Bily discovers his talent for taekwondo

Dominican Republic Thursday, 01 March 2018
Bily discovers his talent for taekwondo

Bily is 17 years old and has grown up in Monte Plata, Dominican Republic. Poverty and unemployment has always troubled his family, his parents have struggled to find work, making it difficult to provide food, clothes and school resources for Bily and his siblings.

We began caring for Bily at our Eva Russell School when he was 5 years old. At the school he is supported with regular food, healthcare and a great education. This care has reduced the burden on his family and has given him hope for a better future.

However, Bily hasn’t always loved school. He was once extremely shy and because of his learning difficulty, he found it hard to progress. At times his learning difficulty held him back and even when extra help was provided, he needed a lot of encouragement to ask for assistance. We longed for Bily to gain confidence and enjoy school so that he could get the most out of his education.

Bily’s enjoyment of life changed when he discovered taekwondo. Bily started learning taekwondo and found that he had great talent for this particular physical activity. Bily practices taekwondo every week and loves to see the improvement he is making. He has taken part in competitions and has even won medals.

Discovering taekwondo and excelling at it has really helped Bily grow in confidence and believe in himself. It has also had an amazing impact on his confidence in school and his teachers have seen an improvement in his work ethic, class participation and in his social life.

Bily is a great example of how sport can help build a child’s confidence and improve their learning. Each child in our care is unique, that’s why Stand by Me meet their individual needs and do whatever it takes to help them reach their full potential. We can't wait to see how Bily continues to develop in his learning and social life and maybe one day we'll see him become a taekwondo champion!

Stand by... almost there...