Support system - LOH #197

The life that I have lived so far with the experiences I have had has put me in a position where I get to be a problem solver and know what to do at any given situation. It is for this reason that the NGO I worked with made me their project manager for all Charity cases.

Two years ago, I was given a case file to attend to. I had studied the case file and was asked to go and confirm the story.

According to the case file, the lady is a widow with two teenage children. She's just recovering from stroke and currently homeless as she could not pay up her rent given her health condition and money spent for her to attain full recovery.

I called the lady and introduced myself, we spoke briefly on the phone and I collected her details, then told her I would be coming around.

The day I was going to her place, it felt like I was entering into a hole as the motorcycle kept driving, and no building was in sight. It was almost at the end of the road we saw a small settlement and according to her description that's where she will be waiting for me.

I got down from the motorcycle and gave her a call, while the phone rang, I was on the lookout for her. We eventually met, and then she took me to where she lived. It was underneath the staircase of an uncompleted building. They barely had good clothes to wear nor a bed to sleep on. According to her, her previous landlord has seized her belongings over failure to meet with her rent.

The uncompleted building that she was living in was courtesy of her pastor.

I looked at this woman and her children, most, especially her teenage daughter, and my heart sank because I could almost feel their pain and discomfort.

I did not take any pictures of them because I would rather not make the situation more awkward by making them feel more uncomfortable than they are already feeling. Besides, it's a simple case where we would not be needing crowdfunding, so their identity do not need to be revealed.

After seeing their condition and discussing briefly with her, I asked her, so what do you want us (the NGO) to do for you? And she said that she wanted us to clear her rent so she could go back to her apartment.

I looked at this lady again and smiled. I asked her what she's currently doing for a living, and she said she sells like some sort of petty trade which was what I had seen at her veranda when I went to her place, few biscuits, groundnuts and 2 crate of soft drinks.

Not only that, but I asked her how she hoped to renew her rent, and then she said that she's hoping on God to bring something tangible for her before the rent expires.

Likewise, I asked this lady about her children's education, and she said that's the least of her problem, that she just wanted them to survive the hard times first.

Furthermore, I took a deep breath, and then I started counselling her because clearly she's about to make a mistake.

Being a mother and also career plus business oriented, I know how draining it is balancing work (business) life and motherhood.

I told her she will not be able to leave her current situation for a better one if her children tag along. If she insists on holding on to her children, all of them will suffer, and clearly she doesn't have the capacity to even provide them the necessities.

I suggested to her why don't the NGO take temporary custody of her children, provide them with life's basic and a conducive environment while she goes on to improve on her life. I assured her that the moment she becomes financially Ok, she can have her children back.

She was skeptical then I gave her our Orphanage address and asked her to pay a visit. I showed her some pictures and she was wowed!

At the end of our discussion she saw reasons with me and I promised her that I will see to it that the NGO gives her capital to expand her business since she said that is what she wants to start with.

I got back home and filed my report, scanned and sent a soft copy to the NGO director. He read through and supported my suggestions and then bought my remarks.

The woman did come to our Homeless shelter and even spent a night there. She saw the children there are immediately agreed to letting us take temporary custody.

Although we had some hiccups with the women affairs commission as they insisted the children should be adopted permanently to parents who can fend for them.

I oversaw the case and I fought it out with them. They refused to give us authorization to adopt the children so we went straight to the court. After the woman explained her plight, she was taken straight to the magistrate who, after listening to her story, endorsed the adoption papers.

The children went on to live under our custody for five years after which the lady was granted back custody through the court, having ascertained that she was now doing better financially than she was.

Ps
Images are mine.