Mayara is 10 years old and in second grade. She lives with her aunt and her step uncle. When she was young Mayara’s mother passed away and she has never known the identity of her father. Despite her smile, most of the time we see Mayara lost in her own world and unable to grasp hold of childhood fun or a dream for her life.

Mayara lives inside her imagination which tells her she is not liked by others, is spoken of badly and that she will be unable to achieve anything with her life. As a result of these beliefs she has been struggling to learn in the classroom.

We put Mayara in a special reading class but soon realized that without special one to one support Mayara was trapped by her beliefs and unable to progress. Now with the help of a pyschologist Mayara is in the right place to overcome her insecurities, build her self-esteem and start to thrive in her studies.

Mayara never misses a day and little by little the barriers of lies which have been suffocating this little girls life are breaking down. Everyday we see her accepting more of the love and friendship of other children and the staff. We trust that her life will be completely transformed as she comes to believe the truth about herself, gain self-confidence and discover her talents.

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Luzilene is one of the six students accepted into to college but waiting for scholarship. She is 23 years old and lives with her mother and brothers in a particularly rough area in the favelas. Throughout her education she has referred to CBC as a refuge and oasis of peace. Luzilene’s brothers are drug dealers and she has experienced a lot of drug related violence in and around her home. However she has remained steadfast and committed to her education.

As you can see on our documentary video, Lucilene’s dream is to open another project so that she can help other children in the same way that she has been helped herself. The staff and Directors see great potential in this young women, and highly recommend her for a scholarship. She graduated high school in 2004 and has since been working relentlessly to compete with privately educated students for a place in college. Luzilene gained a place to study Human Resource Management at a Local University in June 2007 and is ready to start the course in September 2007.

Luzilene is an eloquent speaker, encourager, leader and dancer. She is a committed individual and outstanding example to younger children.

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Edgar Abreu is 11 years old and in the second grade at CBC. He has been a student for a year and a half and lives with his parents and 7 brothers and sisters in a small house with three rooms. Edgar’s mother looks after the children and his father is unemployed. The family’s only resource is a little piece of land where they plant corn and beans to feed themselves.

Edgar is an intelligent boy who loves to play soccer and has a great desire and capacity to learn more. He has a great smile but very often it is tainted with sadness. Edgar tells us that most days his father arrives home drunk and fights with his mother. He recalls that one of his happiest days was when his father didn’t fight with his mother for a whole day. He said that the peace he experienced in his house that day was the same as that we experiences each day he walks into The University of Life where he can forget the troubles at home.

Despite these difficult circumstances, Edgar is holding on to his dreams and wants to be a successful athlete. We are certain that the project is a great help to Edgar, giving him strength each day and equipping him to pursue his dreams.

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Aldaberto is an outstanding achiever, leader and athlete. At the age of 8 his mother put him into The University of Life as a punishment for misbehaving at home. Everyday Aldaberto would run out of the gates as fast as he could in order to get back home but his speedy exits were not un-noticed. The athletics coach soon persuaded Aldaberto to start training and very soon he began to win races. Aldaberto graduated high school in 2005.

Aldaberto lives by himself because his mother fled the favelas after being shot. Despite seeing terrible violence and losing some of his best friends, Aldaberto is dedicated to study and maintaining his little house in the favela.

Aldaberto has won over 20 trophies in regional and national competitions and his greatest achievement was achieving the 4th fastest 400m time for his age in the entire nation of Brazil.

Aldaberto is studying to pass college entrance exams so that he can study physical education. He is another great example to children in the favelas, a good encourager and his potential is enormous.

 

Click here to support a child at The University of Life or to help a young person like Luzilene or Aldaberto through college.

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