She never made a single waffle before this
Down the Nile in Egypt, TOLI works in villages — small communities where families and neighbors live and work side by side. Narrow dirt streets wind between desert-colored homes, laundry hangs between stacked apartment buildings, and beautifully painted doors add color to each one.
Material poverty is widespread in these villages. But so is creativity, resilience, and hospitality. They can be seen around every corner.
Besma is a TOLI client who lives in the village of Towah. She never had the opportunity to receive a formal education, but she knows exactly who she is: a wife, a mother, and now, a brave entrepreneur.
One day, her TOLI Social Worker approached her with an idea.
"What if you made and sold waffles to children and families in your community?"
Waffles? Besma thought. Could I really do something new like that?
The idea felt strange and risky. It felt so unknown.
But she couldn't stop dreaming about it. She thought about how much her own children love sweet treats. She imagined neighborhood kids gathering around a waffle stand after church. Little by little, a waffle machine started to feel possible. So Besma bravely took out a $100 TOLI microloan to buy a waffle maker, batter, syrups, and sugar.
The more TOLI-US staff got to know Besma, the more she reminded them of friends and family back home. She's a creative young mom. The Lord has gifted her with hospitality. She loves her children fiercely, and she cares about the neighborhood kids, too. She doesn't love taking risks. She worries. She wonders if she'll fail.
And she chooses courage anyway.
Today, Besma earns up to $6 a day from her waffle business — a remarkable increase for her family. She's already paid off her microloan, and now she's saving toward two dreams. The first: a glass display case to protect her batter from flies, so her business can grow. The second is bigger. She's saving so her three children can go to school.
“I didn’t have the chance to go to school. I want to provide that for my kids.”
– Besma, waffle chef, Egypt
Villages down the Nile may feel a world away. But the women and men there have the same dreams for their children. They worry about tomorrow. They want meaningful work, and they welcome others around their table.
This is what monthly giving makes possible.
Monthly donors are TOLI champions, because consistency changes lives. Whether your gift is $15, $100, or $300 a month, it gives our local staff the freedom to walk alongside families like Besma's over time, through the doubt, the risk, and the bravery.
Your monthly gift helps people's dreams become reality — one waffle stand at a time. Would you consider becoming a monthly donor today?