Pastor Ruth of Smile Africa Ministries goes to the homes of the poorest of poor and recruits people to help fix up homes, fix meals and take care of the widows and orphans.
Highly respected in the community of Tororo, Uganda Pastor Ruth recently was elected president of the Pastor's Fellowship of Tororo.
Her love of people shows in all that she does. You can find her in her office at Smile Africa counseling members of the community, helping to set up widows in their own businesses and feeding the children who live on the streets.
Here is a photo of some of the widows being trained in SAM's tailoring class. Once the women graduate they are given their own sewing machine to start up their own business.
Not only are women trained in tailoring they make necklaces, bracelets and earrings to sell; women are given capital to start up roadside restaurants; they make baskets.
Hope4Kids International has partnered with Smile Africa in their outreach to the widows.
They have funded bush tea parties; bought sewing machines; provided capital to widows starting up business such as serving food, manicure and pedicure businesses; they've helped women by donating purses and scarves for them to sell. They have paid school fees for children, taking them from the streets and giving them hope for the future.
Hope4Kids International will be taking a team in February, 2008 specifically to do an outreach to the widows of Smile Africa. Hope4kids' team members will teach women to knit, crochet, decorate cakes. They will hold classes in basic health, hygiene and nutrition as well as budgeting and record keeping. They are collecting the Woman's Study Bible and will be holding Bible classes. There will be a medical outreach to cleanse and dress wounds.
While the widows are being trained in their new skills other team members will be working with their children, playing games, reading and feeding them.
Other team members will work with Robert Cinader of Hope4Kids in repairing and/or building homes for these widows. Some of the homes are in such disrepair they have actually collapsed on the women and children as they sleep. This team will also help with the fam co-op program which will sustain these widows and the projects.
To find out more about this outreach contact the director of widows' concerns @ rachel@hope4kidsinternational
Tom Eggum, president of Hope4Kids International greets Pastor Ruth's mother at a tea party for the Women of Uganda
Rachel Eggum Cinader director of widows' concerns
admires and purchases necklaces made by a widow in
her dimly lit, extremely humble home. There is no
electricity in this typical home where the only light
is through an open doorway.
