(LifeSiteNews) — In the extremely poor community in the South-Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, residents have difficulty accessing even the most basic necessities. Some families must hike for hours simply to collect water and firewood, and many cannot afford electricity.
Help Sisters educate desperately poor children in the Congo
There are “angels” that have been at work in the country for decades now: The Angelic Sisters of St. Paul, whose efforts in the area were spearheaded by Made Elena, the first missionary sister of the order to arrive in the Congo from Italy in 1963. Now, they help supply the community’s basic needs by providing goods such as flour, sugar, soap, and clothing.
There is one service the Sisters provide that pays particularly important dividends: education, by which they aid “the least fortunate children in the area.” Schooling helps break the cycle of poverty in Africa, providing a “clear way out of extreme poverty” in particular, the Sisters testify.
The cost to educate one of these children for a year is slight by American standards: $100 a year. Yet, for poor large families in the Congo, this cost is “incredibly difficult” to cover, according to the Sisters.
And as a result, “a large number of students” are forced to drop out of school because their families are unable to pay school tuition. This can amputate their job potential for a lifetime by cutting off literacy learning alone, leaving them severely poor. For girls, this has additional consequences: Education has also been shown by a 50-year study of women to be “the most critical factor in improving maternal health” as well as in reducing maternal and infant mortality.
Help Sisters educate desperately poor children in the Congo
For Africans, schooling free of sex education indoctrination is particularly important because global organizations like the United Nations and European Union actively push this in the continent, promoting contraception and even abortion.
Of the families whose children attend school with the Sisters, almost 97% live below the poverty line. Millions in the region do not have access to water, and many families depend on firewood for their energy needs because they cannot afford gas.
Three hundred students are currently enrolled in the school run by the Angelic Sisters of St. Paul. While $100 will sponsor a child’s education for an entire year, any donation helps!
Please prayerfully consider donating whatever you can afford today.