For the first decade of her life Khushboo’s family has known one tragedy after another. She’s the second of five children who lost their father 10 years ago. Their mother has worked as a housemaid to keep the children alive.
Over the years, one by one, all 5 children dropped out of school and began spending their days alone at home in their slum community. It was as much as their single mother could do to ensure the kids had food to eat each day. Education was just a far-fetched dream.
When we met Khushboo on door-to-door house visits in her slum community last year, she and her younger siblings were just skin and bone. They were falling sick every few days and they looked after each other while their mother and uncle went out to work each day.
Khushboo, her younger sister Naju and Zainab were overjoyed to join our Beacon Learning Centre inside their slum community. All three entered our Open Basic Education course for older children like them, who had either dropped out of school or never even had the chance to go in the first place.
Yes, the education the three children received began to change their lives, but so did the rich nutritious meal they got every day after lessons. For the first time in their childhood, the girls slept with full tummies every weekday.
A few months into class though, we noticed that Khushboo was nursing a heavy cough. Our medical team examined her and discovered she was suffering from tuberculosis – a contagious disease common in the slum communities among those with poor nutrition and in unhygienic surroundings.
After a month of treatment, Khushboo was able to return to class. She’s now well into the nine-month treatment and she’s in full form today, helping her siblings Naju and Zainab with their studies even though they’re all in the same class.
Khushboo dreams of becoming a teacher one day. She thanks you for reaching out with love to her family when they were in desperate need. Without your gifts of education, nutrition and healthcare, she and her siblings would have been prey to the dangerous elements that scour slum communities like hers for vulnerable children to exploit.
Human trafficking, drug peddling and child labour are harsh realities in Khushboo’s world, but its your gifts that have protected her and her family through Vision Rescue. Thank you for empowering them!
