Women's Stories for Women
Her Name is Regina
Through Women for Women International, Regina helps to improve the health of her community.
She eventually did, and with her second husband, she had a son and three daughters. However, she became unhappy in her marriage and decided to leave. "I realized that he was not supportive of me, so I left him and went back to live with my brother. I tried to be independent of my husband."
Regina enrolled in the program in April 2013 and has not only benefited from it personally, but has helped to make important changes in her community. "The lessons on health and wellness opened my eyes to the importance of cleanliness in keeping me and those around me healthy. Before the training, I was not aware of basic hygiene and would only quickly rinse utensils before serving food. I realized this was a risk for my family, as the utensils would not be clean and would put my family at risk of disease," says Regina.
Regina taught her family about keeping their home clean. "My children help me sweep our compound and the rooms, and wash all the clothes and utensils. I constructed a rack to dry utensils after washing."
Regina also realized that the well where her family and her community fetches its water was very dirty, and nobody had taken responsibility for it. Concerned about the risk of dirty drinking water, Regina decided to take action. "I engaged other women in the community to help them understand the need for clean water, and we agreed to clean the well and also use water purifiers like chlorine and water guard in our homes for drinking water."
With the help of other members in her community, she also plans to deepen their shallow water well and keep it clean. This will help it to retain water during the dry season as well as to prevent disease. "I will continue mobilizing other women in the community in utilizing the lessons I have learned, and I hope many more of them will be part of the training." Regina has become a leader in her community, and her actions continue to have a ripple effect in contributing to other women and families in her community.
Women for Women International
Email: general@womenforwomen.org
Website: womenforwomen.org
Location: 2000 M St NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC, United States
Phone: 202.737.7705