When 13-year-old Simaloi sits in her Grade 7 classroom at Amazing Grace Academy in Shartuka, her eyes often drift across the pages of her books, pages she still cannot read. While her classmates write sentences with ease, she struggles to form even the simplest words. Her inability to read or write is not because she lacks intelligence or willingness. It is because her childhood was stolen long before she ever held a pencil. For years, Simaloi lived a life no child should endure. At home in Kilgoris, she faced relentless beatings, harassment and emotional abuse from her parents. Instead of learning ABCs or enjoying the innocence of play, she was forced to brew chang’aa, a dangerous and illegal trade. The fumes of alcohol replaced the warmth of a home and fear became her constant companion. The torment grew so unbearable that she began sleeping in a roadside tunnel cold, hungry and alone. Her life became a cycle of survival rather than learning, danger instead of development...
Beyond the Game