Hard Work and Dedication

Florence Chemomenyu Justus is a 55 years old Fistula survivor from Cheptais, Bungoma County, Kenya. She is a mother of nine children and is blessed with four grandchildren. She is a successful farmer and community health advocate.

Florence lived with obstetric fistula, a hole in the birth canal often caused by prolonged or and obstructed labor and inadequate health care, for five years.

After a successful surgical treatment, Florence joined Let’s End Fistula Initiative in 2011and has served and continues to serve as a Regional Representative (RR) in Bungoma County overseeing Cheptais Solidarity Women’s Group.

Florence serving as a Regional Representative for LEFI and the knowledge and skills she has been acquiring over time through mentorship and trainings empowered her into a remarkable leader in her work as the Regional Representative and her community at large. Florence has exhibited leadership in her role as the leader of Cheptais Solidarity Group that has made her group become the leading with 33 cows, 64 goats, Kshs. 27,000 savings, Kshs. 514,000 for Table-Banking and harvested 5 bags of beans as the group’s Income Generating Activities.

Her dedication and competence in her work paved a way for her in more leadership opportunities in her community where she served as the treasurer for Chesiro Farmers’ Co-operative Society for six years, serves as a Board of Director National Government Affirmative Action Fund (NGAAF) representing Mt. Elgon region in the office of the Women Representative Bungoma County.

Florence is a perfect example of the importance of LEFI’s work of providing an opportunity for fistula survivors to lead a productive lives following surgical treatment. It is evident that there is so much potential locked in these women that when tapped into can make the world a better place for many generations.