Thank you for your interest in A Child For All Inc., ACFA. I was born in the Republic of Mali, West Africa, where  I was raised by my single father.  I experienced first hand what it means to be an orphan in Mali. When I was 11 years old, my father had to leave my brother and I for 3 years, for work purposes.  It was then that I learned to:
1. Hand wash clothes with a traditionally made soap saturated with potassium, which left rashes on my hands, and air dry them on wire racks;
2. Make six one-mile trips at 5:00AM transporting 25 gallons of water on each trip before going to school every morning;
3. Pound Ginger with Lemon (both of which gave me rashes) to make Malian Gingerale, freeze it, and then transport it (on my head) to the market, ensuring that I made sales to bring some money home;
4. Walk 2 miles each way to and from school in an over 90 degres Fahrenheit temperature;
5. Cook in a small kitchen full of wood smoke with no ventilations.
As a result, I was held back one academic year. Three years later, after my father's return, and under his supervision, I graduated from High School with the highest GPA in the entire country. This shows the importance of having caring personnel monitor vulnerable children's nutrition, health care and education.
Further, in my personal life, I have on more than one occasion experienced how the lack of care, attention and love in children's lives can have a negative impact on their psychological development, leading to extremely difficult adult lives, and affecting those who love them.
These personal experiences have led to re-enforcing my willingness to realize my dream of bringing hope to Malian orphans. Hence was founded ACFA.

Three years later, as I lost my father, I am honored to continue his legacy, by ensuring opportunities are given to the most vulnerable children.

Sincerely,

Kadiatou Fatima Sidibe