Jalia’s Family Story, Uganda (FVP story 2021.14)
One day over lunch Shanitah, a member of Jalia’s household, shared her life story. She left school at the age of 15. Like many girls, Shanitah’s parents weren’t able to provide sanitary products for her let alone school fees. Many girls miss school due to lack of sanitary wear.
Jalia, her husband, daughter and Shanitah planned a Family Volunteers for Peace project that seeks to restore hope to less privileged girls attending a Universal Primary Education (UPE) school in her neighborhood. Shanitah expressed strong support for the project. She believes efforts like Jailia’s Family Volunteer for Peace project can help more girls stay in school.
Together they arranged a meeting with girls at a local school, raised funds, and shopped for sanitary pads to distribue. Jalia decided to talk to the girls about personal hygiene, career guidance, and tips and stories on how to stay in school and be successful in life. There were challenges, but seeing so many girls missing school, Jalia’s family could not give up. They planned to meet 30 students, but because of the pandemic, they only met 15 girls. A week later schools closed down.
But, the family got to hold a special workshop for the students, distribute the sanitary products and plant four lemon trees together around the school grounds. “If they grow, they can create shade for the kids and in the future, maybe our daughter who is now 2 can enjoy the same,” said Jalia. Jalia’s daughter was so excited during the project. She even helped hand out sweets at the end of the workshop.
The workshop was a good start to assessing the needs of girls students at the school and seeking to build ways to help parents, teachers and school staff support the students. Jalia’s family is planning to continue the visits after schools open up again.
“The deeds most loved by Allah are those done regularly even if they are small.” We need to have ordinary people doing extra ordinary things that will make them extraordinary than having enough ordinary people doing nothing. You do not need to be rich enough to do this, but just be rich at heart. Nanziri Jalia Muntu, Asst Admin JLICU Mbarara Agency