Promise Pack delivers hope and help

Ginette is a bright student with a charming smile. Yet, behind her cheerful grin, this 11-year-old girl has known misery since her earliest years. As she speaks about her daily struggles, she remembers all of the difficulties her mother had to face raising her and her six brothers.

Ginette with her Promise Pack

In Haiti, when it’s time to go back to school, whether in an urban or rural area, many parents have great difficulty finding money for their children’s school fees. The cost of attending school alone is very expensive for most Haitian families, and children who are privileged enough to attend class quite often do not receive the necessary school supplies due to economic difficulties. As a result, many kids go to school with worn out shoes and/or without a backpack to protect their books and notebooks. Often, these underprivileged children must carry their books in their hands. 

Ginette remembers: "Last year, I used a completely worn out backpack. It was not useful to me at all. Besides, I had to share it with my little sister, who attends the same school as me and hasn’t a backpack either. That backpack could barely hold and protect our notebooks. It was a real misery."

Currently, Ginette is in her last year of primary school and admits that if she had not been sponsored by World Vision, perhaps, she would never have achieved so much at school: "My studies were sponsored by World Vision since the second grade. Thanks to World Vision, I can continue to go to school."

As a child raised by a single mother, Ginette recalls how difficult her struggles have been. “My mom was not able to help me reach where I am today. My dad left us long time ago. Mom is the one who takes care of us, although she is unemployed. It's really hard.” While Ginette’s mother is able to cope with a small candy business, the income she earns is never enough to meet the family’s needs. “Each new school year is always an ordeal for my mom who can’t buy school supplies,” Ginette claims. 

With a nice smile, Ginette shows her "Promise Pack", she received from World Vision Haiti in a distribution funded by World Vision US this October. "I was so pleased to receive this backpack,” she says excitedly, “and I still am. My bag is nice, smells good and is not small. My bag can easily accommodate my notebooks and all the other little things that I received at the same time in the backpack such as pens, a ruler, an eraser, drawing pencils, and drawing books. Mom was so relieved to know that she won’t need to find a way to buy them!”

Ginette’s teacher says that she is a good student. Ginette knows this, and she is proud to say that she is smart at school. “Last year, when I was in 5th grade, my averages were 7 and 8 (of 10),” she says enthusiastically. However, despite her apparent intelligence, she faces many difficulties in school. "Mom has not been able to buy me books,” she claimed. “I don’t even have one book; because of that, I am forced to stay after class to copy the notes I have to study.” 

And Ginette’s struggles do not end outside of the classroom. “At home, I always study and do my homework. We have no power, so I do my best to study before the night. Quite often, we have nothing to eat at home, but I always study even when I am hungry. Sometimes, I come to school without eating, but I can’t let this knock me down. I never kept that as a reason to stop studying or doing my homework. I will continue my efforts to increase my scores."

For Ginette, the Promise Pack that she received is a great gift. "I received this backpack as an unforgettable gift, because it helps me to protect all I need to support my success in my class for this year.” she says. “Then, when there is rain, I will be less worried about my notebooks." Furthermore, she is even happier, because her sister also received a promise pack: “I am doubly happy, because my sister has also received one! We won’t have to share the same bag,” she says with a laugh. 

Ginette already knows what she wants to be in life when she grows up: "When I go to university, I will go into the field of biology. I love biology. After being a biologist, I will continue to become a doctor of medicine. That’s my dream." 

It seems that gratitude is the one of the first of Ginette’s qualities. During her testimony, she thanked World Vision more than four times. "I will never cease to thank World Vision, because I am a sponsored child. I thank all the people who helped World Vision in the donations, and I want to also thank the employees of World Vision. I can only say thank you and hope that, if there is another distribution, I could receive clothes or books; because I love reading."

The Promise Packs were such a blessing for Ginette and her family. Most importantly, her Promise Pack will help Ginette to realize this pledge she made to herself for this year: succeed with 8 as an average in all her exams. 

For Ginette, we have seen the joy that the promise back brought. For thousands of children like her, World Vision can continue to spread joy by distributing these special gifts, because all of Haiti’s children need promises. World Vision will keep its promise to ensure that children can continue to study, to smile, to believe in their own dreams, and to be confident in their futures.