Stories
Following God’s Voice: from Books to Burundi
After years of faithfully loving Burundian widows, our friend Helen and her husband were able to join a team traveling to Burundi in 2017. Here, Helen shares their beautiful story… We ducked through the doorway, away from the heat, blinding sunlight and dozens of chattering, laughing children. In the small, dim house, two chairs…
Read MoreA New Chapter: Opportunity for Independence
After Solange’s husband died, she lived in a small hut with grass roof. When it rained, it rained inside. Left without any opportunity to earn an income, and the low status of a widow, she had no way to provide for her children. Every day she struggled to get food and clothing, let alone…
Read MoreBlessed to be a Blessing
“We are blessed to be a blessing.” How many times have I heard that familiar refrain in my mind as I try to reconcile the poverty I see in Burundi with the wealth I see in America? A humbling experience at this summer’s widow’s retreat showed me that our Burundian sisters may understand their blessings…
Read MoreFinding Divine Love
A few days ago, Sister Connection’s Burundian staff and I visited Godeliva, a widow who is now one of our social workers. Godeliva was one of the first widows sponsored through Sister Connection. By the love and provision of both Christ and her sponsors, she found healing and dignity, so that at the end of…
Read MoreAnastasie’s First Shoes
Yesterday, I witnessed a woman receive the first pair of shoes she has ever owned. Yes, her first pair of shoes. To most of us, new shoes aren’t a big deal. But not for Anastasie. Growing up as an orphan herself, having shoes has been the least of her concerns. This is her story- “I was born in…
Read MoreEvelyne’s New Chapter
One Burundian Widow’s Journey from Hopelessness to Independence There’s something exciting about January. It’s a new year. A blank slate right in front of you. You get to turn the page and start a new chapter, this time titled 2017, where a new story is just waiting to be written. This January, a woman named…
Read MoreA Letter from Tama
I have learned many life changing lessons since I began my walk and work with the Sister Connection ministry. I thank God every day for the opportunities HE has provided me, and for this work I love so much. I have come to understand, however, that HIS purpose in calling me to Burundi transcends the…
Read MoreBusking in Burundi
Intrigued I lean forward in my chair at the front of the meeting room watch the children who are leading the singing the dancing. I decide to learn the feet first and try to make my feet copy what I see moving them surreptitiously under my chair. Loose left foot right foot to the front…
Read MoreWhy Burundi?
After more than a decade of civil strife, thousands of Burundian women are widows. In a country that is one of the poorest in the world*, their children are fatherless, and their families are without provisions. Not only that, but in Burundian culture, widows are outcasts. Often they are rejected by family. They have no…
Read More10 Questions about Caring for Widows in Burundi
When Jeremy Williams visited Burundi with Sister Connection he had many questions about how Burundi’s history has contributed to the plight of it’s widows. Here he answers 10 of them. Were there a variety of different wars going on or is it one main war? The civil war in Burundi, which began as an attempt…
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