Justin's story
Justin is a 17 year old boy. He was found alone on the streets 5 years ago. He was orphaned and had no one to turn to. When Fraire Maino, one of the centres War Child works with, found Justin, he couldn't read or write and was a timid little boy.
Attempts were made to trace other family members but to no avail so the centre embarked on a path to help him become autonomous. For the first 3 years he went to school where he learnt to read and write. By the time he was 15, however, his interest in school was waning and he threatened to drop out. The centre managed to convince him to continue following literacy and arithmetic classes whilst also allowing him to follow his desire to learn carpentry.
Having learnt carpentry over the course of the last year, Justin and two other boys have set up a workshop, with help from the centre, where they can earn money from orders that are placed and from others who come to the workshop to learn carpentry themselves. The three hope to be able to rent a small house together soon and so establish themselves as independent, autonomous individuals.