Moreen, pictured with her mother Damali
Meet Moreen.
She is a bright, ambitious young woman from Jinja, Uganda, with dreams of starting her own business one day. But, it did not always seem like this might come true.
Moreen was born when her mother was 16 years old. Her father had too many wives and could not care for the new baby or her mother Damali. Later, her mother remarried a local electrician, and for a time, Moreen was attending school. When her stepfather lost his job, the family struggled to pay the school fees for the then nine year old Moreen and her younger step-brothers.
When she was 14, she was enrolled in what is now Help One Now’s sponsorship program which allowed her to finish her schooling. Now, not only was she able to complete her high school education (receiving very high marks), but she also has received her Bachelor’s degree in business procurement. She has plans to begin her Master’s degree in the spring. “I want to start a small salon or restaurant and grow it to a large, successful business,” she says of her plans.
Access to education changed Moreen’s life. Often, girls are oppressed in Uganda, left with no prospects other than to be married very young. But, the education Moreen received empowered her. It gave her the tools and opportunity she needed to pursue her own success and help lift up others around her.
(Story Credit: Genessa Newberry)