Rita's Smile

Rita Rana at the Nutrition Rehabilitation Home (NRH) in Dhangadhi, Nepal. (Laura Elizabeth Pohl/Bread for the World)

By Laura Elizabeth Pohl

Unlike the other children at the Nutrition Rehabilitation Home in Nepal, Rita Rana didn't cry, smile, or run away when I first entered the room.

I was immediately drawn to her quiet demeanor, and I set down my cameras.

Rita, with her deep brown eyes and big front teeth, sat like a little sack of potatoes as I made funny faces, shook her hand and played peek-a-boo.

Rita, at age 2, was the oldest child there—but she was also the shortest and the lightest. Malnutrition had stunted her growth and development.

I kept trying to draw Rita out. Finally, when I pretended to try and tickle her, she gave a faint smile.

I spent the next three days photographing and filming inside the home—and wondering about Rita's future.

Please make a generous gift today to help Bread for the World protect the funding that changes the lives of children.

I saw firsthand during my trip to Nepal how important your support is for kids like Rita. Your generosity helps Bread fight hard for foreign assistance that can save millions of lives. By advocating for programs that provide adequate nutrition during the 1,000-day window from pregnancy to age 2, we focus on the approaches that best help children develop properly so that they can thrive.

Your support is critical to ensuring we can make lasting change for children like Rita. And it doesn’t take much to make a big difference. For every dollar you give, Bread helps win more than $100 in assistance for hungry and poor people in the U.S. and abroad.

Now is the perfect time to give—a group of generous donors have stepped up to match every dollar that you donate by Dec. 31. Donate today to help ensure Bread can expand our work advocating for the programs that save the lives of hungry people.

After meeting Rita and seeing firsthand how your generous donations can help kids like her, I feel privileged to be a part of Bread’s advocacy work. Thank you for supporting Bread and, more importantly, for supporting millions of hungry people around the world.