BAKARI MARIAM BUSTEKA

Mariam was born in 1948 in a family of three children, growing up in a home where her mother passed away during her early childhood.

She did not attend school because formal education for girls was not prioritized during her youth. Her daily responsibilities centered entirely around farming, gathering firewood, and handling household chores.

After childhood, she spent her days engaged in manual farming tasks to secure daily sustenance. There were no formal employment opportunities available, leaving her reliant on cultivating the land for survival.

She married in Maragoli, Vihiga County, and gave birth to five children, though two passed away, leaving her to raise three surviving children—two daughters and one son. Raising her children became an immense struggle after her husband died, and while her surviving adult children now have families of their own, they lack stable jobs and can no longer afford to support her.

She came to know Mama Ibado when the founder visited struggling elderly residents in Alkareem. Mariam attended the meeting that was called, expressed her daily struggles, and after a home visit to ascertain her condition, she was officially enrolled into the seniors program to receive monthly food rations of maize flour, porridge flour, sugar, tea leaves, salt, and cooking oil.

"I thank this child of her mother and father... she has provided me with sustenance and continues to provide for me."

Mariam still needs ongoing assistance because chronic health conditions like arthritis, ulcers, and leg swelling limit her ability to work and sustain herself independently.