A seed… something so small, yet so full of potential. But you’d never know it by just looking at it. You’d have no idea that this small, armored speck has the capacity to grow into a thriving plant producing more fruit than you could imagine. But a seed needs someone there to tend to it to reach its maximum growth. It needs someone to water it, to make sure it has the right nutrients, to keep weeds away. With this care, the seed soon transforms into an unstoppable, flourishing plant.
Winnie is a plant nursery worker that does exactly that for so many plants. She understands the growth process, and she’s good at helping plants thrive. Since 2022 when Winnie began working at Agromax as a plant nursery worker, she has led the charge of raising over 400,000 plant seedlings into full-grown plants. She has also trained 500 farmers about the best agricultural processes so they can raise flourishing plants too. She’s working, she’s leading, and she’s continually developing a deeper level of mastery in agriculture.
However, Winnie hasn’t always been a master farmer. There was a time when she, like a seed, needed to be cared for and tended to before she could do the same for others.
You see, Winnie became pregnant when she was 16. She went to Wakisa, a pregnancy center in Uganda, run by our partner Vivian. Wakisa takes in young pregnant girls, housing and caring for them throughout their pregnancies. When it comes time for a mom to have her baby, Wakisa takes her to the hospital. After delivery and recovery, the mom goes back home, where she lives life as she begins raising her child. After a few years, once the mom is done nursing and the baby has grown up a bit, Wakisa reaches back out to the mom to invite her to participate in Agromax—a six-month agriculture training program designed for teen moms to learn practical agricultural skills. The girl can choose to accept the offer, and if she does, she gets enrolled in the training course, where she is able to use the skills she learns to provide a stable income for her and her baby by working in a job using those skills.
This is exactly what happened with Winnie. She was cared for at Wakisa, had her baby boy, Solomon, and five years later, was invited to enroll in Agromax through funding from The Hope Venture, to which Winnie said yes. This was just what Winnie needed. She’s from a big Ugandan family… she’s the fifth out of 12 kids raised by a single mom. Her dad had abandoned the family, leaving her mom to care and support all the kids on her own, and now Winnie had her own child to support too.
So Winnie enrolled in Agromax, where she was trained in agri-business, majoring in horticulture and greenhouse management. Winnie excelled in the training course, and the Agromax staff took notice. They offered her a probationary contract, and after her success in that role too, they offered her a full-time greenhouse position.
Being able to attend and complete the Agromax training program changed Winnie’s life. She is so thankful to The Hope Venture and to Vivian for the opportunity. She’s also thankful for Agromax and the investment they put in her through the training program. She learned and grew in leadership and agricultural skill development, and is thankful for the innovation at Agromax through their development and retention program to allow her to stay at Agromax with a job opportunity.
Now she is provided with an income, shelter, clothing, and food. She can send Solomon to school and can help her siblings and family with their finances. One six-month training program impacted Winnie, her son, AND her siblings, and will continue to impact them for years to come. The impact happened because Vivian, Wakisa, and Agromax came alongside Winnie. They helped her in her pregnancy, in her agriculture training, and in her career development. She was tended to. She was watered and pruned. She was given the sunshine she needed, and now she’s producing fruit. She’s thriving. Her branches are stretching and spreading, bringing fruit to those around her too. It’s a pretty beautiful process to watch, just like the growth from a seed to fruit.
