By Liz McNeil | CEO & Co-Founder @ Last Mile
This summer at Last Mile proved to be even more eventful than we could have expected! From hosting volunteers from Silicon Valley courtesy of Lalafofofo, to Liz our CEO attending a 5-week intensive business development program in Kampala, Uganda. While we continue to grow and work in more communities around Kilimanjaro, we've also been working on improving how we tell our story and the stories of those we serve.
To truly understand the changes that come through improving access to life-changing products, we needed to get out and speak to the people who purchase the products that we sell. Our team, accompanied by our friends from Lalafofofo travelled out to villages in Mikocheni and Sanya Juu to visit customers and sales agents to understand what our services mean to them. The feedback was inspiring.
We knew about the benefits our products can bring to families, but never realized the extent. Mothers, such as Angela, continued to share how they felt that their children were safer when they studied because they did not have to gather around the open flame of kerosene lamps or candles. We knew that solar lighting can improve the ability of children to study into the evening, but didn't realize that it also created a safer space for them by getting them out of harm's way. Angela was proud to share that their children's performance in school had improved and they felt safer in their homes. We were proud to help make that happen. While we can't take credit for bright kids, we can for brighter homes.
We always fear for and try to avoid any unintended consquences of the actions that we take in communities, but sometimes they surprise you for the better.
One of our core values is Tupo Pamoja, meaning that we are in this together. One of the best ways we can act on this core value is to speak to and be with the people we are serving; both our customers and our sales agents. We are proud of the work we are doing and the positive response that we have received from the people we are working for. We strive to continue to offer the best quality products, the best training and the best service to whomever chooses to work with Last Mile.
We want to share a big thank-you to donors and friends whose generosity helps us to continue the work we are doing! Tupo pamoja!
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