Mental illness caused Worship's mother to struggle to look after him; luckily Open Arms and the local hospital stepped in to help.
Worship was born in the winter of 2024, but his first few months were marked by heartbreaking hardship. His mother, who was suffering with poor mental health, struggled to feed him and look after herself, and he when he was referred to Open Arms Malawi, he was dangerously malnourished.
Realising that both mother and son required urgent care, Open Arms worked with the local hospital and social welfare team to help them. Whilst his mother received care in the hospital, Worship went to stay with his Aunt where he was given life-saving nutrition as well as essential supplies from the Open Arms Team.
Fortunately, after a few months, Worship’s mother was well enough to return home and resume care for him. Today, Worship lives with his mother, his siblings and close to their wider family – and the change in him is wonderful to see. Thanks to the nutrition provided by Open Arms, Worship has gained weight and has quickly developed into a happy and healthy little boy.
Now at nearly two years old, he is starting to run around and is reaching all the milestones expected for his age. Just as importantly, both Worship and his mother also have a much stronger circle of support around them – people who can step in and help them when they need it most.
To help Worship’s family move towards long-term stability and independence they were enrolled in the Open Arms’ Graduation trial in late 2024. For a family who had never tried growing their own food before, this was a big opportunity for them and they were provided with the tools, resources and all the training they needed. In their first harvest, they grew 200kg of maize, which could last them up to six months!
Following on from this successful trial, they began the full three-year programme which is designed to support them on their journey to self-sufficiency. They have recently harvested their latest maize crop, and in the future will also move onto growing groundnuts and soya beans. It is incredible to see what the family has achieved so far, and we look forward to sharing more of Worship’s journey with you as he gets older.
Worship and his family were fortunate enough to receive support before it was too late. Without formula milk, Worship may not have survived those first few months. It costs just £10 to provide vulnerable babies, like Worship, with the vital milk they need for a week so they can grow up to thrive in the love and care of their families.
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