My name is Esther and I’m 47 years old.  I was born in Cazale and I’ve lived here all my life. When I was a child, I went to the National School her in Cazale up to the 4th grade.  My mother died and my father is still living.  I have 3 brothers and no sisters.

I have 5 children and live in a two room house.  It is covered with tin.  We took a palm tree and cut it into small boards.  Those were woven in between other large sticks that made the frame of the house.  Then, we covered it with clay dirt.  We don’t have running water, an outhouse, or a shower.  None of the kids’ fathers live with us.  We know that it’s not much, but we are happy that we do not have to pay rent and have a house to call our own.  I don’t have a job.  I spend most of my day cleaning and washing clothes.  I like to hang out around my house and play with my kids.

This is a story that I can tell you about Cazale.  It is an area that had many Polish in it at one time a long time ago.  They came over from their country to fight with the French soliders against the slave revolt, but then they left the French and came to fight on with the slaves.  They couldn’t find a way to get back to their country so they stayed in an area close to Cazale, called Fond Blanc.  This Polish people had kids with the people that were in the area.  This is the reason that Cazale has many light skin people.  Some have long hair and eyes that are different colors like gray and green.  There are lots of other people in Cazale that are darker in color, but most of these people have ancestors that were really people from other areas that moved into Cazale. This is why it is a village with many colors of people.

Most people in Cazale are farmers.  Foods that are grown in our area are plantains, beans, corn, grains, and yams.  Most people in the village like to eat these foods and they also like to eat rice.

I like live here in Cazale because I feel at home here.  I was born here and will probably live here all my life.  I think that the village needs electricity and a hospital that can take care of all kinds of illnesses.  The one improvement that I would like to see is more jobs.  There is no businesses, kitchens, or factories here to give people work.  These things can make many people work and this can change our lives.  I am poor.  I don’t have work and I can’t send my kids to school.  I would really like to have  a job because I think that this would be good for me and my children to have a better life.

If it weren’t for the help of the mission, many lives of the people here would be impossible.  RHFH is the biggest institution that is working in the village.  They are working in almost every kind of work and it is all helping many people.  Even if it was just the cholera center that they did it would be a big thing for the village, but they do much more.

I’m a Christian and I go to church.  I ask that you pray for my family and for the village of Cazale.  Prayer can resolve all problems.