After losing everything in Cyclone Freddy, Felesta feared she would never rebuild. But together with your support, we can make it happen.
A frying pan. A mug. Some clothes. A few pots and pans. And a dilapidated tent. This is all 90-year-old grandmother, Felesta has left to rebuild a life with for herself and her grandchildren.
In the spring of last year, Tropical Cyclone Freddy tore through several countries, leaving a path of destruction across Malawi. The small rural village of Namchidwa, near Mulanje, where Felesta lives, was decimated.
It was the longest-lasting cyclone ever recorded and the deadliest on record for Africa, killing at least 1,200 people in Malawi alone and leaving over half a million people without a home.
After surviving the initial aftermath, Felesta and her grandchildren were now homeless. Their home, their modest belongings, the life they had built, had all been washed away.
For several months, the family has been living in a tent. Nights spent on unforgiving, hard ground, enduring searing heat in the day and bitter cold at night. When it rains, water leaks through.
There’s no secure, lockable door to keep them safe. Food and clean water are scarce.
This is no way for a grandmother, or indeed for anyone, to live.
This is why we, Habitat for Humanity, exist. It’s why your support matters – for other human beings who so desperately need someone to be there for them, for shattered communities in need of rebuilding, for people like Felesta.
Your support is everything.
Alongside her belongings of some clothes, a mug, and some pans, Felesta will soon be able to add another possession to that list: a Habitat for Humanity home.