Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Moving on Up


Sarah is a bit of a unique case compared to others that we have started businesses for. She is young, has never been married, and does not have children. Nonetheless, she has a strong desire to work hard, and she is always happy to see the Create A Job team – which is never a bad thing. We had her business start with a variety of fruits and vegetables - which took the better part of the day finding the different items she wanted. However, in the end it worked out great, and Sarah keeps adding different items to her inventory and appears to be expanding her business quickly. We are very proud.

Let us flash back to the first week. We had 7 people in the room and we knew we had only called 6. Once we realized that neither of us knew this tiny lady on the end, we asked her who sent her. She stated firmly that she was their to start a business. We didn't know how to take this at first but we interviewed her in a later round and loved her drive. Robby Carren, aka RC, also came up with a different business plan- which we always like to see. It may appear as though RC is selling cocaine and marijuana, but I promise it is tea leaves and rice in those bags. The profit on 1 KG of rice and a single pack of ground tea leaves made us think about dropping this whole philanthropy thing and open a stand ourselves. Robby is caring for 4 orphans and will now be able to support them by herself.



Margaret is one of our more colorful businesses owners, she definitely doesn’t lack personality. She had selected to continue a business she had started years ago - selling boiled maize and charcoal. This past January, Margaret was bedridden due to HIV complications. She did not fully recover until April and her business was no longer operational. Margaret has had a bit of a slow start on selling her charcoal due to some issues with her stand. However, after giving her advice on how to rearrange her goods, we think Margaret will be just as successful in selling her charcoal as she has been in selling her maize.


Pamela (#2) is one of our favorite people here in Kenya. The mother to 4 beautiful children, she is always smiling and giving thanks for what your donations have done for her family. Pamela was a bit of a special case because she is a skilled tailor that was working in a co-op but not earning enough profit for her work. We were able to have her open her very own tailoring business. She is also a rare case because she has a husband that is alive and still very much a part of the family. Her husband, a carpenter, has helped her build a beautiful tailoring shop in Ngando. He is putting the finishing touches on it now but should be done very soon. Pamela is already hard at work making school uniforms for 5 children.

Lucy has started selling Githeri (cooked maize and beans) at an ideal location in Kawangware. She called us the other day to say thank you and that she is very happy because her and her children will become fat now. She has also been diligent about saving her money, a good habit to stick with. We look forward to seeing how Lucy progresses and how the business helps herself and her 7 children.


When we went to visit Rosemary we found her with her head in her hands, crying. Her landlord took off the doors to her house and refused to put the doors back until she payed rent. Rosemary lost her husband to HIV and TB last year. Since the death of her husband, Daniel, Rosemary has been working nonstop to try to get out of the debt that accrued since his passing. Her luck worsened when her oldest daughter was killed just a month ago. She takes care of 6 children currently. We helped her out by finding them an alternative place to stay and then created a very profitable business for Rosemary. We helped her on one single condition, she would no longer sell alcohol. We are proud to report that her stand is doing well and is alcohol free. She is selling an assortment of fish, vegetables, and goat meat. Rosemary is back on her feet and working hard.


Joyce was already an entrepreneur before we had the pleasure of meeting her. She had been selling larger supplies of tomatoes, onions, etc around town to an established clientele. This was a once a week job, so she came to us for help in starting something more consistent. In addition to her fruit and vegetable business, we have helped Joyce set up a chips business close to her home in Kongo, a place near the main drag in Kawangware. Joyce now has a job she can go to everyday to support herself and her 4 children.

Have you ever met a person that just makes you want to be a nicer person? Judith is one of those people. She doesn't seem to have a mean bone in her body. She also has turned out to be quiet the business woman- selling an entire sack of sweet potatoes in the first week. You are probably picturing a potato sack but it's equivalent to 3 of those. She is also housing Sarah, the first business women of the post. We expect big things from Judith and we know she will come through.

Eva is caring for 5 orphans. She currently carries water for the school that the 5 orphans are attending. She will be carrying water, in exchange for not having to pay school fees for the 5 orphans, in the morning and selling chips in the afternoon. Eva came to us and invited us to her house to see where the help is needed. We knew Eva was someone special from day one. Not too many people in this world would take in 5 orphans when they are struggling to survive themselves. We think Eva will be able to provide a future for these children and a more comfortable life herself.

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