In Bertoua, with the Djilika family: a borrowed roof, three children
November 2024 in Bertoua: meeting Rita Djilika and her three children, hosted by a friend, without a home of their own. Food aid to hold on — photos and video.
David Herreman
No home of their own. A borrowed living room. A floor for a bed.
In Bertoua, Rita Djilika raises her three children at a friend's place. Four people under a roof that is not theirs. Everyone sleeps on the floor, in the living room. The children are not in school. Food and healthcare remain out of reach.
November 2024: the meeting
Our volunteers went to see them. To measure what it means to have no home of your own when you have three children to protect. No walls of their own, no bed — only the urgency of holding on.
I write to you from Belgium. It is our volunteers on the ground who sent these images — not to pity, but to act.
Concrete food aid
Faced with the urgency of the empty plate, we distributed essential supplies: rice, beans, oil, milk, soap. Sacks set down on the ground. A mother who receives. Children who watch.
The report on this mission is here:
What we envisage next
Beyond food: schooling from the 2025/2026 academic year and teaching materials; health check-ups for the mother and children; the search for a decent and secure home; support toward an income-generating activity.
At Awaken Destiny, we do not only want to ease one night on a floor. We want the mothers we meet to be able, one day, to offer their children a bed, a school — and a roof that is theirs.
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