Your Impact in Togo

Twice a month, Davi brings her daughter to the Compassion Nurturers center for group activities. What they’re learning is transforming life at home! Mothers receive training on the importance of immunizations, baby health monitoring, nutrition, child protection, income-generation skills, breastfeeding support, hygiene and more. Babies spend their time in stimulation rooms, visiting doctors and getting extra love and prayers from staff.

Yawa is thriving thanks to the support she is receiving at the center. She is sitting on her own and is eagerly trying to crawl. She’s grabbing objects and playing with toys in the stimulation rooms and at home.

Yawa isn’t the only one flourishing thanks to the center. “The teachings they provide are also beneficial in our daily lives,” Davi says. She’s learning useful skills like conflict resolution that have changed her home environment.

“I used to pick a quarrel often with my husband, and I would throw him tons of insults, and he wanted to divorce,” she says. “However, with the teachings, I learned to be patient and listen to him so that we understand each other. My husband and I now rarely have disputes.”

The center activities create warm and supportive communities for these mothers as they navigate life with their babies. Consistent group support is vital to these new mothers who connect during their visits, sharing stories and prayer requests for their families. The results of this support are evident.

“Everything is fine, and we are no longer in need. The center workers assist us in our difficult times,” Davi says. “The different support they provide us through food basket distribution, hygiene kits for the baby and the house and medical care have eased so much pain in our lives.”

Mawulawoe, another mother in the Compassion Nurturers center in Togo, has experienced the power of a supportive community through the other mothers and Compassion Nurturers center staff. When her business collapsed, Mawulawoe struggled to provide meals and financial support for her family, including her niece Emmanuella.

“I don’t have the capacity to provide for Emmanuella’s needs. Having food at home is very challenging, but the food kits I receive monthly from the Compassion center help me navigate through moments of need,” she says.

Baby Emmanuella is growing beautifully. She pulls herself up and is trying her best to start walking, though she travels well without taking her first steps just yet. “Emmanuella often crawls from the room to come to me in the courtyard,” says Mawulawoe.

Compassion Nurturers center staff members focus lessons on building strong homes, friendships and a sense of community togetherness. Caregivers like Mawulawoe are building relationship skills that are vital when raising children and managing a home.

“I am so grateful for the Compassion Nurturer center activities because I have seen how it has changed many mothers’ lives,” says Dzigbodi, a Compassion Nurturers center staff member in the community. “Many of them have lived lonely and abandoned. At the center, they learned to socialize and live in a community.”

Through the support from the Compassion center groups, Mawulawoe has found happiness and hope.

“I find my joy in the Compassion center activities. Before I was enrolled, I used to be lonely, sad, shy and withdrawn. You would never see me smile,” she says. “However, the group activities at the center have changed my perspective on life. I have found joy and happiness. Even alone at home, I don’t feel lonely anymore.”