Tuesday, July 28, 2015

A brave and independent girl ~ Guest blog by CEF staff Thuy

Working with disadvantaged students not only helps me to know how difficult it is for these poor families, but also makes me admire them very much.

Imagine what happens if you are 15 years old and your father has died, your mother has a lowly paid and unstable job as well as a big debt and your older sisters are already married and can’t afford to help you or your mother because of their own poverty. On top of that your older brother doesn’t help and just causes trouble for the family. Without money, support and care from your family will you be able to continue your studies?


 

And all of those problems happened to ‘T’ when she was only 15 years old. She is a young girl that I admire a lot. Understanding that her mother couldn’t afford her education anymore, ‘T’ went to a town about 25 km from their home to find a job. Luckily she met a coffee shop owner who is a good person, and now works for them from that time until now. 'T' has free accommodation and free food at the owner’s home. In the summer holidays she works from 6am to 11pm and gets US$115 a month. In the school year she works from 6pm to 11pm and get US$50 a month and she studies during the day time. ‘T’ uses this money for her education fees and for her personal expenditure. Another small sum which she receives for helping with her education she sends to her mother for paying the interest on their debt. The challenges of life just seem to make her stronger.

‘T’ dreams of being a math teacher. She will be in grade 12 this coming school year and she needs to spend more time on her studies this year. She is an example of one of the girls CEF wants to help with a scholarship. Your funds will be very meaningful in making girls dreams like 'T's' come true.

No comments:

Post a Comment