Gogo Ida’s house in Swaziland
Yesterday, I introduced you to author Linda Rhinehart Neas and her poetry book, Gogo’s Dream: Swaziland Discovered. There’s still time to leave a comment or question for Linda and a chance to win her book. One of the things she talked about was the non-profit organization, Possible Dreams International. The profits from her poetry book go directly to this organization. She also wrote about Gogo Ida and her house, which is pictured here.
Possible Dreams International has three current projects in Swaziland.
- The Daily Emergency Fund: This fund is used to help ill people in several ways: to transport them to a hospital, to pay for doctor or X-ray fees, to give food to the starving, and even to provide blankets and bedding. Without the Daily Emergency Fund, several more people would die in Swaziland because they can not afford the medical care.
- Houses for the Poor: In Swaziland, over 70% of the population live in extreme poverty, (on less than one dollar a day). Most houses in rural Swaziland are made of thatch, mud, sticks, or stone. “Possible Dreams International employs young dedicated builders in the community, who are often orphans themselves, as well as community members to come together and help the family in need. In addition to building a house, we speak to the family at length about their physical and emotional needs. We provide access to medical care, food and water as well as engagement with their community so that the family can help themselves out of the myre of poverty and self-defeat. “
- The Mealie Meal Project: One-third of children in Swaziland are orphans because their parents have died of AIDS. This project provides food to orphans “in the form of 25kg of Corn Soya meal a month as well as 60 eggs, beans and milk.”
Swaziland statistics are heartbreaking. Here they are from the Possible Dreams International website:
Swaziland has the highest prevalence of HIV infection in the world.
42% of the population are infected with HIV, the precursor to AIDS.
There are over 15,000 orphan led households in Swaziland.
So, check out yesterday’s post, leave a comment for Linda, and consider buying her book as a gift for someone–maybe even your own Gogo (Grandma) to help the Gogos and children in Swaziland.
http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1321608
I am so happy to welcome, Linda M. Rhinehart Neas, on her WOW! blog tour. Linda has written the amazing poetry book, Gogo’s Dream: Swaziland Discovered. This book of poetry is inspired by the people of Swaziland and the work of Dr. Maithri Goonetilleke, an Australian physician and poet who spends time working with the people of Swaziland. The poems illustrate the poverty and need in Swaziland but also the love and dignity of this family oriented culture. All of the profits of this book will go to Possible Dreams International to help the peoples of Swaziland. You can preview and purchase the book here.
***Linda has written a terrific post for my blog today. And anyone who leaves a question or comment for Linda will be entered for a chance to win a copy of her book.
Love Story: The Women of Swaziland
by Linda Rhinehart Neas
When he (Dr. Goonetilleke) met Gogo Ida, her remaining daughter had just given birth to a second child. The daughter’s first child, a three-year old is named Nothando, which means “Love.”
Love is the capital that Gogo Ida, nearly seventy, exists on daily. Love for her daughter dying, like her other children, of AIDS; love for the grandchildren, which are now in her care; love for God to whom she prays in the mud hut with holes in the walls where snakes and rats torment the children. Her prayers are simple – protection from the cold, food for the children, a better future for her grandchildren.
Love has brought Dr. Maithri Goonetilleke and the other members of Possible Dreams International (PDI) to Swaziland. Love supports the work they do to help bring the essentials to people devastated by disease and poverty. Love surrounds Gogo Ida and the thousands of Gogos (grandmothers) of Swaziland as they bury their beloved children and care for their orphaned grandchildren.
The Love that fuels Gogo Ida’s (pictured here) hope for a better future for her grandchildren, the dream of all Gogos in Swaziland, which has the highest percentage of HIV infected population in the world, has brought her a new home, built by members of her community with the aid of PDI. The home has the luxury of strong walls, a corrugated roof, a door and windows. It will protect her grandchildren from the varmints that sneak in at night trying to rob her of what little food she has and threatening her grandchildren.
Just before Dr. Maithri leaves Gogo Ida’s home, she receives the first parcel of her supplemental food – Mealie meal, a porridge-based product that is the staple of the Swazi diet, 60 eggs, sugar and beans. Gogo Ida was elated, singing and dancing for joy. “Last night, every morsel of food that we have was gone. Now the children can eat!”
Dr. Maithri lowered his head as tears ran down his face. Love wrapped its arms around Gogo Ida and her family, bringing Light into her humble home.
~~~~
Being a woman in Swaziland isn’t necessarily a death sentence, but it might as well be. In 2009, the average life expectancy in Swaziland was 37. Approximately 42% of the pregnant women in the country were HIV positive. Nearly 185,000 of the one million people living there are infected. However, AIDS is not the only disease ravaging the lives of women in Swaziland.
Struggling in a country where poverty is the norm, infectious diseases run rampant. W
Gogo Ida’s house in Swaziland
