Ten years ago, Jacob Deng started a charity call Wadeng : Wings of Hope to help the impoverished villagers in his childhood home of Duk Padiet, in south Sudan.
“Giving them a goat is kind of giving them hope,” says Deng. “Goats are cheap and easy to take care of and they multiple very quickly.”
The goats provide milk and meat, but the benefits go deeper than nutrition.
“A family with no income, a goat will be a means of an income. They can sell it any time to buy maybe tools or medicine,” says Deng.
During Deng’s last visit to Duk Padiet earlier this year, he met a mother who sold five of her eight goats to buy medication for her ailing son.
Maritimers have purchased roughly 550 goats since the campaign began in 2005 - charity that is not lost on the villagers.
"They know Nova Scotia and they know Maritime people and how generous they are to give them a gift of something they value in their own culture," says Deng.
One prominent Maritimer has made it his mission to help Deng.
"I find that Jacob's an inspiration. I think he's the most generous person I've ever met,” says former Nova Scotia MP Bill Casey.
Casey has donated money from his own pocket and partnered up with Transat Holidays to raffle off tickets on a trip to Cuba.
"Every single cent goes to help the children,” says Casey. “There is no overhead, there are no salaries, there is no advertising, there is no expense. Every single cent goes to helping the children. It's a great cause and a great investment."
The goats will be purchased in Africa at a price tag of $60 per goat.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Jayson Baxter
