Pages turn and imaginations ignite
By Trip Manager Stephanie Mutert
When I was a kid, bedtime always equaled reading. To this day, I still have childhood favorites that quickly come to mind, and I’m grateful the opportunity ingrained in me a deep love for reading from a very young age. As unique and different as God creates us, there are some that immediately love books and others that would prefer not to spend time that way. Within a culture that includes many kids and adults that do not know how to read or write, the opportunity to enjoy another world through a book is not a regular occurrence. Watching a nine-year-old powerless to sound out words or a 12-year-old simply looking at pictures and unable to make sense of the words is heartbreaking when the ability to read and write will eventually lead to a better job opportunity.
That is why school partnerships with The Global Orphan Project are so crucial. They support the local church educating kids in their care, as well as kids in the community. When it comes to the kids in Pastor Pudens’ care who are gaining an education and learning how to read, it is mesmerizing to see which kids are drawn into the depth of a story and its beautiful images. The options come in many forms of Creole or versions that are English and Creole side-by-side: a Bible, stories of Haiti and Haitian folk tales. As pages turn one by one, voices ‘ooo’ and ‘ahh’ over drawings and imaginations ignite to tell their own stories. The creativity unleashed in those moments is incomparable. The sound of their voices reading out loud form a beautiful chorus of future opportunity and hope within a country aching to educate their coming generations. It is where education and creativity merge as they complement each other and spur students on in their learning.
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