Young Manar explains, “my father objects my going to church at night and objected to my clothes too. I love to wear T-shirt and trousers.” While this certainly may be out of love and concern for their children in an environment where it is a struggle even to survive, one of the impacts is that dreams are crushed, and possible opportunities are missed. This often serves to merely continue the cycle of poverty many Egyptian Christians find themselves trapped in.
ICC’s work through our Hope House program provides classes for Christian children located in Egypt’s rural communities, making education possible for these girls. This enables them to lay a foundation from which to pursue opportunities many of their parents never could. Manar, who is in 6th grade, has some serious ambitions, “I dream of being a doctor so I will heal my grandma. She is sick of a disease that makes her faint.”
Karen desires to further develop and utilize her communication abilities, “I want to be a translator. That’s the job I would love most.” None of these objectives are impossible, many Egyptian Christian men and women have succeeded despite the challenges of persecution faced throughout society, but support is critical, and it starts in the home at this young age.
Through Hope House’s system of child sponsorship, the cost is alleviated for families that often would not even have considered placing their daughter in school. It also provides incentives for parents to keep their young daughters in school through things like food packages. The results speak for themselves in that when given the chance, girls like Manar and Karen have taken to their subjects enthusiastically, meeting with great success, and sparking hope for a brighter future.
For interviews please contact Addison Parker: [email protected]