There Was No School for Girls…

Arish is in the 9th grade and is currently attending school in Gilgit, Pakistan. She is being supported through our Shining Light Scholarship Program.  We hope her story inspires you, reminds you of the power of education in a child’s life, and encourages you that your donations make a real difference in real people’s lives.

I am from a small village near Gilgit where there was no school for girls…but now, I get to go to school! I got admitted into a really great school here, and it is becoming a model school in the area and gaining many new admissions! I first came to the Shining Light hostel in 2009 so that I could attend school…and there is such a difference in my life now, mostly in the way that we spend our life together.  We really depend on each other, and it is so much better.  I have two brothers who are able to go to school in my village, but I have four sisters who were like me and couldn’t go to school there, but now, they all get to be here with me in the hostel.  All of us get to go to school!

I have a message that I want to tell people in America….People in Pakistan are very good, and their behavior is very good.  They are not bad.  Everyone thinks that everyone in Pakistan is bad, but God gave us this place.  I also want my friends in America to know that God loves you, and He will make your future bright!

If Shining Light wasn’t helping us to go to school, my life…it would not be a good life.  It is our right as girls to get an education! Boys and girls are equals, we should ALL get to study!

To Donate to education in Pakistan, click here.

*Content is slightly edited for clarity and readability due to language barriers.