In the spirit of the yuletide season, the Hands of God Widows Support Initiative (HOGWIN) has smiles on the faces of vulnerable and often neglected members of society. As part of its programme for the year, the Non-Governmental Organisation launched its foodbank project for widows.

The event which was held on Saturday, December 17, 2022, featured the presentation of food items and other goodies to the widows to help have a quality yuletide celebration with their families.

Speaking about the initiative, Phranklin Audu, Executive Director of HOGWIN noted that the vision of the NGO is to become a beacon of hope for widows across Africa and, through its numerous programs, highlight the plight of widows and advocate the recognition of their basic rights.

“Christmas is a time of giving and sharing and so we thought there is no better way to express our thoughts towards these. The idea behind our Christmas foodbank program is to ensure each widow beneficiary is able to enjoy a decent Christmas meal with their children,” Audu said.

Widows, who expressed gratitude to HOGWIN for looking out for them, especially in the face of harsh economic realities, also shared their experiences and encouraged one another to continue to hope on God for support while also developing themselves to become better people.

They also called on the government and other well-meaning members of society to do the same.

Monica Obaseki recently widowed, shared the sad tale of her experience in the hands of her in-laws since the demise of her husband. She has struggled to raise her son in the university with her low-paying teaching job. She prays the government enforces the laws on the protection of the rights of widows as she hopes society will be kinder to widows. Another beneficiary, Mrs. Nelson Widowed for eleven years expressed profound gratitude to Hands of God Widows Support Initiative for consistently looking out for widows and hopes other organizations and kind-spirited Nigerians will do the same.

Registered in February 2022, Hands of God Widows support Initiative has supported 90 indigent widows in Lagos and Jos through various interventions ranging from free eye care treatment, skill acquisition, and foodbank. Hands of God Widows Support Initiative has also trained the daughter of a widow who now works as a freelance copywriter and in January 2023, five daughters of widows will be trained in the business of fashion design.

Hands of God Widows Support Initiative calls on the public to support its cause through partnerships, sponsorship, and adoption of widows.