Anbuselvan is a twelfth grade student who excels in his studies at Don Bosco School in India. He is the middle child in his family, and has an older sister who is married and a younger sister who is studying just a few grades younger than him. His father works for a building construction company and earns a daily wage doing heavy labor. Anbuselvan’s mother works as a housewife, but the family’s main source of income comes from their father. Although money was tight, they were still able to get by and provide for Anbuselvan’s education and put food on the table.
However, when COVID-19 started, the world collectively faced the impact of a global pandemic. Things shut down, life was depressing and scary, and there were so many unknowns for everyone. Sadly, Anbuselvan’s father caught Covid, and he became very sick from the virus. He did not have the strength to work and had to stay in bed for multiple days on end. The sheer unknown of the virus was bad enough, but the family also worried about how they were going to pay for Anbuselvan’s school fees. As time went on his father continued to suffer each day in bed, and the family became increasingly panicked over their deep financial crisis. It brought them all to tears just thinking about the children not being able to continue their studies, especially because education was a pathway to a different life.
During this time, they were able to get connected to The Hope Venture and Anbuselvan received a scholarship to continue his studies! He was greatly relieved to be able to continue his education since it was something he was excelling in and becoming passionate about. He now desires to graduate from college and pursue a degree in business so he can learn how to support his family better. He also has a desire to help bring financial aid to other students like himself so that they can feel better equipped in pursuing their education. His experience in struggling with the impact of COVID-19 is not unique, but the way he responded to the financial help that he received is. What a beautiful example of empowering people to then go and empower others.