{"id":216079,"date":"2023-07-10T14:38:14","date_gmt":"2023-07-10T19:38:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/\/?p=216079"},"modified":"2023-09-18T11:30:02","modified_gmt":"2023-09-18T16:30:02","slug":"program-member-to-program-facilitator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/\/program-member-to-program-facilitator\/","title":{"rendered":"From Program Member to Program Facilitator"},"content":{"rendered":"
Manley is no stranger to grief and hardship. After losing his mother in 2006 and then his father in 2008, he went to live with his aunt and uncle. Manley\u2019s aunt used brutal ways of parenting: shouting, beating, corporal punishment, and food deprivation. She depleted him of the little confidence he had left. But still, he stayed for five years.<\/span><\/p>\n After Manley finished the advanced level of education to qualify for the university, his uncle kicked him out of the house for good. Manley returned to his rural home, where he learned his paternal relatives had assumed control of his parent\u2019s land. They had even sold off part of the estate for profit. Manley was devastated, but as an orphan, he knew he could not make demands of his elders. He drifted on the streets, toiled in the fields, and begged for corn and cassava. Occasionally, he grew desperate enough to return to his uncle for food or ancillary needs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In 2014, Manley joined Zoe Empowers Zimbabwe. He received training on starting a business and a grant amounting to 150 USD. With the grant, Manley bought several broiler chickens, which he reared, then sold. As his income grew, he diversified his offering, tending to pigeons, rabbits, guinea pigs, and other larger farm animals. He bought and sold groceries and second-hand clothing. The more his businesses grew, the more self-reliant he became. Eventually, he did not need to return to his uncle.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n