HELENA: S396-SOP
October 2022
2022
Helena was promoted to first grade and is very happy to return to school. She was warm and friendly during our update interview. Eleven-year-old Helena still lives with her mother and wants to be a nurse when she grows up. It’s a joy to follow GPA supported students and witness their growth. Sponsored by: Sarah and Mathew Deering
September 2021
2021
Thanks to the generous donation from Carol Binkley, Helena has been re-enrolled into school for the 2021/2022 school year. She received an incomplete for the 2020/2021 school year. Due to COVID-19 outbreak, schools in Liberia had irregular school schedule. This combined with the lack of technology in the schools, some schools made the decision to keep students in their current grade level for the 2021/2022 school year. Helena was kept in her current grade level of K-2 grade for the upcoming school year. She continues to live with her mother and still wants to be a nurse when she grows up.
September 2020
2020
Thanks to the generous donation from Todd Schliesman, Helena has been re-enrolled into school for the 2020/2021 school year. She likes to play kick ball and is doing good in school. She is in the K-2 grade this year and still wants to be a nurse when she grows up. She continues to live with her mother.
October 2019
2019
Meet Helena, who has been generously sponsored by an Anonymous Donor (GB). She is 8 years old and is in the K-1 this year. Helena lives in Sopea, Liberia with her mother. When Helena was 3 years old, she was given to her uncle to raise because her mother could not afford another mouth to feed. Unfortunately, that uncle passed away from the Ebola virus. After his death, other family members were afraid to take all of his children, including Helena, because they were afraid that the children may have contacted the virus. When Helena’s mother heard the story, she went and brought Helena back home. But she is unemployed and simply cannot afford to feed all of her children and send them to school. Her mother told our GPA team “when you have to choose food or education for your children, you can only choose food. Not getting education will not kill you. But not eating will kill you. Things are not easy”. Helena’s interests are learning, and she hopes to be a nurse when she grows up.
Photos of Helena Throughout The School Years:
