By Annette Scarpitta | Project Co-Leader
I first noticed Gertride, an albino girl selected to be in our scholarship program, in a video produced by AMCAV early in our project (this portion not yet translated). Albinos in eastern DR Congo are greatly stigmatized and marginalized, often unloved by their parents. I could tell how shamed Gertride was because she hid her head on her knees during the filming of the video, never looking up. But thanks to the social integration process of AMCAV and school officials, recent photos of Gertride shows her smiling and looking confidently at the camera, including one with AMCAV director Bernadette. I am so proud of her.
Another girl brought to my attention lately is a 9-year-old girl named Happiness. She is missing some fingers but appears to be proud as she holds her new pens and pencils from a fully funded GlobalGiving microproject. This is likely a birth defect called Symbrachydactyly, a condition in which a child is born with small or missing fingers or a missing hand, usually only on one side, as is the case with Happiness. I am sorry that medical options for improving her condition are not available to her.
Continued thanks to all for your continued support of this project.
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