The first day we travelled south. En route we stopped at *Sfax* for a rehearsal, and while I rehearsed, Doreen had her first home visit experience. She met a young mother of two, who had found a temporary place to stay (this ended while we were still in the country and she was heading up north the last we heard). Our social worker friend told her she should get to one of the two safe homes and from there she would be considered for sponsorship. It would be so easy for the social worker to give handouts to these girls but she stresses the importance of the girls taking responsibility for their situation as well.

Later that day we arrived in the south and visited one young mom who is in the nursing program. She was so thankful for the gifts from Canada and especially delighted with the pink stethoscope set!! She and her little son are living with her mom and sisters and her mother presented Doreen and I with beautiful rugs she had made. Her sister did “harcous” on our hands and we were given great hospitality there. It is beautiful to see how this young woman is filled with hope now. She now has relationship with her family and is dreaming of becoming a doctor!

We met the southern team and Doreen was able to share encouragement with them. They have very demanding schedules and appreciated someone giving to them! At the orphanage, we were met by several of the other young women in the sponsorship. The orphanage is a place of hope and we could feel the love the staff had for the babies. We were able to spend some time there holding the babies - and yet it was heartbreaking to put them down in their cribs and see a whole roomful of babies that are held a bit and loved a bit but could use so much more attention! That is why the sponsorship project is so important - keeping mothers with their babies so that these little ones can have the love and care that they deserve.

We went to visit a young rug weaver. "S" has three beautiful daughters and lives with her mother, a woman disabled with badly scarred legs. We heard that in a rage, her son set her on fire and burned her legs. The young mom weaves rugs outside in her courtyard. It is too hot to weave outside in the summer and so thanks to one of our sponsors, she is now being set up to silk-screen during the summer months, thus providing for herself, her girls and her mother.

We visited a saff weaver and mother of eight! She lives in a housing complex for widows and although it is a slum area, she keeps her little two-bedroom space neat and organized. Her children are doing very well in school and she is very proud of their marks. She is very thankful for the donations that came in to help her start her saff weaving business, an art she learned from her father, and she sells hats and baskets in the local market. Next Page