E - is for Empower

E in our HOPE Building Model stands for Empower

Empowerment is big on the social transformation agenda- usually around education and job creation. Much needed interventions. But perhaps empowerment is not as simple as an intervention. Perhaps it is a process. A process that is about the marginalized owing and solving their problems for themselves.

It was in January this year before school was to start. We met with all the caregivers of our 11 bursary children. 2 children were starting at St. Nicholas’ for the first time. Their uniform, stationery and fees were provided by the bursary, but we needed to make sure they had other items they needed for boarding, such as a suitcase and duvet cover. We are always cautious about providing handouts, but we felt in this case we must help in providing some of those items. But before we discussed this with them, we were so humbled by one caregiver. Beaming, she told us how our social worker had inspired her to find solutions to her problems. This lady told us that since she had found out that the child in her care had been given this bursary, she had put aside all her grant money to pay towards what the children needed for boarding school. They had had to go without, but they had survived. She had also approached family and friends to see if they had items to contribute. Everything on the list was ticked off. She had made it happen! And the process of her solving the issue of provision had made her more confident in herself. She had discovered more of her own positive power.

This is our final element of the HOPE Building Model- E is for Empower. It challenges us not to look to solve problems for others, tick the box and move on. It helps us see that for a marginalized person the process of solving a problem, and the positive power grown in them along in the way, is far more valuable than someone providing the best solution possible.

Perhaps there is someone we can encourage and journey with today in their ability to solve their own problems?