Sodline and Stacey. They were my niece's favorite family.

Even free houses cost have a price.

Sodline Dorse Aime lives with her eleven year old daughter, Stacey. She supports her family by selling gasoline to motorcycle taxi drivers.

Every three or four weeks, she purchases a full drum of gas in Quartier Morin—about 15 minutes down the main road. She pays $3 to have it delivered, and then sells it in smaller containers.

Sodline doesn’t have enough money to buy the gasoline outright. She borrows the money and pays back the loan after she sells the gas. She keeps what’s left after covering costs.

She couldn’t afford to construct a nice house for them so she was extremely grateful for the gift. But the house did come at a cost.

	Meeting Sodline and Stacey for the first time. Sodline smiled the entire time we were there.

Sodline had to demolish her old house so that Food for the Poor could build the new one on her property. While she and Stacey waited for construction to finish, they had to move about.

They lived with a friend for a while, but had to move after her friend’s mom died and her friend was forced to move.

They stayed with another friend on days when the friend’s husband was away. But, when he was home, they had to stay elsewhere.

While they were moving about, Sodline was unable to work. As a result, she did not have the money to pay for Stacey’s first semester of school, and Stacey had to withdraw.

My stomach sank, when I heard that. “Was it worth it?” I asked, hoping they didn’t have any regrets.

“Oh, YES!” Sodline replied, smiling broadly and laughing while she spoke. “It was a necessary sacrifice. Now we have a beautiful house. Thank you. Thank you so much!”

Sodline told us that she and Stacey love to invite their friends to visit. They are proud to be able to offer a place to stay for friends who are in the same situation they were once in.

Sodline gave us a tour of their house. When we went out back, I gasped.

“I love that she sees the water right there,” Kate remarked.

I was in heaven. “That is gorgeous! And she has mountains! That is my dream to live someplace where I can see mountains and water. I don’t have any mountains or water.”

“Come and live with me!” Stacey said, beckoning me with her hands.

“She’s got room,” I said with a grin. I have no doubt that her offer was sincere.

So what’s next? 40 projects to provide each family a better way to sustain themselves. Please consider investing in the future of one of these families. Your return will be worth it!

Paula Mueller

Click here to Help 40 Families Escape Extreme Poverty.

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