PROJECT #178
Project #178 | Rehabilitation and Family Reunification for Vulnerable Children
Our partnership with Hope for Life
In the surrounding areas of Kigali, Rwanda, it is estimated that 3,000 children experience homelessness on a daily basis. The average child experiencing this is a boy between the ages of 11-14, although children as young as 4 have been identified. In order to survive homelessness, children spend their days begging or performing small jobs, and may resort to violence and petty theft. At night, a common sleeping place is in underground sewer gutters as they provide protection from both violence and the cold. While the majority of children have at least one living parent, homelessness is especially prevalent due to the presence of abuse, neglect, and/or extreme poverty at home. So, child homelessness may be the result of family disfunction, a child’s choice to run away, or any number of diverse factors.
One Day’s Wages partnered with Hope for Life to equip children with the necessary skills, social support, and resiliency to transition out of homelessness and break the cycle of poverty. During their time in the Rehabilitation Program, each child’s basic needs are met in full including a safe home, food, clothing, medical care, spiritual discipleship, and education. A social worker works with each child to help locate any relatives they have and undergo the process of family reconciliation. On reunification, holistic support continues in partnership with the whole family to ensure ongoing healing; this includes economic empowerment, psycho-social support, and more. Teachers and tutors ensure each child is receiving the attention and developing the skills they need to be able to flourish. In addition, counselors help each child process the trauma of their past and work toward realizing that they are valuable and loved.
Our collective impact
Children Enrolled in Traditional or Vocational School
% of Reintegrations were Successful
Children Served
Meet Obed
Experiencing extreme poverty on a chronic basis, Obed frequently stole food to help feed his family until he was eventually caught and arrested. Following overcrowding at the government institution, he was referred to Hope for Life in 2016. Since then, Obed has been part of our Rehabilitation Program where he continues to work on his healing journey and reconnect with family. According to his therapist, “when I first met him, he wouldn’t talk to me, because he was really shy. One day, I was sitting in the playroom, and he came in and sat next to me. He began to tell me about his dream of becoming the best soccer player in Rwanda. He also told me how much he loved gymnastics. From then on, every day at 2 PM he and I walk down to the soccer field where he shows me new moves he’s working on. He has become very friendly with everyone.”
Thank you for making this possible!
Our movement is grassroots, to us that not only means the work on the ground is led by local leaders with the support of the community, but it also means that we raise the funds for our projects through everyday donors just like you. In addition to all the donors that gave $25, $100, or $250 and the campaigners that ran a race or donated their birthday to raise funds, we also want to thank our generous business, school, and faith sponsors who believed in our work and joined the movement.
If you want to support future projects like this you can make a donation to our children’s education fund.
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One Day’s Wages exists to alleviate extreme poverty by investing in, amplifying, and coming alongside locally led organizations in underserved communities.
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