Meet Gaspard

Gaspard is a thin, quiet man whose continuous smile is contagious. He lives in Kirundo, northern Burundi, with his wife and nine children. Last year during the famine, Gaspard was especially concerned about his youngest daughter who was sick from malnourishment. He was worried that he would have to leave his home and travel to Rwanda to find employment to provide for himself and his family. Thankfully, he was approached by the director of a new Help Channel Burundi-sponsored tree nursery in his community and was given employment. He was also thankful for the food that he received in payment for his labour: cans of lean turkey meat provided by Mennonite Central Committee and flour purchased with funds from American Friends Service Committee. With this food he was able to nourish his daughter and have her discharged from the malnourishment centre, and he could provide for the rest of his family as well. With employment in his own commune, he is able to remain living at home with his family, and is meaningfully contributing to the restoration of the surrounding environment through the growing and planting of trees. Having worked hard, he has been able to save up and sell enough extra cans of turkey to purchase a small plot of coffee that will be a sustainable source of revenue. He hopes that his efforts at the nursery will help to ensure food and water security in the future so that he and his commune will not experience another famine like last year. He also hopes that the food-for-work program will continue until there is a greater measure of food security in his province.