You’re helping kids get back to school after conflict
"When it was safe to re-open Kelly’s school after conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, your love was there. And you’re still there today, as Kelly shares.
During the 2022–2023 school year, the principal asked us to go back home and stay close to our parents because the war was at our doorstep.
I went home that day and didn’t leave my house.
Then, we learned that many people were already fleeing because gunshots could be heard in the distance.
That’s how we also took to the road, following the crowd. I was with my mum, my brothers, and my sisters.
We walked for three days and nights to reach Kirumba. I was so tired, but I couldn’t stop.
I saw monkeys on the road that had snatched a woman’s food supplies. We also lost sight of my younger sister for a while, whom we later found with another family.
We spent two weeks in Kirumba. When the fighting stopped, we returned home.
When I got back, my friend told me that the school had completely closed its doors. There are some classmates I haven’t seen since that day. And we didn’t go back to school for the rest of that school year.
I missed school terribly.
To fill that void, I played a game in the yard where we acted out school roles. One of us played the principal, another the teacher, and the others the students.
During that time, our classrooms were being used as dormitories for displaced people. They did everything there: cooked, ate, and slept.
So when classes resumed, we found our classrooms in a dirty state. Our desks were broken, and weeds had grown everywhere.
But through maintenance work, we helped restore cleanliness.
World Vision supported us with school supplies such as backpacks, geometry sets, notebooks, and pens.
They also set up a programme at school where we have fun and play together.
Today, we are being told that Ebola is among us.
What scares me the most is that we’ve been told that this time, Ebola has no specific treatment. They talk about it often on the radio and remind everyone to follow preventive measures.
Here at school, I am part of the hygiene committee that encourages students to wash their hands regularly and follow other prevention measures.”
With your faithful support through Childhood Rescue, you didn’t leave when Kelly’s school re-opened. You continued to care for her and her classmates by creating a safe, supportive school environment where kids can start to recover from the trauma of war.
And as they face the next crisis, the threat of Ebola, you’re helping to provide critical hygiene and health information, and equipping Kelly and her community with the hygiene supplies they need to protect themselves and stop the spread of disease.
Thank you for being there for children like Kelly when it matters most. Your kindness is helping children in dangerous places to survive, recover, and rebuild their lives.
During the 2022–2023 school year, the principal asked us to go back home and stay close to our parents because the war was at our doorstep.
I went home that day and didn’t leave my house.
Then, we learned that many people were already fleeing because gunshots could be heard in the distance.
That’s how we also took to the road, following the crowd. I was with my mum, my brothers, and my sisters.
We walked for three days and nights to reach Kirumba. I was so tired, but I couldn’t stop.
I saw monkeys on the road that had snatched a woman’s food supplies. We also lost sight of my younger sister for a while, whom we later found with another family.
We spent two weeks in Kirumba. When the fighting stopped, we returned home.
When I got back, my friend told me that the school had completely closed its doors. There are some classmates I haven’t seen since that day. And we didn’t go back to school for the rest of that school year.
I missed school terribly.
To fill that void, I played a game in the yard where we acted out school roles. One of us played the principal, another the teacher, and the others the students.
During that time, our classrooms were being used as dormitories for displaced people. They did everything there: cooked, ate, and slept.
So when classes resumed, we found our classrooms in a dirty state. Our desks were broken, and weeds had grown everywhere.
But through maintenance work, we helped restore cleanliness.
World Vision supported us with school supplies such as backpacks, geometry sets, notebooks, and pens.
They also set up a programme at school where we have fun and play together.
Today, we are being told that Ebola is among us.
What scares me the most is that we’ve been told that this time, Ebola has no specific treatment. They talk about it often on the radio and remind everyone to follow preventive measures.
Here at school, I am part of the hygiene committee that encourages students to wash their hands regularly and follow other prevention measures.”
With your faithful support through Childhood Rescue, you didn’t leave when Kelly’s school re-opened. You continued to care for her and her classmates by creating a safe, supportive school environment where kids can start to recover from the trauma of war.
And as they face the next crisis, the threat of Ebola, you’re helping to provide critical hygiene and health information, and equipping Kelly and her community with the hygiene supplies they need to protect themselves and stop the spread of disease.
Thank you for being there for children like Kelly when it matters most. Your kindness is helping children in dangerous places to survive, recover, and rebuild their lives.