Rosebella's Story
My name is Rosebella Auma. I am 21 years old and the middle child from a family of seven.
When I sat my K.C.P.E (Kenya Certificate of Primary Education), I studied hard to get good marks and convince my parents to send me to secondary school. Although I did well, my parents could not afford to send me . I looked to other relatives for help, but my uncle had died a few months before I sat my exams, and my aunt who I had stayed with when I was younger, would not help.
In February 2003, I heard about the Seed of Hope project. I looked for the lady who was in charge in Busia. She booked me on the next bus headed to Nairobi, where I met the administrators who took me on. There were no guarantees that even after repeating class eight I would have got a sponsor to help me. The only other option would have been for me to get married early, but I hoped this would never happened.
I joined Seed of Hope in February 2003, and for two years learned all about dressmaking, cookery, health skills and business studies. To improve my communication skills, I also took classes in English and Kiswahili.
After I graduated from Seed of Hope last year, I started to work from my house in Kibera. Seed of Hope and Johari gave me a sewing machine, charcoal iron box, needles, threads and some fabrics to get me started. I just didn't know how I would find the money for the rent. But in June 2005, one of the Seed of Hope sponsors funded a trip to Scotland for me. I visited schools, churches and families and some of the people I met kindly gave me money. I used some of the money to open the shop and the rest to make clothes for the families I had met to say thank you.
I find business tough and it's sometimes difficult to get customers, but I will not give up. With Seed of Hope's continued support and my determination, I know I can succeed.