Grace
The path to success is different for every child. For Grace the path has been a bumpy one filled with detours.
Grace and her family were living in deep poverty in rural Uganda when they were enrolled in the Family to Family Program. It was 2015 and Grace was in primary school. She was older than her classmates because she had only attended school sporadically and had some learning challenges. She continued to struggle academically and despite her best efforts, she found herself as a 15 year old in Primary 3.
She and her family met with our Give Us Wings Uganda staff and charted a path for her. Tailoring courses at a nearby technical school would offer her a chance to learn some basic sewing skills and an opportunity to eventually generate some income. Grace was enrolled, then COVID happened, and the school was shut down for many months. Then it reopened, closed again, over and over. Grace was discouraged but not deterred. She eventually finished at the tailoring school and was able to sew lovely dresses for her mother.
In 2024, as the final part of her enrollment in the Family to Family program, Give Us Wings bought Grace a sewing machine, some fabric, thread, and scissors, and also connected her with a local tailor/business owner, Manjeri, to serve as her mentor. And while it is unlikely that Grace will ever own her own business, she now has the tools and confidence she needs to make some money with her sewing skills. And she has the support and encouragement she needs to keep moving forward down her own path.
