Save a Girl from Child Marriage with a Scholarship

It was a special day when your scholarship arrived in the hands of sixteen-year-old Happy. Up until your gift arrived, this talented young girl couldn't live up to her namesake. She was destined to become a child bride, but your generosity helped to remove that threat, and gave her a gift that will last a lifetime—an education.

Marriage should have be the last thing on Happy’s mind, but she carries a memory of watching her best friend forcibly pulled out of school, only to be married off to a complete stranger. As you can imagine, the thought of this happening to her was terrifying.  

Happy’s family is poor, even to Bangladeshi standards. Her father is a rice farmer and spends his days knee-deep in water, hunched over, and shuffling from plant to plant. All this effort and toil earned him around $2 per day, barely enough  to feed his family let alone keep Happy in school. 

“My father only studied up to the second grade and my mom has no education. That’s why we’re so poor.” Happy says despairingly. 

Like any girl her age, Happy has big dreams.She looks forward to finishing school and knows that an education is her best chance of escaping poverty;

“I want to continue my studies so I can have a good life.” she says.“Many people in my village get sick and die, so I want to become a doctor because I would like to help them.”

When Happy learned that her father had plans to marry her off, to earn some extra money, her fears had become reality. She threw herself at her father's feet and begged him to change his mind but it seemed hopeless, unless they could find a way to keep Happy in school.

I'm thrilled to let you know that because of your generosity, Happy received a scholarship to stay in school! She's avoided her fears of child marriage and can now enjoy being a girl again.

You have saved Happy from a dark and very dangerous future. And thanks to you, she now has the chance to finish school, and chase her dream of becoming a doctor.