Simran wanted to pursue higher education, but her father’s loss of employment changed things for her and the family. Having a daughter felt like a burden and her parents decided to get her married to reduce expenses. When CRY America’s adolescent group learned about her situation, they informed the project team who conducted counseling sessions for the family. All of their attempts failed, but they didn’t lose hope. They involved the entire community and raised awareness about the ill effects of child marriage. Finally, her parents agreed to let her continue her education and not be married so early. She is presently enrolled in college and is happily continuing with her studies.
Life was difficult for Chetan and his family after his father passed away. To provide food and shelter to the family, his mother worked as a house help but did not earn much. Chetan always wanted to go to school but he too had to begin working to help make ends meet. When CRY America intervened, they did several rounds of discussions to convince his mother to send him to school. After much effort she finally agreed to send him to the activity center. During the primary assessment, it was found that his learning level was at zero. The team’s efforts and his determination helped him learn to read and write. Chetan is now enrolled in school and is happily studying in grade 2.
Coming from the slums of Varanasi, Razia and her mother, Ruksana, faced various hardships. Ruksana was married when she was 16 years old to a 40-year-old man and lost her husband when her daughter was 8 years old. When CRY America intervened, they found out Razia had dropped out of school for the last 8 years and was working in a pickle factory. The team encouraged her to join evening classes conducted by CRY America which focuses on bringing dropout children to school. It was challenging for her to return to school, but she continued to hope for a better life and worked towards it. The team’s advocacy and her hard work resulted in her admission to class 8th. Razia’s story changed for good, giving her hope of a better future.
*Names and images used for representation purposes only.
