11/09/2024 India (International Christian Concern) – When 8-year-old Pranathi was asked about her life’s ambition, she answered the question without any hesitation.

“I want to become a doctor,” she said.

Although Pranathi knows what she wants to be when she grows up, she must overcome the stigma associated with being a Dalit Christian to achieve her dream.

Pranathi’s father, a day laborer, already struggles to meet his family’s daily needs. It would be impossible for him to help his daughter attend medical school on his own.

In the face of these realities, Pranathi attended one of ICC’s Hope Houses in India for a year. Doing so gave her hope that she could achieve her dream. With improved grades and a growing interest in her studies, Pranathi convinced her father to put her in a private English medium school.

Although it has been challenging for Pranathi to catch up with other students in the class as it is in another language, she passed the class. With gratitude for Hope House, she is looking toward her future, hoping to make her dream of becoming a doctor a reality.

“I do have hope,” she said, “and I will try till the end.”

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