To be very honest, I do not need to create such posts to earn money for myself from Steemit. I am very proud of the work that I do here and it receives very good rewards. What I want to achieve from this is the contribution from the community to help a needy family. I am already helping in certain ways, mainly financial. In fact, I have been financially supporting education of one girl for two consecutive years now.
Here's the case. There's a family that I know personally which is going through difficlut times. There are many problems to discuss but I will discuss a few most significant ones.
1. Children's Education is At Stake
The parents have 5 kids and all are going to school. The elder girl goes to the most expensive school out of all the siblings. I support her entirely. The other kids cannot afford to go to good school. Recently, one of the kids was admitted to a good school and one of my friends was sending monthly donation of $50 to support.
That donation has stopped for two months now. His fees cannot be paid by the family and are being paid only by taking debt; a debt that is heaping up and impossible to return. There seems to be no way out of this situation.
2. Income is Far Less Than Expenditures
Even if the curtail expenses, the income is too low to run a small home, what to talk about a family of seven. Crops are main, and the only, sources of income. There are two problems.
Crops payout every six months. It measn only two paydays in one year. And those paydays go to clear debts. Nothing remains to run the home. More debt is taken to feed the family and educate the children.
The average monthly income from the two paydays is less than $150 in value. Yes! That's true. I myself am son of a farmer and if our family excludes my income, they cannot do anything. It's hard to survive on $1800 for the whole year. Try imagining that...
So, there is no income to meet the expenses or clear the ever increasing loans. I personally gave a loan worth $100 at that time three years ago and never asked back. Other people, however, demand there money back and it sometimes gets unethical too. I have been extremely poor all my childhood and teenage and I know what it feels like...
3. Property Distribution Happened and They Have to Pay an Amount...
The joint family is splitting up the property as per law and the local council recommendations. According to these recommendations, they have to pay half of the cost which was incurred on building the house they live in (because it was owned by all brothers). The house was built more than a decade ago and their share is about $2200. Seems like a small amount but for them it is a living hell.
To put things in perspective, $2200 is $400 more in value than their annual income. Their kids are all studing and are early teenagers or in pre-teenage. They are not contributors to family income. Why I'm requesting you to help is because I was approached to give at least $500 and the rest would be taken as loan from some families in the native village; bits from many.
I am embarrased by the fact that I do not have money to help. I had some money but I gave it at home to enable building of my house. I have been called dozens of times by someone in that family but I am unable to attend and say no...
My home is under construction and my money has gone into it already. More is needed, which I can arrange from my salary and crypto (everything in loss at the moment due to market crash).
Please Help!
Please help me raise some amount to help the family. If their urgent need of $2200 and outstanding loans are cleared hundred percent, I alone may support them monthly from my Steemit earnings, despite the fact that I am also in need of money for building my home and buying my first car. Please do participate generously. I am a financially honest person and people will testify that even on Steemit.
Here's how you can help.
Resteem this post. This is the least that you can do to help me.
Upvote this post generously with a significant percentage because 100 % payout (SBD + Steem equal to SP) will go to the family in need of our support.
Get this post upvoted by an upvote bot. Send this post's URL as memo to @minnowbooster or anyother bot.
Donate Steem or SBD. Send Steem or SBD to me with suitable memo.
Share this post in your communities on telegram, discord and other social media.
Please do not hesitate to question the transparency of this whole collection in any phase of it. Whatever is received will be handed over cent for cent to the family with the information of source (Steemit community).
Please help!
Sending you 100% of that comment reward as liquid STEEM.
You're a great asset to Steem.
Thank you so much! This is an incredible, incredible support! I cannot thank you enough! People can clearly see who is the real asset to Steem!
A person's most useful asset is not a head full of knowledge, But a heart Full of love, An Ear ready to listen and a hand willing to help other.
@ilyastarar And @transisto you both are the person with a Heart Full of love and a hand willing to help others. . . . You both are doing a great job. . . . Really appreciated
Keep it up.
Thanks for sharing this with me. I gave it my vote, and I hope that's helpful. My first reaction was, "What are they making irrational choices about schooling when they have to take care of their financial needs first?" but then I thought a bit more about my own bias and lack of perspective on how things must be there.
I homeschool my children and I'm a big fan of the Peter Gray book: Free to Learn: Why Unleashing the Instinct to Play Will Make Our Children Happier, More Self-Reliant, and Better Students for Life. Sometimes I think "education" really just messes things up and creates an obedient factory-worker class which may have been better off just exploring the world around them. Again, I don't know the specifics of how things are there, so I'll withhold judgement. I will say times are changing and accounts like @steemiteducation which I support via delegation are helping to bring educational content to the world for free. Going into debt to educate children according to the Prussian model of education seems so silly to me if better options exist.
Sorry for what may seem like a rant, but I wanted to at least express my thoughts on the topic while also supporting your efforts. Thank you for having compassion and empathy for others.
It's always nice to read honest opinions. Only honest people can speak their heart out and still they do it incredibly well. I loved your comment and your wisdom to hold the judgement back until having substantial information about specific situation.
Having said that, I share your opinion on education and even homeschooling. My kids may go to school but I will not ask them to do well in school exams because that is worthless. I strongly agree with factory workers argument as well because I have studied and observed the education system (it's worse here than in US) and found it to be outdated, unnecessary and damaging. I can write at length about it and can share examples as well but I will, instead, share a Pink Floyd song with you. It reflects my strong opinion on schools and prevailing education system.
About the irrational financial decision making, I am agitated too at times but I cannot let anything worse, like a suicide, happen while I still can do something about it. I try to educate them on financial matters and how to best make use of available resources but they don't have much at the moment. About sending children to school despite not being able to afford, I cannot let the children be out of school and you'll know why below.
Specifics are very discouraging. Father is cannot read or write. Mother can read Urdu, the national language, but cannot write or read English. In short, school is the only place where these children can get basic education. They cannot be homeschooled. Although I try to engage with kids and encourage them to explore their own capabilities, I live hundreds of miles away mostly.
My personal story is based only on one thing; education. If I were not sent to school by my father, I would have been a poor farmer or a labor worker in Middle East now. I can see from experience how basic education has changed my life for good. I was never interested in giving too much attention to school and I seldom did homework. I am not a university graduate as well. The proper education I have is what you call high school in States. That too, I managed to get because I was gifted with great analytical ability. I wasn't, thankfully, a good student.
So, I share the same thoughts as you. Despite having strong personal stance on education system, I wish to see these kids come out of the poverty trap and I am planning to train them from my personal experience.
Great song. :)
Thanks for giving more of the back story. It's so sad to think how many kids are in similar situations you describe where no one in their community or immediate family has enough education to help them get started. I'm hopefully widely distributed Internet and cheap computers will make it possible for anyone anywhere in the world to get an education online.
I very much agree with your thoughts about the online learning, but there is another important element beside internet connection and owning computer. That element is to have at least basic knowledge of computer skills.
So, there must be someone who will teach those people willing to study online how to use computer and how to study online.
Even the basic education is for children is essential for improvement of their lives though the educational system is not good at all.
I have some experiences of teaching basic computer skills in Zambia and I can say that the students are eager to study but in that environment it is not easy to learn especially computer skill if there are often electricity blackouts and 2 or 3 students on one PC.
Resteemited and upvoted.
I usually don't upvote comments 100 % but yours is a wonderful comment for an absolute newbie on Steemit. Too good! I am from Pakistan and a fraction of problems which exist in Zambia exist here too. I can understand what you are saying and I completely agree.
My vote is a token of gratitude for trying to educate children in basic computer skills. Very noble of you. Please keep doing it!
My best hope is to get the children educated with online skills and help them learn and earn online. I have done that for quite a few people but constant guidance is needed in most cases; especially in the beginning. I wish I could be available to do that but my job is far away from my village.
I completely agree that internet and computers will make it possible to get education and skills. They already are. We are having a boom here in IT field where young children are making a name for them without much formal education. We have a Udemy instructor who never went to school.
I myself have done dozens of fromal online courses, along with the informal education from Google, YouTube and even Steemit.
I resteemed and sent 10 SBD to @minnowbooster to promote this post to support this family. My main motive of helping this needy family is to bring the happiness on their face as well as to fulfill their needs irrespective of whether I know them or not...
@ilyastarar you are doing great jobs thanks
Thank you so much. I saw the minnowbooster vote and I knew someone had done it already. It was you. Thank you!
The spirit of helping fellow human beings is pricelss. Glad you have it!
Gave it my 100%.
Your generosity is what keeps this platform above others... Thank you!
A link to the post was pasted in the Israeli Steemit whatsapp group but odds are I would have seen it on my feed. The beauty of steemit is I can help without it costing me ANYTHING. And so can others. Awesome, ain't it? :)
You are running a very noble cause of helping others.The situation is very sad about that family.I hope one day they will overcome all their problems.
The elder brother is in 9th grade. I will buy them a smartphone and train them on how to use Steemit soon. Let's hope they can turn things around.
That's a great idea indeed. Please count me in. I want to contribute in buying him a smartphone.
Good job for doing this. More power to you!
Thank you!
Hope i could do more - this is breaking my heart 😓
Did what i could to help.
You are an amazing person - never stop surprising me by how good is your heart.
we must help all the needy and poor. we should have this spirt
I share the same opinion ae yours. Thank you!
Thanks be to God for this opportunity to help. Upvoted.
Hey great spirit Ilyastarar!
Thank you!
Congratulations! This post has been upvoted from the communal account, @minnowsupport, by ilyastarar from the Minnow Support Project. It's a witness project run by aggroed, ausbitbank, teamsteem, theprophet0, someguy123, neoxian, followbtcnews, and netuoso. The goal is to help Steemit grow by supporting Minnows. Please find us at the Peace, Abundance, and Liberty Network (PALnet) Discord Channel. It's a completely public and open space to all members of the Steemit community who voluntarily choose to be there.
If you would like to delegate to the Minnow Support Project you can do so by clicking on the following links: 50SP, 100SP, 250SP, 500SP, 1000SP, 5000SP.
Be sure to leave at least 50SP undelegated on your account.
I am happy to see people like you who are extending their hand to help those who literally need help.
Added my share
You are awesome! upvoted 100%, I know it's not more than 0.15$ on the payout, but I hope it helps.
You are doing fantastic work my friend by helping this family come out of crisis, Stay blessed
I have upvoted, to help. It might not be much on its own but added to the pool I hope it becomes useful enough for you to help this family. It really does suck being poor and in a downward financial spiral.
You are a great person.... Uovoted and Resteemed
you are right very few people do this work and u r one of them
Great post tnx for sharing i just upvoted check out my new post steemitalltheway
Resteemed by @resteembot! Good Luck!
The resteem was paid by @thekittygirl
Curious?
The @resteembot's introduction post
Get more from @resteembot with the #resteembotsentme initiative
Check out the great posts I already resteemed.
I wish this family and you all the luck, upvoted and resteemed. My respect for all your work.
My heart goes out for the family. I hope they will come out of this painful situation soon.
May Allah shower His mercy upon all the poor and needy.
Love and prayers for you for this gesture of kindness. <3
I voted, I hope you have some good habits that will show us the way
I have upvoted. A small contribution but something nevertheless :)
It is very pity condition that most of families in our countries live very hard life, they do not having basic goods. Good to see your morale for the family, I wish I could help you , just like you I have to build a house for my family
I hope everything works out! Nice of you to help out. Keep us updated!! Joy