$6500: Funded 8/25/2022. Completed Fall 2022
WHO/WHERE
8 Babies and their mothers at TZ452 in Tanzania Africa
WHY
Malnutrition is an underlying cause in more than a third of all deaths of children under 5 (UNICEF). These deaths can be attributed to stunting, severe wasting and restricted growth inside the womb. But most of these deaths can be prevented through proven and simple interventions. With this in mind, the Survival program incorporates several key services to preserve the physical well-being of these precious little ones:
- Therapeutic feeding services.
- Education on preparing healthy, balanced meals.
- Provision of food packs that include essential nutrition and vitamin supplements.
- Promotion of exclusive breast feeding for the first six months of life.
- Regular monitoring of each baby’s height and weight.
Additionally, a healthy birth weight is critical to a baby’s survival and malnutrition prevention. By also focusing on caregiver nutrition through prenatal care and nutritious food, newborns registered with Survival have up to a 30% better likelihood of having a normal birth weight.
The health of mothers and newborns is intricately related. Because of this, Compassion church partners provide prenatal care to give expectant moms and their babies the support they need for a safe and healthy birth. Mothers are able to attend prenatal medical appointments, when in the past they could never have considered such an expense. They also receive transportation to their local health center or hospital so they can keep those appointments. If their pregnancy has proceeded smoothly, skilled
birth attendants guide and support them through the birthing process. Mothers who develop complications are connected to advanced medical care (including surgery, if necessary). After the babies arrive, the program gifts the new moms with baskets full of hygiene supplies and newborn necessities. All of this is possible through your generous giving!
GROWING AS A CAREGIVER THROUGH THE CHILD SURVIVAL PROGRAM
TESTIMONY
Dear Friends,
I hope you are in good health. My family and I are all healthy, and we see God fighting for us in our daily lives. I thank God for you. You have been a blessing in our church and especially to mothers like me. When I was growing up, I didn’t know what salvation was and did not believe in God or go to church. I lived with my grandmother before I got married. Life was not very good, and we sometimes went to bed hungry. We could not afford medical treatment. I had to leave school after seventh grade because my grandmother could not pay my school fees. My grandmother encouraged me to get married, and I married someone who was also poor. When I got pregnant, we could not afford health services.
I was able to enroll in the Survival program at my husband’s church, and from there my life began to change in all aspects – spiritual, physical, emotional, economic and even social. After joining the Survival program, I began to grow spiritually. I was taught to pray and to read and live the Word of God. I decided to be saved and follow Jesus.
My economic life has changed a lot through this program as we have been empowered with various entrepreneurship trainings that have helped me to become self-sufficient. We have learned to raise various animals including chickens and goats. I have also received training in good nutrition, and we have been given baby clothes as well as food and nutritious for our family. We have the opportunity to do regular health checkups and have received education on family planning and breastfeeding. With better nutrition, my baby is progressing very well.
My future hope is to be able to have more livestock such as goats, cattle and poultry, as well as to have a large farm to provide enough food for my family. I dream to see my child succeed in education and spiritual life and to see my community prosper. I hope to continue to grow and touch others’ lives as well.
“My life has been transformed so much through this program that the community around me wants to know what God is doing in my life through this ministry.”
I am grateful to God because my life has been transformed so much through this program that the community around me wants to know what God is doing in my life through this ministry. They know only God can change a person’s life. I pray God blesses you abundantly for your gift!
Letter edited for clarity.
TESTIMONY
Dear Friends,
I greet you in the name of Jesus Christ and hope you are in good health. I thank God for the life we have today and for your support of the Survival program in our community. Before joining this program, I did not have a good relationship with God because I grew up not being able to pray or read God’s Word. I did not have many friends or knowledge of how to develop myself in life. Physically, I grew weak because we did not have enough food in our home and could not get good medical care when we needed it.
After I got married, I got pregnant and received the chance to join the Survival program. From then on, my life began to change in all aspects. I began to grow spiritually by being taught the Word of God, and I learned how to pray and read the Bible. I have also been taught ways to become economically self- sufficient. The center helped me to start a small business raising chickens at my home.
Through the program, we have also received training on good nutrition, and we have been given food packages and nutritious food for our children. We have been supported with medical treatment when we have health problems, and we also receive regular checkups and education on topics such as breastfeeding and safe birth control.
Most of all, I thank God because through this program my life has grown so much. I have been able to make so many friends, and we serve together so my loneliness is completely gone. Even the community is now interested in knowing what God is doing in my life through this program. I face so many challenges in life, but with every challenge, I pray to God so that he can lead me to overcome them.
My big vision is to become a great business woman, to see my child succeed at great levels, and also to serve God to the highest standards. Thank you so much for your support, and please pray for God to give me more strength and confidence in serving him.
“Through this program my life has grown so much –My big vision is to become a great business woman, to see my child succeed at great levels, and to serve God to the highest standards.”
Caregivers are pictured here with chickens they received from the Survival program. Chickens provide manure for farming and eggs for eating and selling, providing an important means of financial support for families. Thank you for partnering with us and helping us achieve economic stability.