Family Fast Day is on Friday 4 October.
Around the world, people like Bernadette – despite the incredibly difficult things they’ve lived through, whether it’s conflict, climate change, poverty or social injustice – are finding ways to learn new skills.
This Family Fast Day, you can help more people like Bernadette and Daniel learn new skills and get the education they need to fulfil their potential and thrive.
Bernadette with the mushrooms she grew
Bernadette was forced to flee from her home in Walikale, a town in the North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, when rebels burned down the houses in her village and killed many people. She escaped from Walikale on foot with her four sons and fled across the country while she was pregnant with her fifth child. Sadly, she lost her baby, but she has been able to find a new place to live in Goma and is starting to rebuild her life. Her husband had joined the army, so he was far away from his family.
Life was very difficult for Bernadette. She had to look after all her children with little support and they often didn’t have enough food to eat. Her children were not able to go to school.
“My children had been sent home from school because I didn’t have enough money to pay for the school fees.” She went to the headmaster and told him: “Help me. I have no money, but let the children study.”
Powered by Bernadettes’s determination things changed for the better. She encountered a CAFOD-funded training centre where people can learn new skills. This is the same training centre where Daniel completed his carpentry training. She saw a group of women learning how to grow mushrooms from compost bags and she joined the mushroom group. During her training, she learnt how to cultivate mushrooms. Now she has plenty of mushrooms to eat with her family and sells the excess mushrooms for profit.
“The little money I get from selling mushrooms, I use half at home and the rest to pay for school fees for the children – and also the grandchildren, when they start studying. The mushrooms are helping a lot.”
Daniel at his workshop
Daniel's story
Daniel, who lives in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, struggled to earn a living due to a lack of opportunities and education. With the help of our local experts and a CAFOD-funded training programme, he worked hard to train as a carpenter. The training he completed has enabled him to become a successful carpenter with his own workshop.