Page 8 - Demo

Roza was born and raised in Uzbekistanand attended culinary school there withthe hope of becoming a professionalbaker. After she graduated, she marrieda man from Kyrgyzstan, her parents%u2019native land, and she and her husband decidedto live and raise a family there. However, in anew country, surrounded by strangers, Roza lostconfidence in her pastry-making skills. She limitedherself to taking only small orders for baked goods,wondering how she would make ends meet as herfour children grew.That began to change when Roza got involved withthe Women%u2019s Public Union Erayim project TakingOur Lives Into Our Hands, which is supported byyour gifts to ELCA World Hunger. The project aimsto improve the livelihoods of people living in remoteareas of Kyrgyzstan where job opportunities arelimited %u2014 especially young women, who can havea difficult time accessing education and vocationaltraining. The program provides agricultural toolsand training, community-building resources, supportfor women-owned businesses and more.Roza joined the Tazagul %u201cself-help%u201d group,supported by the program and composed ofwomen entrepreneurs who live on her street. Sheand her neighbors share learnings and motivationwith one another, strengthening their businessesand building community. With the encouragementof the collective, Roza gained the self-assurancenecessary to lead the group in establishinga confectionary business. Your gifts to ELCAWorld Hunger helped the women purchase theequipment they needed to get started, includingan oven, a mixer and a deep fryer. Eventuallythe group were able to use their own money topurchase a refrigerator, a table and new electricwiring in their kitchen.Every day, Roza and her colleagues sell cakes,pastries, gingerbread and other sweets to membersof their community. All this is possible because ofthe support of donors such as you. %u201cWithout thehelp of the project and the Tazagul self-help group,I would not have been so successful,%u201d Roza says. %u201cIam very grateful!%u201dAs Roza%u2019s pastry orders get bigger, her confidenceis returning too. %u201cI am not afraid to plan and setbig goals for myself,%u201d she says. Thanks to yourgenerosity, when Roza thinks aboutthe future now, she feelsconfidence in the growingstrength of her community,her family and herself.You support programs, including education and vocational training, that help peoplefacing hunger, homelessness and other challenges to access jobs, increase theirearning potential and break the cycle of poverty for good.Rising confidence in KyrgyzstanLIVELIHOOD%u201cI am not afraid to planand set big goalsfor myself.%u201d%u2014Roza8 | LifeLines