Didier

“I think I have always wanted to become a doctor. When I’m done with my studies, and when I have become a doctor, I want to help the people around me. My main dream is to start a hospital where our patients can get quality healthcare for free. Sometimes when people have to undergo very expensive surgeries, we see them having to fundraise on their own…so I would like to help people who require surgeries. That is my dream, to help people in such a way.”

In October 2018, after three full years of applying and waiting for scholarships to pursue his medical education, Didier finally received the funding that he had been waiting for and began his first semester at the University of Nairobi as the only refugee student in his class. Didier, 22 years old, is eager to give back to his community. “Growing up as a refugee in Kenya, I have received so much help with my education. Even when I was in high school, various people supported me in my journey. I got a scholarship when I was in high school, so it is also my dream to help other people to achieve their dreams in terms of education. If possible, I would like to pay for school fees for people who are in need.”

After the Rwandan genocide in 1994, Didier’s family fled their home due to persecution. In 2003, they arrived in Kenya, and ten years later, when Didier was 16, he and his family, including his parents and four brothers, met RefugePoint, which assisted the family with food, education assistance, counseling, and a small business grant. From the start, it was clear that Didier was an exceptional student. When he sat for the Kenyan Primary national exam in 2011, he scored 391/500 marks, despite the limited resources and overcrowded classrooms at his public school. His score was the best that the school had achieved in ten years.

Perhaps one of the most critical roles that RefugePoint has played in Didier’s life was encouraging him to never give up on his dream of pursuing medicine. “My social worker from RefugePoint, she has been encouraging me a lot – so much – in terms of continuing to look for funds until I managed to get the funds to go to medical school. She helped me a lot in those application processes. She pushed me a lot, and encouraged me to pursue my dreams.”

In the three years that Didier was waiting to see if he’d be able to pursue his dream of becoming a doctor, he worked as a teacher in a local school. “I enjoyed being a teacher so much. During the three years that I was supposed to go to school, sometimes it was hard because I would see my friends in their second year of university education, but for me, those years were awesome. It was just amazing working with the kids. So for me, those three years were not wasted. It was one of the most wonderful times of my life.”

This summer, during his school break, Didier has plans to volunteer with RefugePoint’s medical team. “I am excited to volunteer with RefugePoint this summer because it will be my first time working in the medical field. I think I am going to meet amazing people and learn a lot. I am also going to experience how it feels to attend to a patient, so that experience is going to be valuable.”

Didier says that the most rewarding part of starting medical school was finally being able to begin pursuing his dreams and interacting with people who share the same vision. “Sometimes the journey is difficult because, you know, school is demanding. But when I am doing my studies and when I am learning new stuff, I feel so satisfied, and I am like ‘yeah, this is what I want to do for the rest of my life!’”