Growing up in an area plagued by war is unimaginable to most people. When that war is one in which children are being abducted to become child soldiers, it is even more terrifying.
Meet Tony, a sponsored child who grew up in Uganda during a time of conflict. This is his story about how support from ChildFund’s child sponsorship program kept him safe from the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).
Childhood in a country ravaged by civil war
This was the childhood experienced by Tony, a former sponsored child from Uganda, who recalls having to flee the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), led by the infamous Joseph Kony.
“Our district was a battleground for the civil war,” says Tony, who was just a young boy at the time. “If we slept at home in our villages, we could be kidnapped by the LRA. We children often had to commute to the city in the evening to sleep on the streets and return to our school to study during the day.”
Tony says his parents and other families could not farm their land because rebels often uprooted and stole their crops. They were also constantly fearful of stray bullets which flew around the village as if they were insects or birds.
Without crops, Tony’s family lacked nutritious food and the income normally generated from selling surplus crops.
Tony thanks all child sponsors for their support
“I would like to thank all sponsors who give children better opportunities in life and tell you that through your sponsorship you are making children’s dreams a reality.”
ChildFund would like to join Tony in thanking our incredible sponsors whose kindness and generosity literally changes the lives of children living in poverty.
Become a child sponsor today
Do you want to help transform the lives of children in need? Sponsor a child today and help them achieve their dreams, It’s the start of a unique and meaningful journey, where you’ll witness first-hand the difference sponsorship can make in the life of a child.
Because we pool the funds of our sponsors, your contribution will go towards providing a child, their family and their entire community with access to a brighter, healthier and happier future.
For more information on how our sponsorship program works, read more here.
In 2005, at the age of 10, Kadiatu was enrolled in ChildFund’s programs serving the Daindemben Federation in her Sierra Leonean community. With support from her sponsor to pay for school fees and learning materials, Kadiatu eagerly embraced the educational opportunities available to her.
How ChildFund was able to help Kadiatu and keep her in school
But when she reached junior secondary school, Kadiatu’s father decided to remove her from school and give her in marriage to a middle-aged man in the village. ChildFund and its local partner intervened on Kadiatu’s behalf, standing firm to ensure that her father’s decision was overturned. The marriage was cancelled, and Kadiatu continued her schooling. But her father withdrew all support. Her mother has died long ago and her stepmother showed no love to her.
Without ChildFund sponsorship and the support of Daindemben Federation, Kadiatu would have had nowhere to turn. “I have no fear now. I can continue my education.”
How Kadiatu’s education is allowing her to achieve her dreams
Today, Kadiatu, 18, is in senior secondary school preparing for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination. She credits ChildFund and Daindemben Federation for restoring her hope and believes she would have been the mother of two or three children by now had it not been for the intervention of the federation. “Daindemben has made me realise my importance and value in society,” she says.
Now she is determined to go all the way to university to study accounting. “I want Daindemben Federation and my sponsor to be proud of me. They have done so much to get me to where I am today. I don’t want to let them down,” she says. “Even my father is proud of me now,” she acknowledges. “He has regretted the action he had wanted to take then.
“I would like Daindemben Federation and my ChildFund sponsor to continue being my pillar, so that I will achieve my dream of becoming an accountant.”
You can help make a difference in the lives of girls like Kadiatu
ChildFund aims to keep children in school and prevent children being forced into marriage. Donate to our current appeal to help children in poverty.
Donate before June 30th and your donation will be tax deductible, which means you’ll be able to claim it on your tax return.
You may also be interested in sponsoring a child? Child sponsorship is a meaningful journey, where you provide a monthly contribution to support a child in poverty. Your donation will keep the child in school, pay for essentials like food and medicine, and supplement the household income. Learn more about becoming a child sponsor here.
