As a young girl in South Sudan, Juliana watched her older sister run away to escape a forced marriage. Soon afterward, Juliana was pulled from school. Instead of attending classes, she spent her days gathering firewood, hauling water, preparing meals, and washing other children’s school uniforms.

“Sometimes we ourselves did not eat,” Juliana recalls. “Only if we fetched water that day would we be allowed to eat.”

Returning to school with a Mercy Beyond Borders scholarship was only the first step.