Fedelis is the last-born child in a family of three. He first sat for his primary education exam in 2018 and passed very well. His father could not afford to take him to secondary school and therefore he decided to repeat grade eight with the hope of getting a scholarship to pursue his goal. Fedelis attributes his success to his discipline and cooperation with teachers. He remains focused to achieve his goal of becoming an engineer in future to help his community. He believes that hard work never goes unrewarded.

Day in and day out, Namnyak is always smiling. The oldest in a large family, Namnyak has many responsibilities beyond her studies: taking care of her younger siblings, collecting firewood, fetching water, working on the farm, cooking for her family and washing clothes are just a few. Her parents are subsistence farmers; they grow maize and beans and keep a few animals to support their family. She has to walk several hours to and from school each day as she lives in one of the farthest villages. However, Namnyak never complains about all these responsibilities! She is a engaged student, kind friend to all, and a hard worker. She loves to study biology and dreams of becoming a nurse: "I love biology because it will help me become a nurse one day. If I study cells and viruses I will know what is making someone sick, and what causes diseases. I want to become a nurse so I can help my community to be healthy." With her work ethic and caring nature, we know Namnyak will be a natural for the job.

Bravin is a child who has gone through many challenges. As an orphan and living with his grandmother in the slums, Bravin could not withstand sleeping hungry for days and he ended up in the streets foraging for food in the dustbins. In the streets he was introduced to drugs by other street boys. It was while in streets a good Samaritan took him to a rehabilitation center where he changed and was enrolled back to school. Bravin is the third-born child in a family of eight. He actually doesn’t know where most of his siblings are currently. He is currently living with his cousin who is jobless. Though faced with many challenges, Bravin has kept his focus. He managed to be the best student in his school. His goal is to become a neuro-surgeon in the future. He believes that education is the key to success.

Mohamoud is a grade 9 student in the 2016 school year. He has five sisters and three brothers. What he enjoys most about his school is that everyone respects each other. Mohamoud values respect and is glad that he is at a school where respect is an important part of the community. Learning to speak English has been Mohamoud’s proudest accomplishment so far. In the future, Mohamoud hopes to be a chemist and to be able to help develop his country.

Julius is the last-born child in a family of seven. He completed his primary level education in 2017 and could not proceed to secondary school since his parents could not afford school fees. �His parents are casual laborers and due to their old age, the burden of taking care of the large family has overwhelmed them. Julius is determined to achieve his dreams. He loves math and is looking forward to be an accountant in the future. He believes that education is the only key for a prosperous future.

Hamse has three sisters and two brothers.Hamse is glad to have earned a scholarship to attend Abaarso School and for this reason, Hamse is very dedicated to his studies. He enjoys learning and spends his time studying or playing soccer outside of class. His favorite classes are his math courses. With an interest in math, Hamse hopes to be an engineer in the future.

Mohamedeid is a grade 8 student in the 2016 school year. His favorite classes are English, math, science, and social studies. Coming from the local orphanage, Mohamedeid is proud to have earned an education and be at the school he is now. In understanding the value of education, he enjoys volunteering his time to tutor children from the local village. He enjoys teaching and hopes to be a teacher in the future, and later the president of his country.

Khadar Abdilahi Mohamed is a 15 year old from Hargeisa, Somaliland. He was raised in the Hargeisa Orphanage. He’s entering the seventh grade at Abaarso School of Science and Technology. While at the orphanage, Khadar was an assistant for Abaarso’s orphanage tutoring program. As an assistant, he was patient and kind to the younger students. He’s the first to help others when they’re in need. When he’s older, he wants to be an engineer. His nickname is “Shifo”, which means “health” in Somali.