Mangochi TOTs construct house for an epilepsy victim

By Stanley Mpasa

It was like a dream for Mary Chauya to see a group of men and women coming to her house with hoes, shovels and other building materials. At first she was afraid because she did not know the mission of the group. But these men and women were not strangers; they were the Trainer of Trainers (TOTs) who came to construct a house for her. When Mary learn t about the mission, she said it was the most exciting moment of her life.

 Mary Chauya, 63 hails from Mwalembe Village in Traditional Authority in Magnochi District. She has a history of epilepsy which stroke her when she was a teen. Her situation was aggravated when she burned her arms after unconsciously falling into the fire. One of her arms was amputated later after it failed to respond to treatment. A few years after her amputation, she fell into the fire again while cooking and burned the remaining arm. It was later amputated.

Mary, left  and her mother in front of their old house

Mary found it difficult to cope with life because she lost all the abilities that hands could do. To make matters worse, her husband deserted her. She is now the household head, looking after three children of her late sister and her aged mother. Mary’s story attracted the attention of the Maranatha TOTs in Mangochi who visited her frequently and gave her psychosocial support. The TOTs further arranged for Marys’ appearance on the popular ‘Reach out and Touch’ television program on the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation. Reach out and touch program features people with most heart-rending physical conditions with the aim of appealing for support from well-wishers.  The plan worked and Mary was featured on the program. Meanwhile, the TOTs assessed the immediate needs for Mary and discovered her house was on the verge of collapsing and they took it as the most instant need. 

Marys new house

The TOTs began mobilizing resources for the construction of the house from well-wishers while narrating Mary’s story. The group managed to raise K163, 000 (about $362) enough for early stages of construction work.  The house is now almost complete and the TOTs continue lobbying for more funds to make it complete for habitation.

The ADRA Malawi TOT Project is being supported by ADRA Sweden to bring about individual and society change among the those infected and affected by HIV and AIDS