Tania: Entrepreneur, Scholar, and Mother of two… A history of success at Bambi Homes

08/30/2011

Tania, a twenty year old single mother of two, was in an extremely vulnerable economic situation when she joined Bambi.

Tania suffered from a severe illness and was solely responsible for her children, aged two and three, as the father of her children had abandoned them. Under those conditions, she moved to Soacha, a very poor neighborhood on the outskirts of Bogotá. Soacha is a high risk area with no public services, and serious security problems. Not only did Tania and her children not have any utilities or basic infrastructure for living, but they were also forced to sleep on the floor and cook with gasoline, all in the same room.

Unemployed and without a high school degree, Tania decided to seek help at the Bambi Homes. Her children were accepted into Bambi Homes and in the meantime she was able to attend a Business Entrepreneurship course offered by Bambi, as well as several workshops on Values. Tania was aided both by the Promefa Program (Program for the Improvement of Family's Socioeconomic Conditions) and by the optometry service, because she was diagnosed with chronic astigmatism. Tania was able to go back to school for two more years, studying on Saturdays and Sundays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. She also started a small business selling avocados. She now has her own house in Soacha, where she currently lives.

Tania graduated from the Technological High School on December 22th, 2010. She also earned the highest score on the national exams, and won a scholarship to study Basic Accounting Technology, with the possibility to continue studying Public Accounting. Currently, Tania’s children are in good health and attending school. Tania had surgery and now her disease is under control. She continues to sell avocados and has expanded her business by buying another cart and selling more products in harvest, which allows her to get higher incomes and improve their quality of life. With the support of PROMEFA and Bambi Homes, Tania was able to achieve personal success and empowerment.