Twelve years old. An age when the world should be wide open—full of first big friendships, school secrets, and dreams for the future. But for her twelfth birthday, Divine was given a fight for her life. She was given hunger.

This isn’t the ordinary rumble in the stomach that a hearty meal can fix. This is malnutrition so severe that the body resists food, and every careless bite could make things worse. That’s why our fight for Divine is an exercise in patience—a strategy of small, precise steps.

First came therapeutic milk—given carefully, almost spoon by spoon. Then came what Sister Agnieszka calls the “appetite test.” One egg. Eaten straight away—a small victory. Then juice, fruit. Yesterday, with a smile, Divine ate meat and fish. The thought of spinach or beans still doesn’t make her face light up, but we know it’s only a matter of time. Today, she had another portion—this time chicken. Thankfully, her appetite seems to be holding.

At the Good Factory, we don’t try to fix the whole world. Global hunger statistics from the WHO don’t dictate our actions. We see a specific person. We see Divine. Her story, her quiet struggle, and the smile slowly returning to her face. Every child who comes into our care in Ntamugenga matters to us. Behind every anonymous number is a real story and real suffering—like Divine’s. Hunger often drags other health problems along with it, and we’re slowly diagnosing those too—but first, we have to free her from its devastating grip.

Divine still needs many more days of nutrition, care, and support before she can recover—before she can simply be a twelve-year-old, instead of a child fighting for every breath. You can give her that time by providing a therapeutic meal.