Bunmi's Story
We partner with The Freedom Story to provide mentoring and education to students at high risk for trafficking in Northern Thailand. Students learn about human trafficking and how to safeguard themselves against it. Your advocacy & donations during Dressember not only help to provide rescue and aftercare, but also to prevent trafficking from happening in the first place. Learn more about our partnerships here.
When Bunmi* was in sixth grade, she was the only student in her class who met the requirements to pass on to secondary school. This was a common occurrence in rural Thai villages where poverty often forces students to find work as soon as possible, rather than completing their education.
Even as a young girl, Bunmi saw that this pattern caused great problems for the children in her village. Many were involved in drugs and crime. Some ended up in jail, while others were tricked into trafficking.
She realized she needed to leave her family and go to Chiang Rai city to get a better quality education. Her goal was to return to her village as a teacher so she could help the children receive the education they needed to have a better life.
She did not realize at the time just how much dedication and sacrifice this would require. Her only thought was, “I have to give the children a chance.”
Because Bunmi’s parents had only achieved a second grade education, it was hard for them to understand her decision to pursue education. Nevertheless, she explained to them how determined she was to do this. Bunmi’s father told her they didn’t have much money, but that they would support her as much as they could.
She had never spent much time in Chiang Rai before, so she reached out to her local pastor, who helped her find an organization that could help with housing.
At the young age of 12, Bunmi left her family and her village and traveled alone on a bus to Chiang Rai. As she traveled, she looked out the window and watched as everything familiar faded away.
In her mind she replayed the conversations she had had with her parents. “I must go,” she had told them, “because I have a dream.”
And so they let her go, so she could pursue her dream. She was alone, and afraid—but excited too. Overcome by exhaustion, she fell asleep on the bus. When she woke up, she realized that she had missed her stop. She had no idea what to do, alone, and in a strange environment. She stopped a moment and prayed. Then she told the bus driver what had happened. Amazingly, the bus driver drove her all the way back to Chiang Rai.
Bunmi recalls the moment when she arrived in Chiang Rai. It was a much bigger, busier city than she was used to. After some time, she learned about The Freedom Story.
With The Freedom Story’s support she could afford her housing, her schooling was paid for, and she received the support she needed to gain her teaching degree. Over the years The Freedom Story provided her with what she needed to persevere through high school and college. Not only financially, but through the after school, counseling and mentorship programs. Her mentor in particular gives her both guidance and friendship during this time that she has been away from her family, supporting her to pursue her dream and offering advice from their own experience of going to university—an experience her family couldn’t related to.
Eleven years have passed since that brave 12 year old left her home and family to follow her heart. You can find her today doing her internship, teaching English to fourth graders in the local school in Chiang Rai.
She is on the road to fulfilling her dream! With the help of The Freedom Story, Bunmi has greater freedom to do the things she loves, like meeting up with friends, watching movies, and going camping.
Most of all, she is able to pursue this dream that is in her heart. And if you ask her how she came to this point in her life, she will look at you in the eyes and confidently tell you, “It is because I had a dream. I must give the children a chance.”
May this dream that compelled this young child to do extraordinary things continue to burn in her heart and lead her to do great things for the children of her village!
*Bunmi is a pseudonym to protect the identity of the survivor