JNJF’s 2025 Widows’ Fundraising Luncheon Sale

On Sunday 23rd November, the New Brookfields Hotel was filled with widows and vulnerable women, community leaders, partners, and supporters, coming together for the 2025 JNJF Widows’ Fundraising Luncheon Sale. The room was alive with quiet laughter, soft dancing, nods of understanding, and the shared sense that they were seen, valued, and supported. What might have been just another fundraising event unfolded into something far more intimate, a celebration of resilience, community, and hope.

Our Program Manager, John Kingsley Yambasu, opened the afternoon warmly, describing the event as “a celebration of responsibility, compassion, and the courage to lift each other up.” Since our founding in 2017, we have worked to restore dignity to widows and vulnerable women whose struggles often remain hidden behind silence. “These are not numbers,” he reminded the room. “They are mothers, daughters, and women with stories that deserve to be heard.” Proceeds from the luncheon sale will expand our women’s health center, strengthen mental health awareness, and support programs addressing drug abuse, teenage pregnancy, unsafe migration, and the lack of sustainable income opportunities across Sierra Leone.

One of the most powerful moments came from Rokel Commercial Bank’s Marketing Manager, Michaela Macauley, who spoke not just as a professional, but as a widow. She peeled back the layers of widowhood the quiet battles, the judgment from in-laws, and the societal pressure to prove strength even while struggling inside. “Being a widow is not an illness,” she said gently. “It is an unfortunate reality that can meet anyone.” Her message encouraged widows to hold on to their children, rise above stigma, and remain hopeful. She praised the JNJF for creating a safe space many widows desperately need, and highlighted Rokel Commercial Bank’s support systems such as the “Kombra Account” and small-business loans designed to help widows rebuild their lives.

Our co-founder, Mrs. Nyanga Jaward, then spoke about the Foundation’s mission. Vulnerable households often fall into hardship not because of neglect, but because life deals them heavy and unfair blows. “A mother who has support emotionally, mentally, and financially will see her children thrive,” she said. Empowering widows through skills training, counseling, and entrepreneurship does more than strengthen one woman; it transforms entire families. “The moment a woman feels seen and supported,” she added, “you can literally watch her begin to transform.”

Dr. Edward Sandy, Executive Director of the National Investment Board, shared a tender story of his mother, a widow whose resilience shaped his own life. He urged the women not to let grief define their story. “You still have children looking to you,” he said. “Stand for them, even when your spirit trembles.”

Mr. Abraham Mansaray, General Manager of Securiport, reflected on his long relationship with the Foundation. He spoke of watching lives slowly stitched back together, women who once carried grief like a shadow now standing tall and confident. He commended our founders for building a vision that reaches the women most easily forgotten and reaffirmed his commitment to continue supporting the Foundation’s work.

The luncheon ended with heartfelt gratitude for our sponsors and partners, whose generosity makes these transformations possible. We sincerely thank UBA (United Bank of Africa), Premium Divine Trading Company Ltd, NASSIT, Union Trust Bank, Bank of Sierra Leone, Rokel Commercial Bank, BK Investment Ltd, New Brookfields Hotel, Afrigas, Grafton, Capitol Foods, Securiport, and Shalimar. Their contributions are more than donations they are investments in hope, resilience, and the futures of widows, vulnerable women and children across Sierra Leone.