Victory’s family fled unrest in DRC when he was three and he grew up many miles away in Zimbabwe along with other refugees from DRC, Burundi, and Somalia.
Camp life wasn’t easy. He recalls food shortages and sometimes only eating once a day. He enjoyed sports and loved dancing in a troop with friends. Fortunately he was able to attend school and learned to love math. But camp life was especially difficult during the pandemic, as social distancing meant school every other day and waiting in long lines for water.
Victory and his family came to Rhode Island to join his oldest two brothers who had arrived a year earlier. The family of 10 was reunited in October 2022. He now attends Central Falls High School. Since he knew some English (his fourth language), he only stayed in ESL for a month before integrating with the 11th grade.
Victory loved helping build houses at the camp and wants to be a civil engineer. He is interning at Seven Stars Bakery (as part of our training program) along with a close friend he met through BD. He works at events selling Beautiful Day products as well. He says his biggest influence is his parents. He knows that if they had not fled he would not be here. He is astute and values options to grow and learn. Victory says he intends to take every opportunity, try anything, not give up, and work hard to get good at the things he loves.
