Hope for Widows and the Community (HoWiCo)
Mission 1: Bringing holistic transformational change to widows and the community.
HoWiCo operates through five major domains of activities to ensure that holistic attention is given to the widows and orphans:
Psychosocial Care
HoWiCo seeks to boost widows’ self-esteem and dignity through love, holistic counseling and teachings to enable them regain emotional stability and move on with decent and productive lives. The death of a husband does not render the widow worthless as she is often seen and treated.
The psychosocial care is done one on one in the office and during field visits; in groups during our annual conferences and when the widows are still on the mourning floor!(see pictures above).
Orphans Sponsorship Program
HoWiCo provides education for poor orphans with little or no possibility of ever attending school. Deserving orphans are given a future through scholarships to enable them acquire formal education or learn professional life skills for gainful employment.
HoWiCo started with 8 orphans in 2001, and as at 2022, she has sponsored over 500 orphans at various levels of education from primary to university. Some of them are presently in schools. Many are already working. Yet many are still stranded!
The orphans are completely equipped for school and their tuition paid. Sometimes blankets, bush lamps and kerosene are provided in extreme cases of desperation.
HWOM sponsors other orphans through vocational training in areas such as dressmaking, hairdressing, carpentry; motor mechanics etc. in order to enable them become self-employed.
Charity Program
Charity is reserved only for cases of extreme desperation. This is done through provision of basic needs of life such as shelter; food and clothing to rescue them from misery and enable them regain stability and move on with live.
The Joy of receiving the gift of a blanket or bush lamp!
Economic Empowerment of Younger Widows for Self-Reliance
Economic Empowerment Is To Be Preferred Over Charity As Much As Possible
In Cameroon as in most parts of Africa, a woman, once married, becomes the property of her husband and his family. Upon the death of a husband, all marital assets revert to his family and this can lead to his widow facing homelessness, loss of livelihood and rejection. In an effort to assist such widows, HoWiCo trains the younger widows on income generating activities, and provides them with startup funds where possible, to enable them become self-reliant thus reducing their total dependence on public charity which often come with strings attached.
Training on production and packaging of home-made products for commercial purposes. The above pictures show training of widows on powdered soap & Coconut oil.
Empowerment on small livestock – goats and pigs, Selling of firewood, Frying, selling Puff-Puff.
Provision of farming implements to ease crop cultivation; Improved Seeds to increase yields.
Medical Support
Due to economic hardship, widows and orphans become a vulnerable group as it concerns HIV & AIDS and stress related illnesses such as High Blood Pressure, diabetes, etc. In collaboration with local medical services, HoWiCo carries out teachings on stress-related illnesses; sensitization on HIV & AIDS, voluntary counseling and testing for widows and orphans in various communities when possible. Infected widows and orphans are assisted with medication and others advised to join existing support groups for better medical care. This is in an effort to help them maintain good health.
Hope for Widows and the Community (HoWiCo)
Mission 2: Empowering local churches to care for widows in their midst and community as a biblical mandate
Holistic and Practical Ministry to Widows
(And Other Less Privileged People)
In Every Local Church!
Although the care for widows and orphans is a Biblical mandate for the church (James 1:27, 1Timothy 5:3-16; Acts 6:1-7)), the church seems to have forgotten it or is not meeting God’s expectations. We facilitate capacity building seminars for local church pastors and leaders to enable them become intentional about the care for widows and orphans in their local churches/community in a holistic, structured and practical way.
Hope for Widows and the Community (HoWiCo)
Mission 3: Raising community awareness, advocating and challenging the status quo.
HoWiCo seeks to support, protect and promote the interests of widows and orphans whenever possible. We use every available forum to decry the plight of widows, educate people to change their attitudes towards widows from oppressive to supportive; promote policy reforms and encourage traditional leaders to sift and abolish negative traditional practices that increase the problems of widows. These include denial of widows’ inheritance rights, the demand of exorbitant bride prices, obnoxious mourning practices, widow inheritance, etc. that tie women and widows in bondage.
We also promote policy reforms at church and government levels. We educate on the importance of marriage certificates, and building healthy families that support one another in time of need All these are in an effort to ease the plight of widows and orphans, and assist them to live decent and fulfilled lives.
Educative Radio/TV programmess, meetings with traditional rulers, Churches, and communities on the plight of widows & orphans and the way forward!
To see sample of eight resolutions compiled by a community after our two-day workshop with them.
