Alice's Story: How a Cow Fights AIDS

Just before being diagnosed with HIV, Alice's parents heard from some friends that Heifer was helping families in the area by providing livestock. They eagerly began to train and making preparations to receive a cow.

Alice's mother was the one to apply and to sign the contract. Her father signed as a witness because Heifer's experience has shown that when women own resources, the income is most likely to be spent on nutrition and education for the family. Besides, Jean agrees that they make better spending decisions when they talk over what they are going to do first.

Alice's family was barely hanging on when the Heifer cow arrived. She was named Humbuiergwanda, which means "I long for my country," and her impact on the family's health was immediate and profound. The protein from her milk rejuvenated the family, and in short time, Alice's father gathered the strength to begin planting teaching her brothers again.

"I really like the cow," says Evailsie. "We should always be taking care of her and feeding her well. Dad wants us to learn all about the cow." His younger brother Aimable adds, "We help to put the manure in the garden. We mix the soil with the dung. We help with weeding the garden too."

Alice's father was already experienced in traditional cattle farming, but the time and energy required to take a cow to pasture is more than his fragile health could bear. So he put his Heifer training in zero-grazing to use. Now Humbuiergwanda stays in a restricted area where she is cared for, and food is brought to her. The manure she produces is easier to gather for fertilizer, and it quickly improved the family's crop yields.

The family already had a cow, but it could produce only a single gallon of milk per day. In comparison, Humbuiergwanda, specially bred by Heifer International, is a super cow. She produces four gallons! When you have a cow that produces four gallons of milk a day, you have milk to sell.

Then came another piece of good news. The Clinton Foundation and others had worked out agreements with drug companies that have reduced the cost of a year's AIDS medication from $1,600 to about $160, and pediatric pharmaceuticals for AIDS had become available.
 
Because of the income from their cow, little Alice's family can afford anti-retroviral drugs for her. Alice visits the clinic weekly to be weighed, checked, and get a one-week supply of anti-retroviral drugs. Much improved, she is able to run and play.

The clinic is several miles away so the visit takes all day. Alice misses a whole day of school every week, but she is missing less school overall than in the past because she is sick less often since beginning the treatment. Alice's health has improved so much that she is even able to run and play.

The family has passed on a heifer to another family and sold a second calf, also a female, for $600-an enormous windfall for a family in rural Rwanda. "Then we saved $600 from selling the milk," Matilda says, "and we were able to buy this house near the road, install a good water collection system, and buy some good hens. Besides that, we are drinking milk at home every morning and evening."

Jean's prayer is to see the cow business continue and engage the whole family.  "I would love to have five cows.  It is very possible," he grins.  "We are keeping the heifer calf that is in the stalls now. . . . I will even pass on cows to our children when they set up their homes."

Matilda is on anti-retroviral drugs and hopes to be able to work in the gardens again soon. "The milk has been very important for my health," she says. "Before, I weighed 103 pounds. Now I weigh 154 pounds!"

Little Alice says she's glad her mommy is feeling better now.