Chetram Ramphal

Chetram Ramphal, a young teenage boy, was forced to drop out of school following the tragic death of his father on the Corentyne highway; Chetram's only wish now is to be able to get an education and take his family out of poverty.  This story can bring anyone to tears, but this is a child with hope and potential, let's help him make his dream come true.

At just 6 years old Chetram was a patient at the New Amsterdam Hospital, and during a trip to visit Chetram, his father was killed in a tragic motor vehicle accident, which took the lives of 12 individuals. Since Chetram's father was the breadwinner of the family, they suffered not only with the devastating loss of their father, but also with grave financial distress. Chetram's mother tried as hard as possible to put food on the table as a domestic worker, but still could not make ends meet. Although villagers assisted the family of 5 with food, clothes and other necessities, they still struggled. As a result, Chetram was forced to drop out of school to help his mother by becoming a fisherman. He would leave home at 6:00am daily to venture out into the back-lands for his daily catch; this allowed them to eat, but not a chance at education. 

While the family plea for justice for their father, Chetram expressed his great desire for an education so that he can help his family out of poverty. It was this heartbreaking plea which caught the attention of SHEA's Tracey Khan and Lori Narine who took on the task of assisting the family. They started a fundraiser where funds collected would be used to repair the family home, start a small business to help the family self-sustain, and set-up an education trust for Chetram. The trust would be paid as a monthly stipend to help further Chetram's education.

Update: January 29, 2018
We are currently working on getting Chetram reenrolled in school today and hopefully he can start tomorrow. The family has received overwhelming support and they are extremely grateful. We hope that the support continues to pour in as they are in desperate need.

Update: February 9, 2018
We have met with the Headmaster of the school where Chetram is now enrolled and he will provide us with a monthly report of Chetram’s attendance and progress. Upon receipt of this report, we will disburse a monthly stipend to cover his expenses. In addition, Chetram is receiving tutoring service to get caught up with his studies.

An assessment of Chetram’s living environment was conducted on February 5, 2018, where it was determined that this family is living well beyond poverty. The home has no kitchen, no sink, no windows, no doors, no chairs, nor any basic living necessities. The stairs leading up to their sleeping area is very unstable and could collapse at any moment. A review of the sleeping area revealed that the family sleeps on two mattresses that are significantly deteriorated. They have no stocked groceries or utensils to adequately prepare meals. Moreover, the floor on which they reside is also significantly deteriorated with rotting boards and gaping holes.

We have made arrangements to have the home repaired. This work will begin on Wednesday, February 14, 2018. We will also purchase two new mattresses, stove, kitchen basics and linens.

Our ultimate plan for the family is to assist them with starting a small business so that they can self-sustain and be more independent. 

Update: July 10, 2018
Since accepting Chetram’s case, we have done extensive work to make his home safer and also get him reenrolled in school. Several persons from the general public (including neighbors) also stepped up to help the family. We at SHEA have been in close contact with the family and Chetram’s teacher to monitor his progress and we could not be happier with the results.

Chetram, who is a grade 7 student, received his first report card since he started school in February 2018 and he scored 3rd place in his class. He was late a total of 3 times and there are no absences noted on his report card, although we know that he was out a few days during the last week of school due to an illness.

We know that he needs to improve in his studies and we will continue to support him as long as he keeps up his studies and attends school regularly.

Final Update:
A public GoFundMe fundraiser was established through SHEA Charity where approximately $4,500 USD was raised to help this family.  These funds were used to make much needed, major repairs to Chetram’s home, including installing new flooring, new stairs, windows, doors; rebuild their kitchen and provide new appliances, pots, pans, plates, and utensils; provide new mattresses, pillows, beddings…etc. Additionally, a lump sum cash donation was given to Chitram’s mother to start and maintain a sustainable family business. Further, SHEA establish a monthly stipend program for Chetram in the amount of $10,000 GYD each month providing he supplied SHEA with his attendance records. We also hired a private tutor to assist with his studies.

Unfortunately, the family business was never established and following the school break in 2018, Chetram did not return to school on a regular basis. Several months of school stipend were received by the family through our arrangements. However, as his attendance continued to decline, we subsequently stopped receiving his attendance records or updates from the family. Several attempts were made to enquire about his progress, and we even sent our volunteer to his home on more than one occasion to enquire about his schooling, but our volunteer was unsuccessful in reaching the family.

While we would have liked to have a better, more positive outcome, we unfortunately don’t have one in this case. We stand ready to assist Chetram with his education should he decide to return to school. In the mean time, we wish him all the best in his future endeavors.