Educate and Train 100 Disadvantaged Children

"Every child has a dream, whether it is to become an accountant or to become a scientist and discover new and amazing things for our society and nation.  As a good student, I would like to become an accountant and this would be a dream come true..." (an excerpt from Caroline's winning essay, The Future I Dream Of).

We are so glad to be supporting Caroline's dream to become an accountant.  At the humble age of 14 years, Caroline already knows what she wants to be when she grows up, and is prepared for the hard work necessary to become a professional in that field.

"Well, I know becoming an accountant will not be an easy task, as I would have to tackle the problem of finance and distractions, but I will not give up.  Currently, I am in high school, this is the place where the first step is taken to achieve my goals, and I really want to pass out of high school with distinctions," says Caroline.

At the Valentine's Brunch, which we held on the 21^st of February for all our kids to meet with their sponsors, Caroline and Naomi were awarded with the first prize for their submissions in the essay competition, for Secondary and Primary level respectively.  

One of the things we noticed when we read through all the essays was that EVERY SINGLE ONE of them expressed their desire to succeed, so that they could help others less fortunate!  They are so aware of the unfortunate state that so many African children are born in, and may spend their whole lives in, that they have a burden to go and help others, when they have been helped!

“I will like to study abroad, make a good living, and money to buy my mother a good house, because she has gone through a lot in raising my sister Ruth and I, Naomi. I would appreciate the people that helped me and build an NGO (Non-Governmental Organization) for the less privileged in the society…” (an excerpt from nine year old Naomi’s winning essay).

This is wonderful encouragement for us to continue to invest in the lives of these children, knowing that, aside for bettering them, we are truly investing in the transformation of the world.  As each child we help pays it forward, we will truly come to realise the future of all our dreams!

Our support for their development doesn’t end with sponsorship.  We are always looking for ways to positively engage them and mentor them, so that they will be single-minded in pursuing their dreams.  This month, we used the occasion of International Women’s Day to take the girls out to two women-led initiatives, so that they can learn from them.  On the 6^th, they were taken to Lady Mechanics, and met with the founder, Sandra Eguebor, and on the 7^th, they were hosted by Francesca Rosset at Kinabuti, a Fashion Label.  They learnt amongst other things that disadvantage can be overcome, and that the single most important factor in success is perseverance!  We captured our activities in a video and with pictures on our website!

We are already making great plans for Father's day too, as our boys didn't take part in the Women's Day activities.  In closing, I’ll leave you with these words from Naomi’s essay:

“I know that in order to pursue my dream, I may face failure, this cannot be stopped, but I will keep trying until I get it right as determination today leads to success tomorrow.”

Links:

• FLA Website
• Official Blog
• Meet The Kids