We ask the youths in our communities to strive hard in school, to put their best foot forward, and to overcome the obstacles that stand in their way when it’s time to secure their education. These are just some of the requests and hopes we have when the children we care for go out everyday to learn. Many of the things that stand in their way in accomplishing that are out of our hands. We also hope that the elements, like freezing cold, will never be a roadblock. For Adna, from Bosnia, spending brutal winters trying to focus on school work was too normal for a growing student. Islamic Relief’s winterization project provided her family with the supplies to keep their modest house warm, and their aspirations for their young scholar high. Heat was the difference between Adna suffering through her lessons, feeling defeated, and achieving.
Adna’s grandmother, mother, and great uncle stay alongside her in a small dilapidated prefabricated house. She is an excellent 8th grader and loves attending school. Adna wants to continue her education and one day become a physiotherapist.
Their family survives on a small pension her uncle receives. He is a survivor of a detention camp during the war. Her grandmother suffers from diabetes and is nearing blindness. Though her mother is out of work, she owns the house they all live in.
Adna is very aware that getting education can change her life and save her future.
We asked Adna if there anything she would like most at the moment? She didn’t ask for the latest technology but she said, “I would like to have water in the kitchen, to make it tidier and cleaner. I wish I had my own room and a bed where I could sleep without my back hurting.”
Adna’s grandmother said “We have been taking care of Adna since she was born. Despite all our problems, Adna is the source of our happiness. We are especially proud that she is an excellent student. Since my eyesight is extremely poor, Adna is always there to help me when I need to go somewhere. She is my eyes when I need to go to the doctor. We all want her to have better conditions for learning and life in general. The house gets extremely cold. Until recently, we didn’t even have a bathroom. We don’t have water in the kitchen. No matter how much we burn wood, it is cold. And besides that, we have to save wood because firewood is expensive. We buy 1 meter of wood from the sawmill, which is not particularly high quality, so we burn a little by little. This wood that you brought us will help us a lot.
Thanks to Islamic Relief for taking care of Adna by making this winter one where she doesn’t have to suffer. She is progressing well with the past support given too. Last year she attended a summer school and that meant a lot to her. She spent some beautiful days during the summer holidays with children like her.” Her Uncle spoke of further support from Islamic Relief saying, “You’ve made us happy during Ramadan with food, qurbani meat, clothes for Adna and here is firewood. We are extremely grateful to Islamic Relief and all donors who think of families like ours. May God reward you for good deeds. “
