We’re SO PROUD of Ms Husenbi Shaikh – and here’s why you should be too! Last month, as thousands of students across India eagerly awaited their Class XII exams results (HSC – Higher Secondary School Certificate), there was one mother from our slum communities eagerly waiting too – not for her children’s results though, but for her own results.
That’s right! Ms Husenbi Shaikh, an incredible President of our Self Help Group (SHG) for women, attempted her HSC exams, 19 years after completing high school, and passed with flying colours!
She was married off at the age of 17, and therefore never got to complete higher secondary school, even though she had cleared Class X at 15 years. In 2019, she migrated to Mumbai with her husband and became a mother to two beautiful children. Life in the slum community they lived in, was wrought with worry, fear and desperate poverty. But hope entered her children’s lives when they joined Vision Rescue’s Beacon Learning Centre inside their slum.
While her children grew from strength to strength in our classrooms, Husenbi joined us as an Intern. Soon she learnt about various social issues, their solutions, and how women could step up to lead transformation in her own community. As President of the SHG, she learnt to speak for the women in her Group fearlessly.
In her role as an Intern, Husenbi was instrumental in selecting children eligible for education at our Learning Centres, connecting women to our vocational training courses, and even nominating other women to become Interns with us like her.
Through all these experiences, Husenbi transformed from a shy, reserved woman to a change leader, respected for her skills and voice in her neighbourhood.
The icing on the cake? Last year, while she was motivating other women to grow their vocational skills, Husenbi decided that she herself would restart her journey in education that was robbed from her 19 years ago. She put her heart and mind into studying for the Class XII (HSC) Board Exams all year.
From day one, our staff and other interns cheered Husenbi along, and today we couldn’t be more proud of her achievement.
And you should be too – because it’s your donations that have empowered Husenbi & her children through the last three years, drawn her out of her shell and equipped her to overcome every struggle life throws at her. Thank YOU for standing with women like Husenbi!
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Vision Rescue exists to rescue children from all forms of exploitation by engaging and sustaining them in education. We are a registered NGO for child education under the Bombay Public Trust Act 1950.
You too can partner with Vision Rescue to empower people to find their purpose, enjoy their rights and live with dignity
Join us as a volunteer – www.visionrescue.co.in/volunteer
Partner with Vision Rescue as a donor – www.visionrescue.co.in/donate
