Hema* could have easily been labeled an “angry little girl” if you only looked at the behavior on the surface. But what most couldn’t see is that her mad sat on top of her sad. Hema watched as her mother bravely battled illness and her father faithfully cared for their family through it all. But within just two months, Hema lost both of her parents, leaving her to navigate a world without the two people who had loved and cared for her most. She held onto hope that a family member would step forward and open their home to her, but no one did. Hema was young and grieving the loss of her parents. Now she had no place to call home; she felt unwanted and alone, and the only way she knew to communicate her pain was to act out.
She was brought to Back2Back’s campus, where other children from similar circumstances were finding opportunities to experience childhood again. Staff welcomed Hema in, asking questions, listening, and doing their best to understand the little girl in front of them. They knew her anger was not the whole story; beneath her stubbornness and difficult behavior was a child who had experienced more loss than she knew how to process, much less explain.
Trauma-informed care helps adults recognize there is always meaning behind behavior. Children often do not have the language to communicate what they’ve experienced or how deeply it has affected them. Sometimes grief looks like anger, sometimes like defiance. Often, children experiencing abandonment struggle to trust the people caring for them will stay.
Back2Back staff, trained in trauma-informed care, understood that Hema needed more than correction when her emotions became difficult to manage. She needed patience and consistency; she needed adults willing to look beyond her behavior to understand what was happening underneath.
Through counseling, encouragement, and the steady presence of people who cared for her, Hema began to experience things she had been missing: affection and acceptance; she was in a space where she felt safe and heard. Trust did not come easily or all at once. There were difficult days, and there are still emotions she is learning to navigate. Hema has slowly developed healthier ways to express herself, build relationships, and receive the care offered to her.
And as staff continued getting to know Hema, they came to understand that her emotional needs were only one part of a much larger picture.
Hema was born with a significant vision impairment, affecting approximately 90% of the vision in one eye. Doctors initially hoped her vision would improve as she grew, but the impairment persisted. She also experienced thyroid-related health concerns, requiring ongoing attention and care. Then, recently, Hema faced a medical emergency that demanded immediate action.
Her health was put at serious risk and required hospitalization and immediate treatment. Staff responded quickly, arranging for her admission and advocating for her the entire stay; there was no time to wait.
This was a new, frightening chapter for a child who had already experienced so much uncertainty, but Hema didn’t navigate anything alone. The adults who spent years learning to understand her emotions were now standing beside her in a hospital, advocating for her physical well-being with the same commitment they had shown toward her emotional healing.
This is the cost of holistic care – it’s not enough to provide a child with a safe space to sleep and an education. Children have spiritual, physical, educational, emotional, and social needs, and they do not exist independently of one another. Caring for the whole child means recognizing how deeply connected they are and remaining prepared to respond when one area of their life requires greater attention. For Hema, that commitment meant having people who recognized the urgency of her condition, working to ensure she received the medical care she needed.
And in the midst of that crisis, another possibility began to emerge. Hema’s maternal grandparents, previously unable to offer her care, recognized the extent of her needs and offered support. Their involvement opened the door to something Hema had hoped for since losing her parents: a deeper connection with her family.
There is still much to navigate, and renewed involvement does not erase the hurt of earlier rejection. But it is a meaningful opportunity for relationships to grow and for Hema to experience care from her own family.
She has an older sister who grew up in a government-run children’s home and, through perseverance and education, became a nurse. Her sister continues to care for Hema, even while navigating health challenges of her own. Their relationship is another important part of Hema’s life, a connection to family and shared history that cannot be replaced. Back2Back staff remain hopeful for both sisters, praying for their health and continuing to support Hema as she grows. And she is growing.
Hema attended Back2Back India’s trauma-informed school through Grade 10, before transitioning to a residential college for her next stage of education. She has now completed Grade 11 and entered Grade 12, continuing to pursue an education despite the challenges she has faced.
Education is about more than passing exams for Hema; it’s an opportunity to develop confidence, discover what she’s capable of, and imagine a future defined by more than what she’s lost. Hema imagines her future and sees herself standing in front of a classroom; she longs to become a teacher, and there is something particularly meaningful about her dream.
A little girl who once struggled to communicate what she was feeling now hopes to spend her days helping other children learn. Someone who needed patient adults to recognize what she could not yet express dreams of becoming an adult who will guide and encourage others. We don’t know exactly what Hema’s future will hold. There are still health concerns to navigate, relationships to strengthen, and emotional wounds that require continued care. Her story is not one of hardship neatly resolved or every difficult circumstance overcome. It is, however, a story of what becomes possible when a child is given the time, care, and support to keep growing.
The little girl who arrived at Back2Back carrying anger she could not explain is now a young woman approaching the end of her secondary education, building relationships, and dreaming of becoming a teacher. She has experienced profound loss, but has also experienced the steady presence of people who believe her life holds more than what has happened to her.
And perhaps that is one of the most important things Hema’s story teaches us about restoring childhood: the work is not finished when a child begins to trust, or when a medical crisis has passed. The work isn’t complete when another school year is complete; each milestone matters, and so does everything that follows it.
Hema still needs people in her corner who advocate and encourage. She still needs people reminding her through words and actions that she is worthy of love. The measure of our commitment to a child isn’t in whether we show up when everything falls apart, but whether we continue to show up as they build a life beyond it.
