Women are powerful, John.

When women participate in Heifer projects, entire families and communities prosper. Women are entrepreneurs. They're community leaders. They're heads of farms and heads of households. Women are the change agents who lift communities out of hunger and poverty for good.

John, meet these powerful women from our projects around the world. Their determination and willingness to give back captures the heart of our mission. These women are setting examples for the next generation -- demanding equality, empowering their families and communities to lift themselves out of hunger and poverty, and helping each other along the way.

Jit Kumari Yogi (Nepal)
"I want to end stereotypes about women. I want to end traditional practices that are discriminatory and wrong."

Jit has been through the unthinkable. She was widowed 30 years ago, two of her four children died in her arms and she lived in extreme poverty for decades. Imagine losing everything you love, John, and still finding the will to start over.

With incredible determination and a little help from Heifer, Jit worked tirelessly to overcome cultural biases, become a successful farmer and earn a reliable income that allowed her to send her children to school. What's more, she shares her resources with others and serves as a respected leader in her community.

And that's not all, John. She helps run a cooperative in her village that empowers other women to stand up for equality and make their own decisions, passing on the opportunity to others. She not only changed her own circumstances -- she changed the minds and norms of her entire community.

Rosemary Muyuni Ntumbo (Zambia)
"It's important that when you see someone is lacking, and you have the knowledge, you have to give that to your friends."

When Rosemary, a widow, moved from the city to the bush in 2011 to live a more frugal lifestyle, she struggled, John. She fought a serious bout of malaria immediately after she moved to her new home and wondered if she would ever be able to support herself.

After she learned about livestock care and fertilization from Heifer, however, Rosemary became one of the most successful farmers in her village. Now, she supports her family and gives back to the community by donating her cows' milk to elderly people and children in need of a nutritional boost.

Most importantly -- she shares what Heifer taught her about agriculture and livestock with other farmers in her village. They line up outside Rosemary's door, eager for lessons!

Edith, Lubia and Clara (Mexico)
"Other women have seen our initiative to work in beekeeping, and they ask themselves: 'why can't we do it?'"

When Edith, Lubia and Clara joined a 54-person cooperative in their village, there were only six women in the group. Some of the men publicly questioned why they were there, but that didn't deter them from learning the business of beekeeping, which all three of them grew to love!

Edith has been beekeeping the longest. She started as a way to support her two sons after her husband abandoned them. All three women have doubled their income from successful harvests and a lucrative honey business, enabling them to support their families and become leaders in their cooperative. Now, even the men who were skeptical at first seek out their help and advice.

Women's empowerment is a fundamental part of our work around the world -- and from these powerful stories, it's easy to see why! When women are treated equally to men and are given the chance to lead their communities, families thrive and entire economies improve.

Want to create change for even more women like these? Give the gift of women's empowerment today:

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With thanks,

Heifer International





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