Written by: Tanya Lasko (Program Coordinator)
You may know that through our Malnutrition Clinics, we supply nourishing formula for infants to combat severe acute malnutrition for little ones and infants under five. What you may not know is one facet of how we accomplish that.
We call her Mama Sunday.
In Nyankunde in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, sometimes mothers die during or a few days after delivery, leaving those babies motherless and without nourishment. Or sometimes a mother has struggles to produce enough milk for her baby.
This is where Mama Sunday steps in. Rather than leave these little ones alone in the world, we partner with Mama Sunday to find an alternative solution for these motherless children. We supply all the milk for the baby’s first year, transportation costs, and Mama Sunday’s salary
Mama Sunday travels the area often, so she knows when a terrible situation has left a little one alone. She finds another household for the baby to join, whether it’s a grandparent, aunt, uncle, or neighbor, and becomes the liaison between the mother or the fostering family and our organization so we can provide the nourishing formula for the baby’s first year.
These families see Dr. Lindsey every month to ensure the babies are growing healthy and strong. Sometimes, this isn’t as smooth of a transition as it could be. It might be that the fostering family can’t manage the new responsibility of the motherless little one due to their own provision or because of work, so Mama Sunday will manage the baby’s transition and make sure the baby has everything they need in their new family situation.
Mama Sunday has an incredible heart for these motherless babies and is an asset to Saving Moses. She lives in a 100-square-foot room just outside the hospital in Nyankunde. She celebrates with the new “mothers” that the babies are thriving.
We had an end of the year meeting with some of the families of these babies to celebrate. So many people had encouraging words to share about how the program has helped them care for babies in their household.
Thank you for your support and making the care of these precious babies a reality!
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Tanya Lasko
Program Coordinator, Saving Moses
