Education is a Light

Haroon is 17 years old and is currently attending school in Gilgit, Pakistan.  He is being supported through our Shining Light Scholarship Program.  We hope his 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 where extremism is strong.  Life is not good there, there are no rules, regulations, or discipline.  When I lived there, I couldn’t even go to school, even though this was my one wish.  I have five brothers and sisters, and my family is really great, we live our life in God.  A long time ago, when Sajjad came to my village to talk to families about sending their children to live in Gilgit and go to school, my father told all of his children that we needed to go.

I said, “I am not going to that hostel! I live here!” But my father said, “No, you have to go.”

So I ran away.  I ran to the river where I knew there was a bridge, but when I got there….the bridge was gone! I think God saved me and meant for me to go to school.  There is a plan for my life!

Since I came to the hostel in Gilgit and started to go to school, I love to study.  I plan on studying all the way until I become a vehicle engineer.  After my schooling here, I will go to Lahore, to a technical college and get three more years of experience so that I can officially be an engineer.  My life has been changed completely because of getting an education.  Before I didn’t know anything…but education is a light I think.  Those people who don’t ever get to study are in darkness.

I simply couldn’t study with out the help of those who support Shining Light.  Without this system, there is no way that I could study or even go to school, and there is definitely no way that I could ever become an engineer. Thank you!

To Donate toward Education in Pakistan click here.

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