Why Help?
During our five years working in rural schools in Ecuador, we have been in direct contact with the children and have found that some of the poorest children only have one parent, whether it is because they have been orphaned, the mother has been abandoned by her husband, the parents are unmarried, or simply because they belong to a large family.
In all these cases the mother or the parents generally do not earn enough money to give their children adequate food or clothes. Nor do they have the money to buy the necessary books, supplies or uniform for their children to go to school.
In Ecuador the schools in the countryside are free, but there are
costs the parents must pay, such as: books and school supplies,
uniforms, enrollment fees for the new school year, and various additional items that the teachers ask for monthly (materials for handicrafts, specialist teachers, etc.). The mothers of school children struggle to cover these costs. For some of them it is impossible.
When the children finish Primary school at about 12 years old, their
parents do not have the money to pay for uniforms, books, supplies, or even the necessary transport that makes it possible for them to continue their studies. For these children the present is difficult and the future is uncertain.
You can do a lot to make sure these children have a better
present and a more dignified future.
