Sunny, far left, shares her happiness and gratitude with Free The Children volunteers.

Sunny and her family live in one of China’s poorest regions—the Hebei province. Here, people live on less than $1 a day. Many are poorly nourished and suffer from health problems. Although Hebei is not far from the capital city, the poorly-maintained dirt roads weaving from village to village make travel difficult. To help support their families in these challenging circumstances, children in rural China are often forced to work in the fields and in the house.
 
Even though Sunny’s parents never had the opportunity to attend school, they still encourage her to study. When she was younger, Sunny’s parents sent her to the only available school, a run-down building in the neighboring village. Sunny travelled kilometres every day to attend classes. Her classroom was dark, over-crowded and the roof often leaked. During the winter months, her hands would nearly freeze because there was no heater and she did not have gloves. The poor conditions of the classroom made it difficult for her to concentrate and to get the marks that she wanted.

One day, news arrived that her school was to be closed for safety reasons, and Sunny lost hope in pursuing her education. However, her teacher soon made a second announcement that a new school was being built in Wu Jia Zhuang by a Canadian organization called Free The Children. Not only would the new school be closer to Sunny’s home, but the teacher said that the classrooms would be big enough to fit everyone comfortably and that each student would have his or her own desk. Sunny couldn’t wait to see the new school!

When construction was finished and the school term began, Sunny was overjoyed. With a new seat in a comfortable classroom and lunches provided by the school, she was now able to concentrate—her marks began to improve and she quickly became the top student in her class. When she graduated from primary school, she was offered a scholarship to attend high school in the nearby city.

Today Sunny is still in high school, but during the summer she paid a visit to her primary school to meet a group of Free The Children volunteers and to share her story about how Free The Children impacted her life.

Sunny’s story is just one example, from thousands, of how the hard work of youth around the world is making a difference in the lives of others. Sunny has become a role model for children in Wu Jia Zhuang. She dreams of becoming a scientist or a doctor so that she can help others in her village.

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