Imagine an eight-year-old child who, while others laugh around a decorated Christmas tree, sits alone in a crumbling center. Not because he doesn’t want to join in, but because his disability has made him invisible in the eyes of society.

In Benin, thousands of children abandoned at birth or living with autism, ADHD, intellectual disabilities, physical impairments or orphans grow up forgotten. Many don’t go to school due to a lack of adapted resources. Some go hungry, others don’t even have proper clothing. And during the holiday season, a time of joy and sharing for most, their daily reality remains unchanged. No gifts, no celebrations, no lights. Only the silence of exclusion. According to UNICEF (2023), about 15% of children in Benin live with a disability, whether physical, sensory, mental, or cognitive.

We are Maurice, Fabiole, and Holy-Abel, three students in psychology and social work at the University of Hearst (Ontario, Canada). With your support, we are launching “Lights of Hope: Inclusion and Education for the Children of Benin”, a student-led humanitarian trip that will take place in December 2025.

Our goal is to raise $5,000 CAD (≈ 2,003,000 CFA francs) to:

Provide food kits, clothing, and school supplies.

Deliver adapted learning materials (educational games, pictograms, visual aids).

Offer financial support to specialized centers such as the Centre des Sourds d’Agla and La Chrysalide Bénin.

Organize an inclusive Christmas celebration: games, performances, and symbolic gifts to restore joy and dignity to these children.

Every contribution matters. Today, your donation can brighten their daily lives. Tomorrow, it can transform their future. Together, let’s make this December a season of sharing and light for those who need it most. Donate now and become the spark that rekindles hope in these children.

Every gift, big or small, changes a life:

$25 = a food kit (rice, oil, maize) for a family.

$50 = school supplies for one child (notebooks, pencils, backpack).

$100 = clothing.

$250 = direct support to a center caring for vulnerable children.