Their daily struggle for survival means that these children are not in school

Seven-year-old Ana is the youngest of four children in a village 20km from the city of Gjakova, Kosovo. In poor health and without employment, her parents, Gezim and Saranda, survive by scavenging through other people’s rubbish for cans and scrap metal.

None of the children is in school, according to Faton Berisha, who delivered gift-filled boxes from Blythswood’s 2025 Shoe Box Appeal. “They are extremely poor,” he says, “and don’t get any government support as a family”.

Ana was excited to find sweets and colourful notebooks. Faton reports, “She still treasures them and looks after them with great care.

“Your shoeboxes were a great help, as the parents themselves said. In the packages they found important items for daily use, including hats, socks, scarves, gloves and hygiene items.”

These items of clothing are valued in a region where, for three months of the year, average night-time low temperatures can be below freezing.