her own bank account. I'm happy for her for those two things because I think it helps her be more secure in her person & belongings if she doesn't have cash stored at home.
Our sponsored Mom has also been featured in the organization's recent brochure--they showed her the photo and she beamed, commenting that she's "famous" in the U.S. She's right and her biggest fans live under my roof!
Her tenacity inspires me. I can't let myself off the hook for a slow month in my Scentsy business when it's my own lack of motivation/gumption that is causing it. With all the resources, technology, and easy transportation, I have no excuse. I don't have to walk to the warehouse and hand deliver each of my products. I also don't have to set up shop and hope that someone comes to the market needing what I'm selling. Her willingness to work on her business and add dimensions to it encourage me each day.
For our next care package, I want to put together a side-by-side type album. Photos of her growing business & her children assisting her and of my business & my kids assisting me. Trying to draw some comparisons--I want to include photos of flowers and vegetables and other things that we have that may be the same or different. Ethiopia held so many surprises for us when we visited--I'm sure the US would have things that might surprise her too. Maybe a photo of a Farmer's Market here to show her how farmers present their produce...I'll keep thinking.
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