How TRS Continues to Support its Young Adults

2024 brought a shift in the long-term vision of the Roots Project.  The Roots Project was born out of the desire to help facilitate healthy transitions for older children into life outside of the center.  Facilitating these transitions toward independent living was a learning experience for everyone.  In 2024, TRS worked to reunite many of our young adults with family or a trusted member of their community. Even though those young adults are not part of daily activities at The Raining Season, many have chosen to remain connected, receiving support and encouragement from TRS and their sponsors.  

As they have transitioned to life outside The Covering of the Roots Home, Mohamed, our Social Welfare Manager, along with Aunty Doris work together to support these young adults through monthly home visits.  Currently, they are visiting ten homes during the first week of the month.  They travel throughout Freetown to complete these visits, as well as some homes located in rural Freetown.  These visits are more than just check-ins – they are meant to support the young adults in whatever they might need and assure them of The Raining Season's commitment to them.  The young adults can discuss their concerns with Mohamed and Doris, and they also offer advice and encouragement to the young adults.  Each visit also includes the family's monthly rice supply.

Although these young adults no longer reside at The Covering or the Roots home, they are still very much connected to The Raining Season.  They often drop by the center after school and participate in TRS events by occasionally attending church services at the center and our annual Christmas party.  They also know they can rely on our medical unit when minor health concerns arise.

The Raining Season is able to continue supporting these young adults because of the generous support through our sponsorship program.  Sponsorship dollars extend far beyond the rice deliveries. It also supports their educational journeys, covering school and college fees and providing daily lunch and transportation allowances.  It ensures they have access to medical care, and it also goes above and beyond their basic needs, including giving money to celebrate their birthdays.

Caring for nearly one hundred children, from infants to young adults, has not come without its challenges.  The Raining Season has relied on the guidance of our in-country staff as well as the guidelines of the Ministry of Gender and Children's Affairs to help guide how to best support the children in our care.  The Roots Project's mission is to continue supporting these young adults as they complete their education and ensure they have the tools to successfully integrate into their communities and succeed in adulthood.   The process of reunification, made possible by continued sponsorship support, has facilitated their smooth reintegration into their communities.  It has also helped them to continue to thrive in their educational pursuits.  We are so grateful for the ongoing support through sponsorship of these young adults as it continues to serve as an investment in their futures.  Will you join us this week in praying for our young adults who have been reunified?

Many blessings, 

The Raining Season