“I wouldn’t otherwise be able to get back to school without Hillary and Galen Foundation and Imagine1day’s support. I am very grateful to Hillary and Gallen Foundation and imagine1day for providing me with the tools I needed to continue my education,” says Timnit Haile a 12-year-old grade three student at Meles Zenawi Primary School in Tigray.

 

Timnit lost her single mom due to the war in Tigray region. She is bared to dozens of unfortunate consequences of war while struggling with the trauma of being left orphaned.  Left without her primary caregiver, Timnit found a little bit of comfort and shelter with alternative guardians who stepped in to provide her with a home. However, the economic strain on her new family made it difficult to secure even the most basic necessities.

 

Timnit says, “It was hard to get food, let alone to buy my school supplies. I used to get hungry every single day, I miss my mom, and I hate to feel these pains staying at home without school. I even had difficulty sleeping as I had frequent nightmares about my mom and the dead people I saw. I was so lonely, depressed, and unsecured,” Timnit recalls her eyes a mixture of sorrow and determination.

 

Amidst the chaos and hardship, a glimmer of hope emerged for Timnit through the efforts of the Hillary and Galen Foundation in collaboration with Imagine1day. Their project, aimed at supporting education in war-torn regions, became Timnit’s lifeline. Through their generosity, she received essential scholastic materials that enabled her to return to school.

 

“I couldn’t be happier to be able to go back to school. School isn’t a place I get a mere education. It rather has helped me a lot to forget trauma of the war I used to suffer from. I feel safe, free, and hopeful in school. I have also friends to play with I am no longer alone,” Tmnit says with a smile that lights up her face.

 

The support Timnit received went beyond just providing physical items; it restored her faith in the future and reaffirmed her right to education despite the hardships she faced. The fact that the Hillary and Galen Foundation’s compassionate intervention is in a crisis setting even increased the magnitude of impact in changing Timnit and her fellow vulnerable students’ lives for the better.

 

Timnit is one of the outstanding students in her class. She wants to be a prime minister so that she can make her country a peaceful place.