David Philip

David is 12 years old and comes from the village of Rombo. After his parents died he was sent to live with his grandmother, who shared a home with David’s cousins. While his grandmother was tending her farm, David’s cousins would treat him poorly and tell him he wasn’t welcome at there. David decided to leave and seek work on the streets.

He lived on the streets of Arusha for 3 months, where he was beaten by other homeless children and had trouble sleeping on the cold cement. He survived by selling plastic bags to shoppers in the main market. He learned about Amani from other homeless children and sought out Amani’s street educator.

Amani’s social workers worked with David and his grandmother for several weeks, counseling them about productive ways to solve the problems between David and his cousins. In August of 2009, David was reunited with his grandmother. He is now at home and enrolled in a local primary school. Both David and his grandmother are happy he’s home.