Widow/Orphan Support Cases
Hardships, Betrayal, Tragic Loss, Endurance, Hope and Success!
I got married in 1990 and start living in Karachi. My husband was a laborer at a Garments Company and we spent 22 years together. In those 22 years Allah blessed us with six daughters and two boys. Though my husband was a low earning laborer, we strove hard to provide a good education to our children. We were low income but getting by, until suddenly the company in which my husband was working declared bankruptcy due to bad law and order situation.
This was a horrible turn for our family, as they held my husband’s salary for more than one year. It felt worse than death for us due to our financial condition. There were no other jobs for him, so for our survival, my husband decided to sell our home and try to move abroad. Just when we had some hope, the travel agent who was helping my husband stole our life savings and fled with everything we had. It was too much for my husband to take, and he passed away after a severe heart attack.
For me, it was like the worst nightmare, and I had no idea what to do and how to survive. But what happened had happened and I had to get through it. I had six daughters and two sons under my responsibility and I had to work for their survival and education. In the beginning I lived in Karachi but soon I realized that the situation there was not conducive for us financially and I could not ensure a good education for my children their either as we were very vulnerable as law and order situation was not good. Therefore, I decided to return to my hometown of Abbottabad and started to live with my parents.
My parents were also not so well off that I could completely rely on their financial assistance so I took a loan to run finances of my family. Perhaps life’s test was not over yet and my father too passed away after a few months and the social cover of the father had also gone. In this worsening condition another calamity fell upon me as my children left their studies, filling me with immense grief and sorrow. My elder son intended to support the family and started work at a hotel as a dishwasher which was heart-wrenching for me because he was an 8th-grade genius student. The house we were living in contained one room with just one wash-room. That’s where we had to adjust with 9 members of our family.
In these gloomy days my son heard about an institution called Hidaya Trust that was supporting orphans in pursuing their education. We visited the office and they filled some forms and inquired about the economic condition by visiting our home. They found us deserving and they then proceeded with formal procedures. The day we received a call from Hidaya Trust that we have a cheque to receive was a ray of hope for us in a long time darkness. My children resumed their studies thankfully because of the support of Hidaya Trust. During all of this, my stress was lessened and I started teaching in a private school which gave us a little bit of earning.
When it seemed almost impossible for my children to even continue studying, this institution stood by my side and gave us financial assistance. I saw my children educated and, Alhamdulillah, my elder son who had left studies at one time become a dishwasher was able to receive a good education. Currently, he is serving in the army. It is with the blessing of Allah, and of course Hidaya’s support to make this happen. My Daughter who also had no chance at studying otherwise received a Masters in Islamiyat, and then was married and now she is a lecturer in Army Public School Muree, and serving society in the best possible way, leading a good, stable and dignified life. My older children are serving the society by doing a job, and my younger 4 children are still studying with the support of Hidaya, alhamdulillah.
Hidaya supported me and my family in the worst times and also provided food in every Ramadan and never delayed in giving our monthly stipend. We don’t have words to thank Hidaya family, But Allah knows that they are in our prayers.
Health Problems on Many Levels, but Hope for the Children
My husband was a stomach cancer patient for 9 years and could not work. He was diagnosed with the disease just one year after we got married. I don’t have words to explain those days, it was not easy for me to feed and educate my children while bearing the health expenses of my husband. We did not have any source of income, so I started working as a teacher in a private school earning a salary of only 3200 rupees. Due to low income, we sometimes even faced starvation for up to 3 days. After my husband passed away, I became even more depressed after losing my partner. On top of it all, I lost my health as I developed diabetes and heart disease as my life began to feel impossibly overwhelming. Despite all our problems, my children wanted to do something good in life, but how was I supposed to support them without my own health and no income?
At this darkest time, somebody told us about Hidaya, and that they support families of widows and orphans, so we visited their Abbottabad office. They took our documentation and visited our home and saw that we were deserving, and signed us up for monthly support. We just felt like this was the end of the darkest night, and everything changed after that.
My children started getting education from one of the prestigious institutes of Abbottabad. Our food problem and education expenses were solved. They never delayed in giving our monthly check and are still supporting our family since we signed up in 2011. To keep my children motivated for education, they conduct annual testing and also visit their schools.
After years of support, my elder son achieved seventh position at provincial level from Abbatabad Board and was awarded a full scholarship for BS Civil Engineering from Comsats university in Abbattabad. My other children are also getting education because of Hidaya’s monthly stipend, and hoping for a better tomorrow.
Like all mothers, I too want my children educated so they may be useful members of society. When we did not have the resources to do that, Hidaya made it all possible. We don’t have words to thank the Hidaya family. May Allah Almighty give Hidaya and supporters the best reward! Ameen.
Tragic Events, Suicidal Thoughts, Redemption with Help
I live in Abbottabad Pakistan and below I will share how much struggle I have faced in my life.
I got married in 2008, and in 2011 just after three years of married life my husband was killed in a terrorist attack and his death made my life colorless. His death was so sudden that I Felt shocked, stunned, dazed and emotionally numbed. We lived with my husband’s family with my two little daughters. I was crying constantly, the loss was so disruptive and the recovery was complicated.
After my husbands death, my in-laws also changed their behavior. They start quarreling with me insisting to leave home as they often said that you and your daughters are a burden on us. It felt like a sudden destruction. There was neither gradual transition, nor time to make changes in myself, and while my husband’s passing was still fresh, we were thrown out of the house. We moved to my parent’s one room house, and start living with them although they have health problems (paralyze patient). We did not have enough income for survival. Life was so tough, even though I am a graduate and could have easily gotten a job as a teacher, but my mental condition was not good. I was totally disheartened and thinking about suicide.
Then somebody told us about Hidaya and that they are helping orphan families. When we visited their office I saw many widows gathered there. It was a month before 2013 Ramadan and they were dispersing cheques and also food packages. I was so much impressed by their work, I met with their staff and they guided me about their project NO ORPHAN WITHOUT EDUCATION and WIDOW ORPHAN SUPPORT and also motivated me to make myself busy by getting a job, and it would help my mental condition. They visited our home and marked us deserving, and I also start teaching at a private school and my life recovery period started under the umbrella of the Hidaya family.
Both of my daughters were admitted in school and now both are in 7th grade. Since 2013 Hidaya gives us monthly cheque and food package and takes care of us year round. They take care of us like their own family and we are hoping they will take care of us until my four daughters will be highly educated. Life is going well now, Alhamdulillah, and I don’t have words to thank Hidaya family and supporters. May Allah bless them with the best reward both in this world and hereafter.
Sacrifice for Her Sisters
Asma belongs to a very poor family. She lives in a rural area of Pakistan. In spite of all the sorrow and pains, she is happy with her life. Asma was about 8 years old when her father died after a long illness. She was not able to fully recover from her father’s death, her mother passed away after 2 years to her father death also. Asma had to drop out of school and left her studies and started sewing clothes in order to overcome her family problems. She has no brothers and only has 3 other younger sisters.
Right now, she has married herself but she has had provide a good education for her younger sisters, one of them had got married and the youngest one is still studying in a well-organized institute with the support of Hidaya Trust. When we met her, we felt that there were definitely many pains and sorrows that they learned in life but she still was looking very satisfied and feels pleasure in little things knowing that life is in the name of sacrifice and that is the one who really sacrificed for her younger sisters.
Education for the Kids
Shazia lived a happy life in Pakistan with her husband. Her husband was a driver, a very hard worker as he used to a taxi driver in morning and a shop keeper in the evening. They lived with her father-in-law house with their 5 children. All of the sudden her husband passed away due to heart attack and her father-in-law took over the house and pushed them out. She went back to her own mother’s house along with her 5 children, but her mother was too poor that she could not afford their living cost, therefore she gave away one of her daughters to someone else so that she might get a good education.
When Hidaya team reached to her, they found them in a very miserable condition and helped her in such a way that now all of her 5 children are living again with her. Hidaya also is assisting them in getting a good education and every month the widow receives a kind amount from Hidaya Trust office.