For these five children, getting to school is no simple matter. But mountain ranges and rivers won’t stop them from getting an education. And, like their commitment to learning, our admiration for them knows no bounds.
Brothers Arnolance and Alvin's (pictured above) mode of transportation is a bit unusual, but they say that as long as they have their horse, nothing will stop them from getting to school. The boys live in a remote village in Indonesia and have to cross a river and through a forest to get to their school building. Alvin, 10, wants to be a soccer player and Arnolance, 14, dreams of becoming police officer one day.
Photographer: Rena Tanjung
You can make a big impact on a child's life, by choosing to sponsor a child. Your support will ensure a child has not just the education, but the nutritious food, safe water and health care she needs to thrive.
In India, Sarvan leaves home at seven a.m. to start his 1.5-hour long walk to school. The route takes him through the desert where temperatures can reach up to 50 degrees Celsius. “Nearly every day I get burns on my feet walking in the sand as it heats up during the afternoons. There are also times when I bleed from my nose because of the heat.”
Photographer: Daniel Mung
Aye Aye lives in Myanmar where she must cross a muddy village on foot before she reaches the river bank, where a boat picks her and other school children up each morning. The journey takes about two hours in total. How does Aye Aye keep the mud off her pristine white uniform? “We walk barefoot in the mud. If we walk with slippers, it is more slippery.”
Photographer: Khaing Min Htoo
Across a stream and up a mountain, Jenel’s walk to school takes him two hours. But he is focused and sure-footed. Though the walk is a long and treacherous one, Jenel, age eight, says that he’s gotten used to it. It’s what he must do, "because my father said that going to school will give me a better future.”
Photographer: Mong Jimenez
Tay’s ride to school has become much easier since World Vision built a road between her Laotion village and her school. And now, nine-year-old Tay has a sporty, pink bike to make her journey even easier.
Photographer: Ammala Thomisith