In 2001 Oyundelger came to visit me in my office. She had recently left an abusive alcoholic husband and was currently staying with 15 other ladies in an apartment paid for by Woman's Center Against Violence, a local NGO that helps women like her. She had heard about ADRA and was wondering if ADRA would be able to help her get back on her feet. After visiting with her for some time I felt impressed to help her with a loan of $80 for a sewing machine and the first materials for her sewing business. We helped her find accommodation where her husband would not find her. A few weeks later she came to show us the first jackets she had sown on her little Russian sewing machine. We were impressed by the quality. I took some photos. Then, we lost contact with Oyundelger for the next 3 years when we moved our ADRA offices to a new location. I always wondered how she was doing.

This week she walked in the door and immediately I recognized her. She was beaming and now a very self confident business lady whose cell phone rang during her visit with me. She said she had come to say thank you to ADRA. She had bought a piece of ground and after living in a ger (felt hut) on it for a while she had made enough from sewing to build a small house. She was able to get help for her husband and has taken him back again. She said that she wanted to repay the kindness shown to her by teaching other abused ladies how to sow. We are looking for a place to rent and would love to purchase some more of those amazing $70 Russian sewing machines so other battered mothers can have the same opportunity to sew and gain security once more.

It is amazing what such a small investment in a person can do!

"Be generous: Invest in acts of charity. Charity yields high returns. Don’t hoard your goods; spread them around. Be a blessing to others. This could be your last night." Ecclesiastes 11:1-10 (The Message)

Llewellyn Juby - January, 2005