“I never went to school in South Sudan,” she says. “Now I enjoy study because when I came to Uganda, they taught me how to speak English and how to write.”
Maria fled to Uganda to escape war in South Sudan, running with her parents and siblings to escape the shooting. She says she was one of the lucky ones who made it out with her life. Her friend did not.
“We were the same age,” the 15-year-old says softly. “When she was trying to move… war was there. She died in that war.”
There was no war in the Ugandan refugee settlements but here they faced a dangerous new enemy – hunger. A second meal per day was a luxury. There were many days when she ate nothing at all.
Despite her empty stomach, Maria walked to school every day and did her best to concentrate in class. She knew that education held the key to building a new future.
Then, one day, it became much easier to concentrate in class – and her love for school grew even greater. Maria became one of thousands of hungry refugee children to receive a hot, nutritious meal each day at her school through Feed The Hungry.
A nutritious lunch at school changes everything for Maria. She explains the difference between hunger and a hot meal in her life, saying:
“When I feel hungry, I don’t talk to anyone because I have no energy to talk. I am very weak. But when I eat, I’ll be okay. I will be telling answers to the teachers because I’m very strong now. I will be talking with my friends, playing games or other things.”