The hand stretched towards the dream

‘Angel’ is how everyone calls Anxhelo. The 12-year-old boy from Dibra is in the third grade of the public school. His teachers say that he is the only child in the area from the Roma community who attends school.

Dafina, Anxhelo's mother is very persistence. Her determination and the help from generous people have kept the boy away from the street, leading him towards knowledge. She has been knocking all doors, ready for any sacrifice to ensure that her son will reach his dream of being educated instead of relying on charities rest of his life.

Anxhelo and his mother live together with his stepfather in a tent arranged as a house. Plastic covers the furnishing within such as couches and a rug. It holds Anxhelo, his family, and their dreams about the future.

Even though she did not have the chance to go to school, Dafina knows the importance of education. Despite the family’s minimal living income and her own health struggles, Dafina remains determined to set Anxhelo on the path of knowledge.

“I do not want my son to beg! I do not want Anxhelo to have the life that I have and suffer as I have suffered. I don’t have any schooling at all, but schooling is the only way my son can take, to not go through what I have during my entire life,” says Dafina. “I have sought help everywhere and World Vision has always been my only door where I could go in whenever I was in much need. I have always found the solution there.”

World Vision Albania has supported Anxhelo’s family to overcome the difficult social-economic situation they face. The family has received assistance through food packages, hygiene kits, clothes, medicines and school kits.

Anxhelo attends the Development Corner of his school where he receives additional academic help because of a learning disability. He also has access to tablets to attend online classes.

Last year, Anxhelo didn’t finish his school year. His family moved from Dibra to another city so he had to drop out of class. He received his certificate of release from the school but didn’t register in a school in their new location.

After some time, his family decided to go back to Dibra, but once there they discovered that inhabitants in their old neighborhood had burned down the tent the family left behind. World Vision provided some supplies to help them rebuild their tent. Dafina and her husband set the tent up again and tried to register Anxhelo in school as well.

But because of lack of information and the procedures, Dafina thought school would not accept Anxhelo again as a student.

“They told me that without a letter from the school that Anxhelo went to in the other city, they could not sign him up. I do not know what to do,” says worried Dafina.  

World Vision contacted Anxhelo’s former teacher and collected the necessary information to help Dafina. The very next morning she registered him.

Now he regularly attends class. His new friends have welcome him warmly, even freeing for him the first bench as the best place in the class.

Anxhelo says that he likes school very much and now has clear goals for his future. When he grows, he wants to be a policeman. And his mission is very noble, as he aims to protect children and adults from danger.

He likes mathematics very much, but because of a learning difficulty, his classmates help him understand how to solve problems outside the class. His new teacher compliments him on the step-by-step progress he is making. All this makes him feel good and an equal in class. Anxhelo seems to understand Dafina’s sacrifices and her advice about the importance of education. He promises not to let her down.

“Every night my mother says that school is very important and begging of others is not a good thing,” says Anxhelo. “I will try hard to not disappoint my mother who does many sacrifices to make a good person out of me.”

Because of Dafina’s faith, perseverance, despite hardship, Anxhelo now can pursue a very promising path toward his future.