MAY 2023: IMPACT FOR LIFE
Vladut used to sit on a chair in the corner, not wanting to have anything to do with school work or learning.
[ABOVE] Vladut with Paula, MWB Child Sponsorship Coordinator in Romania, in 2016]
Now 13, Vladut has grown up in poverty in a Roma village in Danes, Romania. Here there are many people with little education and access to only low-wage jobs, if they are able to find work at all. Children are often born into homes where there is a sense of hopelessness and resignation about the future, and they drop out of school early, just as their parents did.
“School was something that Valdut found very hard when he first started, and he continued to find it difficult for a long time,” said Paula, our MWB Child Sponsorship coordinator in Danes.
Vladut was enrolled in our Sponsorship program in 2016, and when he started attending our After-School Care Club, he struggled just as much as he did in school.
“Vladut never knew how to express what he felt; he had difficulties understanding his work, and needed more time to keep up with it,” Paula said.
“Once he started receiving more of our attention, he began to blossom in front of our eyes. He’s now in sixth grade and doesn’t need that much help anymore; he likes trying to figure things out on his own.”
[ABOVE: Paula with Vladut now in 2023]
SUPPORTING CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Vladut knows he needs to study hard for his dreams to come true and he does his best, even when learning his most difficult subjects.
Some of the children in the community are fortunate enough to have parents who care about education, and accept all the help they can get to make sure their children reach their potential.
Vladut’s mother always valued his education and when MWB stepped in to help, she was very grateful.
Vladut said, “The help I have received from the Mission has made me better at my studies, and I like school more. It’s helped me through tough times when I didn’t understand why I need to keep trying or why education is so important.”
Paula said, “I am more than certain that if not for Mission Without Borders investing in our community children’s lives, by supporting the After School program and equipping children like Vladut with all the school supplies they need, 80% of them would have given up on education a long time ago, or would have maybe never even started school.”
Parents in the community are more than grateful for the Mission, which for most is the only way they are able to keep their children in school.
“We want to send a big, big thank you to all the sponsors out there,” Vladut’s mother said.
Vladut added, “I promise I will cherish their support, and do everything in my power to study hard and become the doctor or pastor I dream of becoming.”
Thanks to our supporters, children like Vladut are no longer feeling defeated in the classroom, or dropping out of school altogether. Instead, they are receiving the encouragement and support they need, as well as practical help like school supplies and After-School tutoring & mentoring.
With your help, we can reach more children like Vladut, helping them to dream big dreams for the future, and work joyfully towards their goals.
Learn more about our Child Sponsorship program HERE .