your family update
You Backed them and things began to change
Inthi Parameswaran
Donor
When we met Uthayakumari, her eyes held the quiet sorrow of someone who has carried a heavy burden for many years. She has been living without her husband for 23 years—abandoned when life became difficult, leaving her alone to care for their daughter.
Her daughter suffers from an illness that makes it impossible for her to work consistently or help with the family’s needs. This has meant that Uthayakumari must bear every responsibility herself. She works as a wage laborer whenever she can, but her income is never enough to cover even their most basic needs.
Their home is fragile and floods with every rain, and they live without simple facilities like a toilet. The struggle to provide food, shelter, and care feels endless.
Yet, even in the midst of these hardships, Uthayakumari holds onto a quiet hope—that with a little support to start a stable livelihood, she can build a safer, more secure life for her daughter and herself.
We’ve captured their voice so you can hear their story.
Vanakkam (greetings). I am talking from Theravil village. My daughter and I are living at home. My husband has been separated from us since 2002. My daughter and I have been living in the village. So it was difficult for us. Without a proper house, my daughter and I were living in a very difficult situation when it rained. We have half an acre of land in which we have planted 25 banana trees. We planted two or three coconut trees. We cultivated them using pure water carried by hand, and we earned an income from them. We would sell bananas and fulfill the needs of our child and me.
(Palmera established a village bank in our community to develop financial literacy—a place where we could save and access loans to reduce our debt from predatory lenders).
There is a women’s village bank in our Theravil village. I joined it thinking that when everyone went, I would also join it and save the money I had. I used to save 20 LKR ($0.10 AUD) or 50 LKR ($0.25 AUD), according to the amount I had in my hand. While doing this saving, I felt sick. They also helped me with my medical expenses and hospital expenses. When I asked for a loan, they would give it to me immediately. They would give me a loan for medical needs. Now I am raising chickens. It is a big help for me. I will sell the eggs to meet my daily needs. If I have to repay a loan, I will sell those eggs and repay the loan. This small savings has been a big help for us. We have made progress by joining this village bank. I express my heartfelt gratitude to Inthi Parameswaran.