For Denise, life has been a relentless series of hardships. Growing up in a family already devastated by poverty and the oppressive rule of the Taliban, she faced loss and despair from an early age. The imprisonment of her father — who turned to drugs in an attempt to cope with his grief — left the family without its primary protector. Tragedy struck again when her mother was diagnosed with a tumor; now undergoing treatment, she is too ill to work, though she still forces herself to perform hard physical labor to support the family. The challenges do not end there. Denise’s brother suffers from a serious mental illness, which not only brings emotional pain to the family but also causes constant financial stress due to medical expenses and damages resulting from his condition. These growing burdens have made life almost unbearable for them. In June 2024, Denise arrived at AFCECO’s orphanage in Islamabad. There, she was enrolled in a private school, offering a small ray of hope in a life overshadowed by hardship and loss.