Dorica Bunyoli Igadwa

In the bustling slums of Majengo, Kakamega, the air is filled with the calls of traders and the scent of fresh produce. Amid the noise and chaos, one small vegetable stall stands quietly resilient, a lifeline for both its owner and her children. Behind the stall is Dorica Igadwa, a soft-spoken mother whose journey is etched with hardship and courage

Dorica’s story begins in Tiriki, where poverty defined her childhood. “I did not go to school,” she recalls. “My mother was poor, and we survived by tilling people’s land.” From an early age, she learned that survival demanded hard work, sacrifice, and endurance.

Marriage in Maragoli, Vihiga County, promised a chance at stability, but life had other plans. After relocating to Majengo, Kakamega, with her husband, tragedy struck. Her husband fell ill and died suddenly, leaving Dorica widowed with seven children and no steady source of income.

Since then, every day has been a balancing act of survival. Dorica sells vegetables in Majengo market, piecing together meager earnings to feed her family and pay rent. But her burdens are heavy. One of her children lives with a disability, while the rest are jobless, and their cramped single-room house barely accommodates them all. Each new day brings a fresh reminder of the thin line between survival and despair.

Yet in the midst of this struggle, Dorica has found an anchor of support. Through the Mama Ibado Charity seniors’ feeding program, she receives food essentials such as flour, rice, cooking oil, salt, tea leaves, and sugar.

“To me, this help is more than food; it is relief, dignity, and hope,” she says softly. “The food I receive feeds me and my children. I am truly grateful. I pray for blessings upon Mama Ibado Charity. They have been so kind to me, even without knowing me personally.”