Esther is a 19 year old girl in Uganda, with a sad background. She has lost both parents to Aids. Her mother died first, and as her father had more wives, but they would not look after her, Esther was cast out of the home when her father died too.
Esther’s grandmother picked her up and sent her to school until she could afford it no longer. Esther had to stay home to work to support her dear granny - the only person whom she ever had to love. But she had fallen in love with learning too, and longed to go back to school.
When her grandmother died, Esther’s maternal aunt took her in, to work so that her own children could go to school. Esther was forced to work as hard as a donkey, but no education for her.
Then Esther attended some gospel meetings, and became a Christian. That made her aunt very angry and she was cast out of that home as well.
Esther went to her church family for support and one person took her in until she had completed her Senior Six level. Just before she was to write her final exams, this caring but unrelated person lost his job. That was the end of her financial support for education. They were going to send her back to her original village where she knows there is no hope or love for her.
So Esther has appealed to Revival Time Ministry for funds so that she can start university and learn to support herself. She needs $500 to start. (More at …Esther)
Joanitah, is 14, the oldest of six, and she has a brave and daring mother, who wants her daughter to get an education. Her mother took out a bank loan so Joanitah could go to school, but she was unable to repay the loan, so she lost part of some property she had, and also a shop which was her means of supporting her family. Still determined, this mother borrowed again from an organization that has cruelly taken away the last bit of property she had.
Joanitah had to come home from school, but she too, longs to go back to get her education, and her mother is definitely up a tree as far as supporting her family is concerned. Just $200 would allow Joanitah to continue in high school for another semester, and Revival Time Ministry is hoping to find a sponsor for her.
(More at …Joanitah)
Here’s one more such story which touches me.
Ruth, 16, is an orphan. At least, she has never seen either of her parents. A caring, merciful woman picked her up and was able to send Ruth to the government schools for her primary education. However, she is not able to afford the fees for Ruth’s secondary education.
Ruth loves to learn and dearly desires to get an education. $200 will allow her to go to secondary school. So Ruth, who is not afraid of work, is busy working in others’ gardens, fetching water, and making handicrafts, she is doing all she can towards raising her own education money, but of course it is taking a long time.
Again, Revival Time Ministry’s founder, Pastor Isaac and his wife Christine, are hoping to raise up sponsors for these girls, and some others they know of. (More at…Ruth)
I have been re-building a website for Revival Time Ministry, and so I’ve prepared pages to help with this goal of raising sponsors for these individual girls to get their education. I’ve even offered to send a framed photo of the girl to anyone who will agree to sponsor one of them.
Here in North American and Europe, and other First World countries we take our education opportunities for granted to a large degree. Education in Africa is a completely different story. In many countries there is no public or government arranged education available. Most, if not all schools are private institutions. It costs to attend. That cost may be peanuts compared to a high quality private education in our world, but for many of them, even that cost is much too steep.
Sometimes literacy classes are free - but usually these are offered by a mission or church or some charitable organization. It may barely teach enough to recognize their alphabet and to read at a very primal level.
Once people learn to read, some will crave reading materials and further education. It becomes a holy grail for them, and they will go to many lengths to get that further education. Naturally, the best jobs in the cities, and in the government offices go to those who have managed to get their secondary or even university education.
In many African families, girls are considered slave property, or needed for the work around the home. If they can afford an education at all, it will go to their sons. more rarely to their daughters, or only if they are so well-to-do that they can hire servants and free up the daughters for an advanced education.
I remember growing up the eldest in a very poor family, and when I was in high school, my Dad thought that I ought to drop out and go get a job to help support the family. My Mom stuck up for me and fiercely argued that they would manage until I graduated from high school. So I can identify with the girls described above. Sometimes you just need an advocate to see that you make it through the educational system.
Maybe you had your education handed to you on a platter. Or perhaps you had to struggle and wrestle for your opportunities too. Do you suppose the time has come for you to be an advocate or sponsor for one of these girls in Uganda?
Consider the bargain price of just $200 or $500 to give her such a boost! Here in Canada, high school is free, but some girls might blow $200-500 on a school wardrobe, or perhaps some extra books. I believe one year of university can cost more than $10,000.
There are a number of child sponsorship programs out there, but many of them stop when the child is considered old enough to begin working at a job like an adult. How about these girls, who are willing to manage all the small stuff, if only someone will help out with the school fees so they can attend classes? They tend to fall between the cracks.
Do check out their profiles and if you are inclined to respond, know that I’ll do my best to get to you their photo and perhaps even an address so that you can send ‘your girl’ some notes of encouragement.