In a world where extreme poverty is still a stark reality for millions, stories of hope and inspiration are like rays of sunshine breaking through a dark and stormy sky. One such story comes from Muhanga District in Rwanda, where Hope of Family NGO has been a lifeline for many struggling to survive. Nsabimana Theogene is just one of the many individuals whose life has been transformed by Hope of Family support.

Mr. Nsabimana Theogene is 49 years old, married, with four children. He lives in Kabungo Village, Kinini Cell, Shyogwe Sector in Muhanga District.

He says that Hope of Family came to his family when his family was almost nowhere.

 “I was so poor that even buying soap was a problem. Supporting a family was not easy because I could not earn anything even though I had a job. I was not seeing any results.” He said.

"After Hope of Family came to our rescue, they trained us initially.” Mr. Nsabimana said.

 One of the favorite training that Nsamibimana went through was about visiting children at school as part of parental involvement in Children’s education.

According to Mr. Nsabimana, having understood the reason why he should visit his children at school yielded positive outcomes that have been linked to higher academic achievement.

“After they taught us the importance of visiting children at school, I did it but in a short time I saw a change.” He said.

“The results were so good that my eldest child immediately passed the exams and is now studying in the first year of Secondary.” Mr. Nsabimana revealed.

“My child's success is thanks to the Hope of Family because if they didn't train me I wouldn't know my role in my child's education.” He added.

Aside from the fact that Hope of Family has assisted this family in their children's education, there has also been an endeavor to seek additional aid to enhance the family's overall welfare and improve the child's well-being.

“They provided us with school supplies for our children, including shoes, clothes, and notebooks. Additionally, we were asked to pay for our children's school lunches, which I couldn't afford. However, the HoF sponsored us by paying for the meals.” Nsabimana explained.

After ensuring that their children received a good education, the Nsabimana family began to reap the benefits of being a beneficiary of Hope of Family.

In my state of despair, the help from HoF made me feel alive again. They constructed a kitchen garden which now allows my family to consume vegetables. My family no longer suffers from a lack of vegetables because we are able to grow them. Additionally, they built a toilet for us as I was unable to do it myself. Even the cell management personnel kept urging me to construct a toilet, but I was unable to do so.  HoF renovated my house after a long suffering from living in extremely damaged house caused by natural disasters." Mr. Nsabimana testified.

“Everything they did to us was combined with training. They taught us about maintaining good relationships with our friends and neighbors. As a result, my home life is improving, and I am confident that it will continue to do so.” He added.

"They also took us to the community library where we were given knowledge that would aid in our development. I received training on banana plant care as I had a non-productive plot. After the training, I have noticed a significant improvement in my results," testified Nsabimana.

"I did not have any domestic animals. The HoF provided me with a pig, which I continued to take care of and it provided me with fertilizer. The pig they gave me has since given birth about four times. I managed to sell the piglets and used the money for other family needs." He continues

After they did all this for us, they put us in saving and loan groups. Each group consists of 25 people. They have deposited funds for each group's account in the Bank, so now when I need a loan, I go to the group and explain to them, they give me a loan form and fill it and take the loan via saving and loan group.

I have hope that in the coming days my family life will be happy. Yes, people face challenges, but when you cry and someone hears you, it is a very important thing. I used to be a depressed person but now I have great happiness in the family.

In addition to the pig he received from the HoF, now Mr. Nsabimana Theogene was able to buy chickens and with the loan he got from the group, his wife is selling some cagua clothes to make a living He says.

Despite more remaining tasks to graduate from the extreme poverty and creating a favorable environment for Nsabimana’s Children Education, his story is truly inspiring.

Their journey from homeless, illiteracy and Extreme poverty to empowerment is a testament to the power of collaborative effort between Hope of Family and its partners, the main one being WovenFoundation.