In Brazil, a high school diploma alone is often not enough to find a job. But courses for additional qualifications are expensive. At Kolping in Caruaru, young people from low-income families receive them for free.
Going to night school twice a week, in addition to daily classes? “Absolutely!” Samara affirms. “Now is the time to think about what we want to achieve in life and what we need to do to make it happen.” Eduarda nods. “Plus, the course in administration and office organization is a lot of fun. And at Kolping, there are always great people who listen to you.”
From a corner, Adriene Ferreira Marciel, the director of KOLPING Caruaru, watches the two girls. She has been a Kolping member since 1978. Pride and loving care are evident in her gaze. She has known the girls since they were children coming from the neighboring favela to the Kolping Center for afternoon care. “The families living in the favela are poor. Many are single parents and constantly away from home to earn the bare necessities,” explains the 66-year-old. “In Brazil, children are cared for at school in the afternoons until they are seven years old. After that, they are often left to fend for themselves after class. They lack structure, guidance, and support. That is why the Kolping Center used to open its doors to them twice a week,” Adriene recalls of the time when this afternoon care program was still in place. “They were given something to eat, and there were creative classes where they could express and process their feelings: theater, painting, dancing. But we also taught them social rules, such as how important it is to say ‘please’ and ‘thank you.’”
Achieving Goals with Support
Eduarda and Samara are among the young people currently attending evening school at KOLPING Brazil in Caruaru to prepare for their entry into the workforce. The courses are made possible by funding from KOLPING INTERNATIONAL—supported by donations from partnership initiatives. They are learning a lot and getting good grades. And that is important, because only then is it possible to study at a university for free in Brazil. Both also work part-time. Eduarda tutors in Portuguese, art, and math. Samara works at a pizzeria. They already contribute part of their earnings to the family budget; they are responsible for school supplies, bus tickets, and clothes on their own anyway. And on top of that, they manage the evening courses. “If you want to achieve something, you have to work hard. Kolping helps us with that,” says Eduarda. Ever since she took dance classes at Kolping as a child, she has wanted to become a dancer. Because she knows it is difficult to make a living that way, she also has her sights set on a career as a police officer.
Effort that pays off
Samara’s career goal is clear, too: she wants to study law and become a lawyer. “I want to defend the innocent. Here, many people are criminalized who haven’t done anything wrong. Because they’re poor and can’t defend themselves.” For both girls, Kolping has now become a kind of family. “We’ve learned here that money alone doesn’t bring happiness, but that community is what matters most,” says Samara, and Eduarda nods. Adriene beams: “Seeing these two girls and listening to them gives me hope, because they show that our work is worthwhile and that we’re doing the right thing.”
Katharina Nickoleit
