The past year and a half has brought new, unimaginable challenges all over the world. We have been incredibly blessed to have the option to become vaccinated in the U.S., but unfortunately citizens in many other countries have not been granted the same opportunity. Luckily, Victoria Falls has reached herd immunity as Zimbabwe has chosen to prioritize vaccinating there first with hope to bring back tourism. The loss of tourists over the past couple of years has created a devastating financial crisis all over the country of Zimbabwe, especially affecting the young women who I work with in and around Victoria Falls.
This photo was taken in Thuba’s home. She is on the far left in a pink dress.
I have recently been fortunate to reconnect with Thuba, one of my closest friends who is part of the Girls Time club in Victoria Falls. She recently shared an update with me about her life over the past year and a half, and I am eager to relay her perspective to you.
“Since the outbreak of COVID-19, I have faced a lot of challenges and am still facing them even today. My academics were highly affected as I had to stop going to school because the COVID-19 cases were high. Unfortunately, last year was my final year to sit for the exams before I can apply to any college. Not attending classes at school caused me to perform less than what I had expected. I wrote 6 subjects and obtained 4. For now, I am struggling to sit for the two which I failed (math and english). Reasons are the registration fee is very expensive and as well as the extra lessons, so I was not able to sit for my exams this year.”
Thuba went on to explain her family situation and the financial struggles she is facing.
“We are struggling with our feeding. My single mother cannot afford to buy enough groceries for us. We hardly have 3 meals a day like it was before. My mom has a lot of bills to settle. For example, water, electricity, food items, etc. She works as a maid in the suburbs but her salary is not enough, the expenses are too much for her to handle. It is a big challenge for me because I can’t further my studies as there is a financial crisis at home. My other struggle is that my younger brother is not going to school because of school fees. He couldn’t proceed to grade 8 as they want a lot of money which is more than my mother’s salary. My mom is trying to save some money but my brother is still at home and it has been 2 years since he has gone to school. These are some of the challenges I am facing and I couldn't summarize some of them.”
This photo was taken of me and Thuba last time I visited her.
The many challenges faced by Thuba are sadly incredibly common for nearly everyone who is living in her community. It breaks my heart to watch such a dedicated, incredible community member unable to further her education due to lack of school fees. Sadly, Thuba is only one of many girls who are inches from crossing the finish line but are unable to for financial reasons.
As one of my next initiatives, I have decided to help financially support her educational pursuit. This will include assisting with any additional fees for books and tutoring. I will be paying those fees out of money I have saved from my after school and weekend jobs. Because there are other club girls in situations similar to Thuba’s, I would like to open the opportunity to any of my supporters who would like to help.
If you are interested, I will be accepting donations in a different format than I have in the past. Please contact me via email (emsbrons@gmail.com) or phone number (404.904.4254) to help fund the education of these highly motivated and deserving girls. Without the proper funds, these girls are prohibited from finishing high school and continuing their education to a college level. Let's work together in getting these girls back to school!
Let me know if you have any questions or comments!
Love,
Emily