Counseling: Alice’s Story

Meet Maman Alice

Mrs. Alice Masukula is a 37-year-old widow and mother of three children – Angel (14), Thimothé (11), and Treasure (8).

She lost her husband, whom she was married to for 17 years, in the Mount Nyiragongo eruption of May 2021. This is the story of Alice’s battle with grief and how prayer and acceptance allowed her and her children to move forward. 

Fleeing the Eruption

After Alice’s family fled from their home in Goma to escape the incoming flow of lava and evacuate to Sake, her husband realized he had left the deed for their land and went back to retrieve it.  

As Alice and her children waited, they could see the lava flowing closer and closer towards them. Everyone at that point had fled the surrounding area, but Alice’s husband had yet to return. She told the children to go ahead to Sake as she stayed to look for their father, but she was unable to move any closer — the lava was too close, literally steps away. Alice ultimately made the difficult decision to return and follow her children to Sake without their father.

Losing Everything

Alice and her children returned to their home the following day, only to learn that everything in their house was destroyed: “We could barely recognize our plot.”

They began looking for her husband. No one was able to tell them where he was, until one person came to tell them the news: he was still in the house when the lava engulfed him. Alice was unable to bear the news, so much so that she couldn’t tell her children their father had died until three days later. Even then, they couldn’t accept the tragedy.

Finding Support to Carry On

Alice had trouble eating, sleeping, and going to work. 

At the same time, Un Jour Nouveau was working hard to support victims of the natural disaster by distributing supplies and reaching out to help those in need. It just so happened that one of these victims was Alice, and she was overcome with emotion by the aid as no one had reached out to her since her family’s tragedy. 

From there, the UJN team was able to connect Alice with the Counseling program and she began sessions with the initiative's psychologist, Nestor Matadi. With that support and guidance, her health improved. She has been able to learn how to process her grief and better understand and find peace in God’s greater plan for her family’s tragedy. Her children also now understand and accept their father’s death.

“My children and I say thank you to Africa New Day for love and assistance,” says Alice. “Since my husband’s death we were virtually abandoned – no organization, no person has come to assist us...May the Most High bless you all!”

Read more about how our Counseling program is supporting the journey of people just like Alice by clicking here. If you'd like to support this meaningful work, there are many opportunities to get involved. Click here to learn more.

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