The Jennifer Etuh Foundation (JEF) has supported about 1,000 widows in Nasarawa State with cash, wrappers and food items to alleviate their hardships.
Mr Joe Otu, Programme Manager of JEF, disclosed this during the foundation’s widows’ outreach held on Sunday at the Peace House Tent in Lafia.
Otu said the outreach was part of the foundation’s efforts to support vulnerable women and demonstrate love and care for widows.
He said the initiative also commemorated the first anniversary of the deaths of two members of the foundation’s team, Mr Josiah Musa and Mr Alfred Arome, who died in 2025.
He explained that Musa and Arome were committed members of the foundation’s evangelical team and actively participated in its medical outreaches.
The programme manager said the foundation decided to extend its activities to Nasarawa in honour of the deceased, who had worked in the state and wished to see similar interventions benefit their communities.
According to him, the foundation is beginning its activities in Nasarawa state with the widows’ outreach before commencing a five-day free medical outreach for residents of the state.
Otu said the foundation focused on women and the girl-child, particularly in education, healthcare and economic empowerment.
He explained that the foundation operated six hospitals across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, mostly in hard-to-reach communities, to provide healthcare services to underserved populations.
“We usually reach out to widows to see how we can support them, show them care and love, and let them know that they are valued,” he said.
Otu said the beneficiaries were drawn from different communities and local government areas across Nasarawa State, adding that the foundation would reach 1,000 widows through the initiative.
Otu said the free medical outreach would take place at the Specialist Hospital, Akwanga, with nearly 80 medical volunteers expected to provide services for five days.
He said the services would include general and specialised medical care, surgeries, dental services and eye care, with particular attention to conditions such as cataracts, fibroids and other health challenges.
Otu said the foundation, working with Pro-Health International, Peace House Mission and the Nasarawa Government, hoped to provide medical assistance to between 3,000 and 3,500 people.
In a sermon at the event, Pastor Elisha Kure urged the widows to remain steadfast in their faith and trust God to sustain them and the families left behind by their deceased husbands.
Kure cited Psalm 68:5, which describes God as the father of the fatherless and defender of widows, and prayed for God’s continued blessings on the foundation.
Reacting to the gesture, Mrs Rita Arome, widow of one of the deceased team members, said the outreach was organised to honour the lives and service of her husband and Musa.
She expressed joy that the foundation had fulfilled their desire to support widows, adding that the intervention reflected the compassion and commitment they demonstrated during their lifetime.
Arome said she was grateful that the foundation had brought relief and encouragement to about 1,000 widows who had gathered for the event.
She urged people to remain committed to serving God and humanity, noting that life was short and that everyone should make meaningful contributions while alive.
Also, Mrs Patience Dauda-Osah, a beneficiary, expressed gratitude to the foundation, saying the gesture had reassured widows that they had not been forgotten.
“Sometimes we feel forgotten, but this makes me feel that I belong. It means God has not forgotten us and has raised people to remember us,” she said.
Dauda-Osah, who said she lost her husband in Sept. 2025, prayed for God to strengthen the foundation and enable it to expand its humanitarian activities.(NAN)