The Gift of Dignity

You shall give due honor and respect to the elderly, in the fear of God.
_{Leviticus 19:32 TLB}

Imagine your mother or grandmother living in a home for the elderly that has no indoor toilet facilities. Her only option is to use the outdoor latrine which has no flush toilet. But what does she do in the middle of the night? For that, they offer her a bucket.

The above scenario does not exist in our modern western culture. Such a place would be shut down as not “fit” to care for the elderly.  Yet it is the harsh reality in East Africa.

In African culture, elderly people are traditionally cared for by the family. There is no common practice of sending the aged to live in a “home” to be cared for by non-family members. However, what happens to those who have no family left to care for them? Perhaps they outlived their children or never had children at all. Unable to continue working to earn a living, many would end up begging on the street for food.

It was this exact situation that caused the local government in Moshi, Tanzania to set up a “Nyumba ya Wazee” or Home for the Elderly a few decades ago. Everyone living there qualified for residency by having no other family to help them. It is a humble place, with multiple buildings built of concrete blocks, in which two elderly people each share a small room. The compound was set up with outdoor latrines as described above. They have running water available outside at a spigot, but no indoor sinks, toilets, or showers. Life is lived very simply.

Hidden with Christ Ministries became familiar with this Home for the Elderly many years ago. Our children from Treasures of Africa Children’s Home would go each Christmas to bring gifts to these lonely and often forgotten souls. Over the last two years, HWCM has taken a serious interest in helping the elderly through our REHEMA PROJECTS. (REHEMA is the Swahili word for MERCY)

It was our deep desire to help remedy this lack of indoor bathrooms and bring some dignity back to these precious senior citizens. Because of some very generous donations to our REHEMA PROJECTS – we were able to begin the construction of indoor bathrooms at this Home for the Elderly. It was a huge undertaking. We hired a well-respected contractor who had a heart for the project, and with his diligent effort, this project came to fruition.

To say that the residents were thrilled with the shiny new bathrooms, sinks and showers, would be an understatement. We can honestly say they are the nicest bathrooms in town! The local government officials were so amazed and grateful when they inspected the project, that they sent Hidden with Christ Ministries a “Certificate of Appreciation.”

The Bible tells us to “give due honor and respect to the elderly …” and we believe this extends to the elderly in our communities. Though this was a very unusual project for HWCM to undertake – we are very grateful to all our donors who helped us give the gift of dignity back to these dear grandmothers and grandfathers in Tanzania.

The next project that we hope to undertake at this Home for the Elderly, is to build an outdoor Dining Gazebo where the residents can take their meals under the cover of shade but with the benefit of fresh air. Currently, the residents eat in their rooms, while sitting on their beds, because they have no room for a table and chairs. There is also the continual problem of spilled food residue attracting rodents. We are having the same contractor draw up plans for this next project. Please consider donating to our REHEMA PROJECTS to help us provide this blessing to the forgotten elderly in Moshi, Tanzania. Click here to donate.