Building Homes
It's incredible to realize that for less than the price of a new La-Z-Boy recliner, Sister Connection can build a contemporary home for a Burundian widow.
Nearly 80% of the widows profiled by Sister Connection are initially in need of new housing. Oftentimes their homes were destroyed by the perpetrators who killed their husbands, or taken over by squatters when the widows and children fled for their lives. Sometimes their homes were stolen from them by relatives. When widows are brought into the program, they are often seeking shelter from a different neighbor every night.
| "When it rains, it rains in our house. It is made of grass, and there are ants that eat this grass." --Anatolie |
A $600 gift to the building fund allows us to hire local Burundian builders, purchase supplies locally, and construct homes that not only provide shelter and safety to traumatized families, but show entire communities that widows deserve compassion and dignity. When men of the community are given jobs working on Sister Connection homes, they are not only given the dignity and blessing of some income, they experience a sense of ownership in those homes and don’t want to see them destroyed.
As of March 1, Sister Connection has built/repaired 205 homes for widows, and has received funds to build 62 more homes. When the rainy season ends in April, we will begin construction on those 62 homes and any additional ones that are funded in March.
Each home built is overseen by the Sister Connection social worker of that region. With increasingly greater frequency, church leaders and community members are stepping forward to assist our social workers in this task. As Sister Connection addresses overwhelming burdens like home building for widows, Burundians are finding other ways to participate in the ministry to widows and orphans.
Brick by mud brick, Sister Connection homes are providing long-sought shelter and safety for Burundi’s widowed families. Because of your partnership with us, dignity is being restored as Burundians witness the benevolence of "someone" in the lives of those they have long believed to be worthless.
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"Thank you very much for building a house for me. I have peace now because I no longer have to worry about where we will sleep at night."
--Paulina, mother of 2 young girls, lost her husband, her brother, her father and her mother in the war.
"I pray that Jesus will bless you very much" --Euphrasie |
Build a Home for a Burundian Widow
