The Women of Hope mission of Healing Hands International recognizes that positive change in struggling communities often begins with the courage, determination and ambition divinely woven into the hearts of women.
Our International Staff members host training sessions worldwide, bringing encouragement and economic opportunity to women who want to rise from the generational barriers of poverty. The Women of Hope program offers business classes, savings strategies, revolving loans and vocational instruction, often inspiring home-based, start-up endeavors and group projects that naturally bring more women into the fold, multiplying the blessings on the futures of these communities.
Joy Idongesir Edem (pictured, above) recently attended a training session in Nigeria. She and her fellow students learned reproducible skills like cake-baking, soap-making and techniques for making and packaging petroleum jelly. With diversified options, Joy can identify local market needs and lower her financial risks, staying relevant as demand shifts.
Joy describes the freedom brought on by her newfound success supplying marketable products to stores, and even selling her wares to passers-by in front of her own home: “I have been able to supply shop-to-shop liquid soap and [petroleum jelly] and cakes. Before now I didn’t buy anything on my own, due to lack of money. I also keep some in front of my house and [continue] selling… I know how to make the three things we were trained on, and I can make money with it. Thank you so much Healing Hands!”