Keep Rita in School
Donation protected
Rita Nyandeng is a twenty-two-year-old South Sudanese international student at Western Kentucky University, and she needs your help.
South Sudan is currently the site of a civil war, the country's third in 50 years (the Second Sudanese Civil War resulted in the largest civilian death toll of any war since World War II). Rita's father, Kerubino Kuanyin Bol, a Sudan People's Liberation Army leader, is known to have fired the first shot--placing a large target on Rita and what remains of her family. The conflict has forced businesses and banks across the country to shut down, leaving Rita in a tragic position: If she is no longer able to pay her college tuition, her student visa will expire and she will be forced to return to Sudan.
In Rita's lifetime, she has fled from country to country in Africa, been captured, and experienced the disappearance of her mother. For Rita to return to her home country would not only be dangerous, but life-threatening.
Please help us raise the money that will allow her to continue her education here in the U.S., where she is safe.
...
"My mother Nyalang was traditionally married to my father on arranged marriage; she was married at her teenage. During that time my dad was a political leader and he was influential as well as financially stable. Her family were happy to hand their daughter to a senior military figure who fired the first bullet that gave birth to the movement which achieved the independence of the world youngest nation “South Sudan”. Although my father had multiple wives already the marriage was peacefully conducted between the two families.My mother was teenager and It wasn’t that long before the man she was married to got detained and sent to the prison for five years by the late John Garang who was the head of the movement. My mother was left behind in an extended family without a child and she was later send to meet my father in prison through negotiation with the movement security personnel after five years of imprisonment. I was born few months later after my parents escaped from the prison in 1993.
My mother’s opportunities were cut short because she was married at young age with a baby and never got to follow her dreams. Because my mother was the youngest wife out of all the other women she was constantly intimidated and maltreated by the other wives. Which lead to her running away from this polygamous home and moving back to my auntie’s house when I was only 5years old. On September 9th 1999, my life and my family's life changed radically—that day my father was killed by political rivals. That day my family`s dreams were shattered as we became a political target due to my father`s political lifestyle. During that time my country was experiencing the second civil war which happened from 1983-2005. Never had I thought that our lives and freedom would be in so much danger due to my father`s decisions. In the month of February in 2000 we tried to run away to a neighboring country, Kenya, to seek refuge but we were not permitted to leave the country due to the horrifying and dangerous state the war was in. After my father’s death his house in Malakal SouthSudan was burnt to flames and since he was a freedom fighter, he never owned anything else apart from the rental dwelling house in Mountain View Kenya and that house was evacuated due the fact that my family could not afford to live in anymore and there was a security threat from his political enemies over our lives. My step mothers and other siblings were forced to scattered and some of them ended up seeking refuge in Egypt and Ethiopia as well. My mother and I managed to escape that day. We later found out that their main goal was that they never wanted my brothers and sisters to grow up and have a better life and possibly reach a stage where they could try to revenge my father`s death. This made my family a serious target.
After the whole family scattered I and my mother had to relocate to my mother’s aunt ’s house who was a widow as well as my mother but was leaving through help of charities and churches in Kenya. My mother asked her if she could accommodate us with her and she agreed because she wanted me and her to be in a safer place. We managed to move to her house in Kenya and a few months later my father`s body guard called to tell us that 4 of my brothers were killed by the North Sudanese Army and some South Sudanese rebels who burned our house to the ground, took our properties and killed some of my step siblings Deng Kerubino, Ayuel Kerubino and Adut Kerubino others whom were only infants. That was the last time I heard anything about my step siblings.
Moving to Kenya was good and bad at the same time. We were happy that we were finally in a peaceful place. The difficult part was our traveling documents were expiring and we were not familiar with the national language (Kiswahili). My mother had not finished her education so she couldn't get a job and was therefore unable to support both of us. Life in Kenya was harder than we’d have hoped for. This was when my uncle in Uganda invited us to stay with him. My uncle was very helpful to us for sometime until we stood on our own. We later settled in Kampala Uganda and I started school, since she didn’t have a job she would buy and sell clothes around the East African countries to obtain money for my school fees and our up keep while I was in boarding school. Our opportunities transformed into reality when my mother met my step father Achuil Akoch Magardit who had a well paying job and was intrigued by my performance in school. He agreed to pay my school fees and he and my mother got married and started a family.
I graduated from high school with good marks and was accepted at the Western Kentucky University in the United States to study International Affairs and Communication Studies. I was extremely excited as my step-father accepted to pay my school fees because he saw hope in my eyes and he knew that if I completed university I would make the family proud. For the first time in my life I saw hope and I felt at peace. I saw my life moving into a direction of substance as America is a country of dreams and hopes and for me this was an opportunity to not only better myself but my country with the education that I was to obtain from here. But shortly after moving to America my step-dad lost his job. I could no longer afford my tuition. Not only was I distracted but I was afraid as well being in a foreign country without any means of survival. I took up a job in the university that pays small money that I use to pay for my food expenses and rent. My mother has been extremely stressed due to the situation I am currently faced with that she’s been trying everything possible for me to complete my studies as I am in my last year of university. However, the gender inequality in my country hinders her from receiving equal pay and being looked at as an equal, thus she barely makes enough to support herself. She tried to fight for part of father`s pension money to support me and in the process made political enemies—she was kidnapped for some time, and I was unable to speak to her.
My only wish is to complete my studies and make my mother proud and create a better life for a woman that has spent her whole life looking out for my wellbeing. She deserves a break from all the misfortunate life has thrown at her. I am her only hope."
South Sudan is currently the site of a civil war, the country's third in 50 years (the Second Sudanese Civil War resulted in the largest civilian death toll of any war since World War II). Rita's father, Kerubino Kuanyin Bol, a Sudan People's Liberation Army leader, is known to have fired the first shot--placing a large target on Rita and what remains of her family. The conflict has forced businesses and banks across the country to shut down, leaving Rita in a tragic position: If she is no longer able to pay her college tuition, her student visa will expire and she will be forced to return to Sudan.
In Rita's lifetime, she has fled from country to country in Africa, been captured, and experienced the disappearance of her mother. For Rita to return to her home country would not only be dangerous, but life-threatening.
Please help us raise the money that will allow her to continue her education here in the U.S., where she is safe.
...
"My mother Nyalang was traditionally married to my father on arranged marriage; she was married at her teenage. During that time my dad was a political leader and he was influential as well as financially stable. Her family were happy to hand their daughter to a senior military figure who fired the first bullet that gave birth to the movement which achieved the independence of the world youngest nation “South Sudan”. Although my father had multiple wives already the marriage was peacefully conducted between the two families.My mother was teenager and It wasn’t that long before the man she was married to got detained and sent to the prison for five years by the late John Garang who was the head of the movement. My mother was left behind in an extended family without a child and she was later send to meet my father in prison through negotiation with the movement security personnel after five years of imprisonment. I was born few months later after my parents escaped from the prison in 1993.
My mother’s opportunities were cut short because she was married at young age with a baby and never got to follow her dreams. Because my mother was the youngest wife out of all the other women she was constantly intimidated and maltreated by the other wives. Which lead to her running away from this polygamous home and moving back to my auntie’s house when I was only 5years old. On September 9th 1999, my life and my family's life changed radically—that day my father was killed by political rivals. That day my family`s dreams were shattered as we became a political target due to my father`s political lifestyle. During that time my country was experiencing the second civil war which happened from 1983-2005. Never had I thought that our lives and freedom would be in so much danger due to my father`s decisions. In the month of February in 2000 we tried to run away to a neighboring country, Kenya, to seek refuge but we were not permitted to leave the country due to the horrifying and dangerous state the war was in. After my father’s death his house in Malakal SouthSudan was burnt to flames and since he was a freedom fighter, he never owned anything else apart from the rental dwelling house in Mountain View Kenya and that house was evacuated due the fact that my family could not afford to live in anymore and there was a security threat from his political enemies over our lives. My step mothers and other siblings were forced to scattered and some of them ended up seeking refuge in Egypt and Ethiopia as well. My mother and I managed to escape that day. We later found out that their main goal was that they never wanted my brothers and sisters to grow up and have a better life and possibly reach a stage where they could try to revenge my father`s death. This made my family a serious target.
After the whole family scattered I and my mother had to relocate to my mother’s aunt ’s house who was a widow as well as my mother but was leaving through help of charities and churches in Kenya. My mother asked her if she could accommodate us with her and she agreed because she wanted me and her to be in a safer place. We managed to move to her house in Kenya and a few months later my father`s body guard called to tell us that 4 of my brothers were killed by the North Sudanese Army and some South Sudanese rebels who burned our house to the ground, took our properties and killed some of my step siblings Deng Kerubino, Ayuel Kerubino and Adut Kerubino others whom were only infants. That was the last time I heard anything about my step siblings.
Moving to Kenya was good and bad at the same time. We were happy that we were finally in a peaceful place. The difficult part was our traveling documents were expiring and we were not familiar with the national language (Kiswahili). My mother had not finished her education so she couldn't get a job and was therefore unable to support both of us. Life in Kenya was harder than we’d have hoped for. This was when my uncle in Uganda invited us to stay with him. My uncle was very helpful to us for sometime until we stood on our own. We later settled in Kampala Uganda and I started school, since she didn’t have a job she would buy and sell clothes around the East African countries to obtain money for my school fees and our up keep while I was in boarding school. Our opportunities transformed into reality when my mother met my step father Achuil Akoch Magardit who had a well paying job and was intrigued by my performance in school. He agreed to pay my school fees and he and my mother got married and started a family.
I graduated from high school with good marks and was accepted at the Western Kentucky University in the United States to study International Affairs and Communication Studies. I was extremely excited as my step-father accepted to pay my school fees because he saw hope in my eyes and he knew that if I completed university I would make the family proud. For the first time in my life I saw hope and I felt at peace. I saw my life moving into a direction of substance as America is a country of dreams and hopes and for me this was an opportunity to not only better myself but my country with the education that I was to obtain from here. But shortly after moving to America my step-dad lost his job. I could no longer afford my tuition. Not only was I distracted but I was afraid as well being in a foreign country without any means of survival. I took up a job in the university that pays small money that I use to pay for my food expenses and rent. My mother has been extremely stressed due to the situation I am currently faced with that she’s been trying everything possible for me to complete my studies as I am in my last year of university. However, the gender inequality in my country hinders her from receiving equal pay and being looked at as an equal, thus she barely makes enough to support herself. She tried to fight for part of father`s pension money to support me and in the process made political enemies—she was kidnapped for some time, and I was unable to speak to her.
My only wish is to complete my studies and make my mother proud and create a better life for a woman that has spent her whole life looking out for my wellbeing. She deserves a break from all the misfortunate life has thrown at her. I am her only hope."
Organizer and beneficiary
Ellē Pratt
Organizer
Bowling Green, KY
Rita Nyandeng
Beneficiary