We love to catch up with the graduates of Villages of Hope to see what they are up to and how they are contributing to their communities, which is why we created this series called “Where are They Now?” Today we are featuring Sam and Georgina…
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Meet Sam and Georgina who grew up at Village of Hope Kitwe, graduated from High School, and attended Business College while living in the youth homes at the Village. Sam graduated from College in 2009 and Georgina in 2011.
Both Sam & Georgina were given the opportunity after graduating from Business College to work their internships in the office at VOH Kitwe. Samuel moved to Chongwe at the end of 2010 and began serving as administrative assistant for the Chongwe Village. Georgina recently moved to Chongwe as well and among their other tasks, both are doing bookkeeping for several of the other Village of Hope locations. 
But life has not always been easy for Sam or Georgina…
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When Georgina was just three years old, she lost her dad who had been sick for a long time. Two years later Georgina’s mother also passed away, leaving Georgina without parents by the time that she was five.
Georgina was sent to live with her Grandmother who loved her very much, and she stayed with her for three years. Unfortunately, the grandmother had no resources to care for her and had to send her to live with her aunt.
The aunt was happy to give her a home, but when Georgina became old enough to attend school, sadly, her aunt could not afford to send her, and so she sent Georgina to yet another aunt who was more able to provide for her.
Georgina lived with that Aunt for three years, but the aunt treated her very badly. Georgina was losing all hope – but when her first aunt heard about how she was being treated, she came and rescued Georgina from that home and brought her to Village of Hope.
Georgina thrived at Village of Hope and is happy that she is a part of the Village of Hope family.
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When Sam was 8 years old, his father was traveling in a bus that was involved in a road accident, and all of the passengers were instantly killed except for Sam’s father who was rushed to the hospital with serious injuries. Sadly, Sam’s father did not survive his injuries and eventually passed away in hospital.
Just five months later Sam’s mother also passed away but the doctors were unable to determine the cause.
After his mother’s funeral, Sam’s uncle came and lived in his parent’s home with him. They stayed there together for one year, but the uncle was an alcoholic and Sam’s life wasn’t easy. One day, Sam came home from school and found all of his things in a pile outside the front door of his home. Sam opened the door and found strangers living inside. They told him that his uncle had sold them the house and that they had no idea where he had gone.
Sam went back to his school and told his teacher what had just happened. She went with Sam to see an elderly women who lived in a neighbouring home who Sam knew, and Sam’s teacher begged her to let Sam live there. The neighbor agreed, but said she couldn’t afford to pay any school fees. The teacher paid Sam’s school fees and bought all of the books and supplies that he needed.
However, it wasn’t long before the elderly neighbor where Sam was staying began insisting that Sam go work at the market with her instead of attending classes. As Sam’s school attendance got worse, his teacher found out from his friends what was happening and she went and found him at the market. It was at this time that she asked Sam if he would like to go live in a children’s home at Village of Hope and attend school there. Sam was thankful for this opportunity and moved into the first children’s home opened at VOH Kitwe on July 12, 1999.
Even today, Sam still remembers the exact time of day that he arrived at the Village and looks back at his years there with great happiness. Village of Hope has become his family!
We are excited for Sam who is engaged to be married in early 2014.
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It is such a blessing to see how Sam and Georgina, despite being orphaned at very young ages, have made the most of the opportunities made available to them. They are happy to be able to support themselves and they both look at the future filled with hope, excitement, and confidence.
We would like to thank you for your support for Villages of Hope-Africa – it is because of you that stories like those of Sam and Georgina are made possible!
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Twitter: @voh_africa