Adanu is the middle child in a family of 3. When she was 6 her father died. Her brother was 13 and her younger sister was 3. Adanu’s mother was desperately trying to feed her family from the proceeds of their tiny farm. In the end, she decided that Adanu would be the one to leave home to work on a farm far away. Her brother could help with the farm work, and her sister was too young to be sent away to work. So Adanu went to work at age 6, and there she stayed for 6 long years.
There would be no school for her. Her brother graduated from 8th grade and her younger sister started 1st grade while Adanu worked hard caring for cattle and scrounging for food to eat. You see, children who work for others are not fed. Her mother received about $20 per year for Adanu’s labor.
When her mother heard about HMCHA, she asked if Adanu could be sponsored. By the time Adanu had a sponsor she was 13 and would begin first grade as a tall, gangly teenager. Her sister is in third grade and they walk together to school. Her sponsorship began in May, and she was so eager to go to school that she went everyday to the community center to start learning the alphabet and how to write her name before the school year started in September.
She is thrilled to have a sponsor and loves to get letters from her. Look at the smiles on the faces of both Adanu and her brother as she shares her letter with him. Who knows what new paths her life will take now that she is learning to read?
Adanu is an example of the power of our sponsorship program. For a small investment of $360 per year, the future looks brighter for Adanu.
You too can make a difference in the life of a child like Adanu. Sponsor a waiting child and change a life forever!