LIFE WITH LIGHTNESS
Lightness knows what it’s like to be a child, hungry and low on hope. You wouldn’t know that just by looking at her today, with her bright, beaming smile. She credits God, who fought for her during an incredibly dark season. Now she’s shining and using her position to fight for others.
“If I had an opportunity to sit down and speak with the younger me, I would tell her, ‘Little girl, don’t be afraid! God is with you! Your future is bright.”
Lightness’ journey with Lahash began when she was an 11-year-old girl in primary six. She grew up in a family that struggled to survive. The weight of her family’s needs slowly but steadily chipped away at her hopes for a better future. “My childhood before connecting with the Hope and Healing Ministry was so tough. It was a big challenge to afford our meals, basic healthcare or school needs,” shared Lightness.
Lightness didn’t know where her life would take her. Life began to change when she enrolled in the Lahash sponsorship program through Hope and Healing Organization in Tanzania.
The sponsorship program brought some stability into her life. Through sponsorship, Lightness received food, school supplies and medical care and she began attending a discipleship program at a local church. These resources reshaped Lightness’s childhood and set her on the path to a promising future. Looking back today, she remembers one moment with simple joy: “The day I got a sponsor was a very good day; I was so happy.”
Lightness continued receiving care from our partner ministry, allowing her to pursue her primary and secondary education, eventually leading her into the Lahash higher education program – Stand With Students (SWS).
The SWS program is designed to walk with and support vulnerable young people in East Africa as they prepare for and undertake higher education. It combines Christian mentorship and scholarship with vocational and academic guidance, personal development, and spiritual formation. Students are encouraged to reflect, build practical skills, discern their vocational direction and cultivate habits of community service, personal responsibility and Christian leadership.
Under SWS, Lightness was mentored for six months and received computer and English training before embarking on her 3-year diploma course in community development. The SWS program provided for all her school needs: accommodation, food items, medical care, school fees, and books.
“SWS is so close to my heart. When I reached college, God fought for me. I was able to study successfully to the completion of my course even though this period also presented some of the toughest challenges of my life because I lost my father while in college and I got very sick and had to undergo surgery. But the love I received from people close to me and the support from the program pushed me to keep going.”
In school and during her mentorship program, she learned the value of helping others, loving, working hard and being responsible in her community.
When she completed her diploma in community development, she was happy, but her thoughts quickly moved beyond the achievement. She was already asking what she would do next, determined not to “just sit idle.”
She began applying for government jobs through Tanzania’s Ajira Portal. By God’s grace, Lightness got her employment with the Tanzanian government shortly after her graduation in 2025.
“It was like a miracle; God is so good. The news of my employment was so thrilling; I couldn’t hide my joy. When I received the message, I shared it with my sister and my mother, then the rest of my friends and community.”
Today, Lightness oversees community development, helps resolve family and land disputes, supports environmental cleanliness, and works to protect residents and their property. She especially enjoys resolving conflicts and reconciling people and families. She also inspires young women in her community.
“When I look at my journey, I see how far God has brought me. I feel proud of the little girl who entered the sponsorship program, and I am deeply grateful to God for the people and the program that supported me along the way. I have moved from being a child who needed help, to becoming a woman who wants to help others.”
The Lahash Stand with Students program is a critical part of our ministry; it provides young people with a platform to achieve their life goals and dreams. It sets them on the path to careers, independence, and responsible adulthood. We have students with big dreams, like Lightness, living in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda. Some are in mentorship, some are in college, and some are in university.
Please take a moment now to pray for our students. Would you also consider partnering with us to support these young people? Reach out to our sponsorship director for the opportunity to sponsor a student in higher education, or give to the SWS program to help cover a student’s costs for school, supplies and mentorship. Thank you so much!
Sponsor a student: LAHASH.ORG/SPONSOR
Or email: katien@lahash.org