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By Sunday Ani
The Ella Helps Foundation has donated over 3000 books to public schools in Suleja Local Government Area of Niger State. It also empowered 460 widows and supported several other persons living with disabilities in the area.
The annual widows’ empowerment programme is a humanitarian intervention aimed at relieving the hardship faced by vulnerable groups.
The event, which attracted traditional rulers, clerics, business leaders, medical professionals and other community stakeholders, featured a free medical outreach, where widows and other participants received basic healthcare services from volunteer medical personnel.
Organisers said beneficiaries were selected in collaboration with community leaders and local associations across Suleja and its environs, with support provided in cash and materials to help widows rebuild livelihoods and improve household welfare.
The donation of exercise books, they added, was aimed at reducing the burden of learning materials on public school pupils, particularly children from low-income households.
The intervention came at a time when economic pressures continue to worsen the plight of widows across many communities, where the loss of a spouse often results in sudden financial instability, social vulnerability and limited access to healthcare and education for children, particularly in the absence of formal social safety nets.
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The foundation had earlier visited parts of Suleja and neighbouring communities to distribute financial assistance and relief materials to persons living with disabilities, reinforcing its commitment to inclusive humanitarian support.
Speaking with journalists at the event, the Founder of Ella Helps Foundation, Mrs Christy Ella Edwin, said her passion for widows was driven by personal experience.
“I have been saying this. I have seen my mother as a single mother and a widow. I see what she has gone through. And at a time, even when I got married and my husband died, I still experienced the same thing, so I have that passion for widows,” she said.
She disclosed that the foundation was planning to expand its interventions beyond Suleja Local Government Area. She said: “I can say it’s a choice. There is something that inspired me to do this.”
The Emir of Suleja, Alhaji Awwal Ibrahim, commended the initiative, describing it as rare and impactful. Represented by the Dagaci and District Head, Alhaji Bello Saleh, the monarch praised the foundation for restoring hope to widows and the less privileged.
“I don’t know the language I will use, but it’s more than ‘fantabulous.’ It is very rare to see this kind of thing happening around us. So, I am happy and elated to be part of this,” he said.
He added: “We will carry the message to our people that there is someone that God has sent to assist the weaker people.”
He further noted that the Emirate Council was aware that the foundation had sustained the initiative for over five years, expressing confidence that it would continue to grow.
Beneficiaries who testified at the event said the intervention had eased their pain and suffering, noting that the support had helped revive their small businesses and enabled them to feed their families and send their children back to school.
Also speaking, the Chairman of the Association of Persons Living with Disabilities in Suleja LGA, Mr. Mohammed Abdullahi, who spoke in Hausa, thanked the foundation for its assistance to the group, particularly the financial support extended during the disability outreach.
