More than 1 billion children, women, and men in the world today are hungry!

"Once, I was the poorest person in the area," says Gorette. "Even my neighbors were ashamed of my home and wanted nothing to do with me. We had no food. We had nothing."
ADRA began a food-for-work project in the Eastern Province of Rwanda in 2003. The area was experiencing a long drought, and the people were experiencing severe hunger. Few were growing any food, and there were no trees in the area. By providing bags of rice to those who worked, ADRA motivated individuals to build a drainage system of canals and bridges throughout the marshlands, reclaiming 148 acres. Creating a cooperative with 560 original members, ADRA provided agriculture training, seeds, tools, and fertilizer.
"When ADRA started working here, we were all poor," says James, the cooperative president. "We had little knowledge about growing food or working together. No one trusted anyone. So the concept of a cooperative was like speaking another language to us. A few of us were so desperate, and knowing how ADRA had helped us immediately after the genocide, we decided to take the risk and join the co-op."
Every $1 donated becomes $7! Donations for ADRA's food programs that are funded through this matching opportunity are worth seven times their original value. Your gift will go much further today!
"ADRA gave us a strong foundation," says Joy, a founding co-op member. "The work has been hard, but the benefits are huge! My family has all we can eat, and we have income from selling through the co-op. We will not stop. We continue to work and to learn. Now the big leaders in health and caring for the environment in this area are members of our co-op-all because ADRA chose to come and help us."
While we stopped actively working in this project in 2009, today the co-op has 2,000 members and farms 1,380 acres. They enjoy two rice harvests a year and grow numerous fruits and vegetables. Now brokers come to the co-op to purchase their harvests. And every co-op family has all they can possibly eat, they have savings in the bank, and every member has a cell phone.
And what became of Gorette, the poorest woman in the area? "Today, I have fixed up my home, and we all sleep on mattresses-what a luxury!" she exclaims. "I have more than one pot to cook in, and I have bought goats and cows from selling the extras from my harvest. Even the government has awarded their congratulations and a certificate on our amazing economic growth. But the best benefit is the knowledge. There is no means to ever express our thanks to ADRA. You have changed our lives, our community, and the future for coming generations."
Right now, when you give to ADRA, every one dollar equals seven! Your gift will be matched by other resources from other organizations. You can be the change the hungry need!

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