Single mother’s sacrifices push son to excel at CSEC

By Andrew Carmichael

Thavindra Balgobin was recently declared as Port Mourant Secondary School’s top student at the recent Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations, with eight passes.
However, his journey to the top has been one that was filled with challenges but the sacrifices of his mother are what kept him pushing for success.
The 18-year-old secured Grade One passes in Integrated Science, Biology, Principles of Business, Human and Social Biology, Grade Two in English, Mathematics and Agriculture Science, and a Grade Three in Social Studies.

Balgobin and his mother Arlene Bhola live in Belvedere Squatting Area, Corentyne, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne). His father walked out of his life a number of years ago and ever since, his mother has been working as a domestic help for persons in the community. However, her job has never been steady and with the advent of the coronavirus pandemic, she seldom gets work now.
He noted that apart from the fact that he and his mother had to battle the lack of financial resources, he was quite often teased by his peers at school. Many times, it would be about the food he took to school for lunch.
He noted that at times he became so despondent that he even contemplated suicide but he knew that his mother had been sacrificing a lot for him so he needed to live up to her expectations. In light of that, he shifted his focus to his academics.

“When my father abandoned us, I used to take it on and think about how my mother would get work. I would see the pain and the hurt my mother was going through but she never wanted me to take on her troubles. Doing my School-Based Assignment (SBA) was very challenging because my mother could not have afforded it. I was able to use the school’s computer to do a lot of my work.
“At times I wanted to give up. At one time I was almost finished all of my SBAs, it was on a flash drive and I left it in the IT [Information Technology] Room. I said that I would continue working. The next day I did not find the flash drive. It was devastation. I was shocked,” he recounted.
The young man, at that stage, wanted to give up but it was the support of his mother and teachers that kept him from doing so. His teachers believed in his abilities and always knew he was capable of excelling.
Speaking with Guyana Times, Bhola expressed that she is extremely proud of her son and never questioned his capabilities. She said that while life remains tough, she receives some assistance from her pensioner father in order to meet the needs of her son.
“After my husband left, things became rough. I alone had to face the battle. I started to go and do people housework. Whoever call me, I would go. My father is a pensioner, every month he calls me and gives me something and my Pastor would sometimes stop by and drop things and there is the Humanitarian Mission would help with his going to school. That is how we live,” the single mother explained.
The proud mother said that her son has been very contented with whatever she has to offer and only ever asks her for the things he really needs.
“I try my best and I will go without because his education is important. With him going to school and improving, it was a joy for me and I never wanted that to flop. I would go to school meetings and the teachers will be talking about him,” she said.
When he sat the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA), Balgobin did not get the school he hoped for and instead he went to Port Mourant Secondary to do the six-year programme. He knew that he needed to work hard to ensure he made his mother proud and since then, he has been on top of his class.
He has been receiving annual awards for his outstanding performance in each class.
According to Balgobin, sometimes his peers would pick on him and tease him but he was able to overcome it. Because of his mother’s financial situation, he would walk from home to school.
“I would get up early to get to school early. Sometimes my mom would prepare breakfast for me and I try to get to school early. Sometimes I go without money and it was tough. Rain or no rain I go to school. Sometimes I have to get something printed out and she would tell me that she don’t have money, so it was hard on me.
“I just did not let those negative things get to me. I would still be very scared to go out on the blackboard if Miss called me to work something, especially math. I didn’t like math but after Miss started talking to me on a one on one basis, I started to like the subject,” he explained.
He said that in the exam room, he did the best he could and prayed.
Balgobin intends to further his career in the education sector as a teacher. He particularly wants to teach the sciences and use his experiences to motivate future charges to push to be the best.
He expressed a special thank you to the Humanitarian Mission for the financial assistance during his time in school.