Gugu was born and raised in Siteki by her father who passed away in 2016. Her parents were never married.
She came to Project Canaan in 2015 as a Beader at Khutsala. She got to work in roles of quality control, Senior Wrapper, Pottery barn and sales personnel at the gift shop. The love of arts has enabled her to be able to do most of the designs that Khutsala Artisans have.
She is able to take care of her daughter and loves her because she believes she never got to experience motherly love. She also takes care of her mother in prison.
Gugu believes in new beginnings in life because there is no future in the past.
Zweli was born and raised in the northern part of the country. He is 35 years of age.
In 2015 he started working at Khutsala as a junior wrapper and got promoted to be a senior framer.
Zweli is married with 2 children. Working has enabled him to build a house and put in electricity. He is also able to take care of his 5 siblings.
Being creative and having a positive mindset in life drives him to believe that tomorrow will be better than today.
From Gebeni, a neighboring community, Sifiso dropped out of school in grade 9. He is 37 years old and lives with his mother and siblings since his father passed away.
In 2008 he started looking for jobs and became a headman to raise money for going back to school.
In January 2016, Sifiso started working at Khutsala Artisans as a junior wrapper. He currently works as a teacher to new artisans. Through his pay he was able to build his mother a house.
He is passionate about working with people and serving others with a good heart.
Meet Sicelo Manana. Sicelo was born deaf and he is also mute. His mother died when he was only 6-months-old.
The paternal father's family sent Sicelo away to live with his maternal Grandmother (Gogo) who raised him. While he was never able to go to school, he was well cared for by a loving Gogo. From age 20-29 he was hired as a shepherd, however, he was poorly paid and poorly cared for by the people whose cattle he was caring for.
In February 2016, he was hired, and while communication is difficult, he is a fast learner and we are told he will be promoted from Junior Wrapper to Senior Wrapper. This young man loves his job, is a fabulous worker, and we give thanks to the Lord that He sent him to us.
Sibongilie is 58 years old. She is married and has 3 children and 6 grandchildren.
She began working at the Project Canaan Farm in 2014 before the drought in 2015.
In 2017, she got hired at Khutsala Artisans as a Beader and was able to send her kids to school. Her great achievement was wiring her home which brought safety in her home.
She is a bread winner since her husband lost his job in 2020. She loves farming and through it she is able to feed her family.
