Three stories of Joy
There's nothing as amazing as seeing a family come back together, after they've been separated for months on end by war or disaster.
The smiles. The raucous laughter. The tears of happiness.
Save the Children has helped reunite over 7,000 children with their families. And it's incredible people like you, who donate and support our work, who make those moments possible.
We want to share three of those stories with you today.
Doing Whatever It Takes
"We miss our mother. We are so happy that we will meet her today." - Nyador*, 17. Photo shows the family meeting after five years apart.
In 2014, gunmen attacked Bor in South Sudan.
In the middle of the chaos and terror, families ran in different directions.
Nyandor and her four siblings who fled without their parents. She was only 12 at the time; John* and Sarah* were 8, Asha* was 5 and little Hope* was only 1.
For half a decade, they lived in a UN protection site, where Nayandor took care of her brothers and sisters - even though she was still a child herself.
At the same time, mum Emmanuela* had fled to a different site. Every day for five years, she worried about her little ones - she had no idea where they had gone. She registered them as missing children.
Our caseworkers were able to trace them - and in 2019, Nyador became the 6,000th child that we reunited with their family.
Seeing the joy on their faces filled our South Sudan team with hope: "We won’t stop until all separated children are back home."
Creating Moments of Bliss
“I’m truly happy to find my grandchild again ... I have been sitting here and wondering, am I really going to die without seeing my granddaughter again?” 65-year-old Epiphanie confessed.
"I'm happy to meet my granny again."- Peace*, 13, after being separated from her grandmother for three years.
In 2017, Peace was living in Mahama Camp, in Rwanda - 200km away from Ephiphanie (her grandma) and her 7-year-old brother.
She wasn't registered as a refugee, so it was difficult for her to get the support she needed for the essentials, like education or health care.
We support every child, no matter their status - so we helped her find the services she needed.
And by working with the National Council for Children, we made sure she could reunite with her grandma and sibling.
Three years and an 8-hour drive later, we reunited Peace with her brother and grandma.
The entire family was excited to welcome Peace back, and she settled in quickly: by the time Save the Children departed, Peace was already peeling bananas!
Reuniting Families
“My children are happy to meet again, and they are playing in the child-friendly space of Save the Children.” said 29-year-old Etkarlin.
"I left because of the crisis in my country. What motivated me to leave were my children." - Etkarlin, mum from Venezuela
Etkarlin fled to Peru, with her youngest child: they only had one ticket and he needed the most urgent attention.
Leaving Venezuela wasn’t easy. Etkarlin only had one bus ticket, and she was told that there were organisations who could help her get to Peru from there.
So, she took the risk.
Once she was in Peru, we provided Etkarlin with emergency support so she could meet her parents, younger sister and eldest son - after 10 long months apart.
The brothers were overjoyed to meet again, and they played in one of our safe spaces - where children can play, learn and just enjoy being kids!
Want more good news like this?
Keep an eye on your inbox over the next few days: we'll be sharing the story of an incredible kid called Domaac*, with even more information on how your support makes moments like this possible.
Every single donation, big or small, helps families like the ones above. If you can, please give today.
*Names changed to keep children and their families safe
