Alice Misomali Sees Hope in her Future
Namathiya Village-Zomba, Malawi … In 1972, a baby girl was born in a family of Mr. and Mrs. Namkwenya. They named her Alice. Like many school children, Alice started at a nearby Junior Primary School in her Village. It was located 50 kilometers east of Zomba, the former Malawian Capital. The School had classes from Standard 1 to 5 only.
Alice was able to walk to and from school till she was five years old. She fell sick from a disease she can’t describe, and although she recovered from the disease, the lower parts of her legs became deformed. She had to drop out of school since she could not walk to a senior primary school several kilometers from her village.
Alice’s parents tried to teach her to walk on her own. They took her from hospital to hospital. Nothing worked. Orthopedic professionals produced no results that could help her walk.
“She was taken to Malawi Against Polio (MAP), where she was given some assistance,” her brother Mathias explained. Although it was recommended by MAP that Alice be given a wheelchair, the Institution had none in stock, nor could they fund one for her. With the limited help they were able to give, she was able to stand up on her own and move with a stick’s support up to a minimum of 100 meters also a day.
Today Alice is married and has 3 children of her own. Alice was born with an entrepreneurial mind. After receiving a wheelchair from Namikango Mission, she did not settle to just sit in the wheelchair. For the first time in her 38 years, she foresees an opportunity to create a business.
“I can now bake scones, and take them to the market to sell,” he excitedly told Wilson Tembo of the Namikango Mission. She explained how she used to baking scones and sell them to make a small amount of money. Now, that the husband is gone, (she is now a single mom trying to raise her children) life has not been easy for her to be able to take care of the three children without financial sources.
Alice expressed her gratitude for this chance to own a wheelchair. It will serve as transportation for her to get back and forth from the market. The efforts of the Malawi Project and Wheelchair Mission will lead to a major life style change for the Alice.
Wilson Isaac Tembo Richard Stephens
Namikango Mission, Malawi Project Inc.