Mzuzu, Malawi … It was a warm, pleasant Malawi day when Ezelina Mvula made her way to the Jomo Road church building. She had heard from a church member that this congregation was one of the locations where Action for Progress was distributing mobility units.
Ezelina had a particular reason for this trip down Jomo Road. Growing up with a disability that left her without the use of her legs certainly had its challenges. She struggled with school attendance due to the distance she would need to be carried, as it was too far for her normal mode of transportation, crawling. It was simply too much, and she finally dropped out. In Malawi, many public places such as markets and schools are not easily accessible to people with disabilities. Another painful fact is that these public places do not have accommodating toilets either. This makes it extremely hard for a person who relies on crawling. The months-long rainy season makes matters even worse. This has been Ezelina’s life every day for 38 years.
Now Ezelina has a new song to sing. It is a song of joy and praise as she was rewarded a mobility unit to ease her challenges. Her face brightened when she saw the already assembled mobility unit that would be hers.
“I am very happy to receive this mobility unit. It is a new beginning, and offers a beautiful new experience,” she said. “With this mobility unit, I will be able to visit places without crawling or hiring a taxi bicycle. This means the money I would have used to hire a taxi I can now channel to other necessities like food. You have not just helped me with this expensive mobility unit, you have afforded me a stepping-stone to develop my household economically. For that I thank you,” she said.
As though that was not enough, Ezelina also received a new Bible in Chichewa from Action for Progress. “These two gifts are very expensive, but they are so important. To be given to me free today is truly a blessing – it’s like manna in the wildness. For this, I am grateful to Action for Progress. We give thanks to the Lord for this organization.”
Sitting on her new mobility unit with the Bible in her lap, Ezelina says goodbye and hand peddles away to her home village.