Picture Dictionary and Books Logo
As I went back, I started talking to the men, to the village, and mothers, and I said, "I want to give back the way I had promised you that I would come back and help you. What do you need?" Voice Reading
As I spoke to the women, they told me, "You know what we need? We really need a school for girls." Voice Reading
Because there had not been any school for girls. Voice Reading
And the reason they wanted the school for girls is because when a girl is raped when she's walking to school, the mother is blamed for that. Voice Reading
If she got pregnant before she got married, the mother is blamed for that, and she's punished. Voice Reading
She's beaten. They said, "We wanted to put our girls in a safe place." Voice Reading
As we moved, and I went to talk to the fathers, the fathers, of course, you can imagine what they said: "We want a school for boys." Voice Reading
And I said, "Well, there are a couple of men from my village who have been out and they have gotten an education. Voice Reading
Why can't they build a school for boys, and I'll build a school for girls?" Voice Reading
That made sense. And they agreed. Voice Reading
And I told them, I wanted them to show me a sign of commitment. And they did. Voice Reading
They donated land where we built the girls' school. We have. Voice Reading
I want you to meet one of the girls in that school. Voice Reading
Angeline came to apply for the school, and she did not meet any criteria that we had. Voice Reading
She's an orphan. Yes, we could have taken her for that. Voice Reading
But she was older. She was 12 years old, and we were taking girls who were in fourth grade. Voice Reading
Angeline had been moving from one place -- because she's an orphan, she has no mother, she has no father -- moving from one grandmother's house to another one, from aunties to aunties. Voice Reading
She had no stability in her life. And I looked at her, I remember that day, and I saw something beyond what I was seeing in Angeline. Voice Reading
And yes, she was older to be in fourth grade. Voice Reading
We gave her the opportunity to come to the class. Five months later, that is Angeline. Voice Reading
A transformation had begun in her life. Voice Reading
Angeline wants to be a pilot so she can fly around the world and make a difference. Voice Reading
She was not the top student when we took her. Voice Reading
Now she's the best student, not just in our school, but in the entire division that we are in. Voice Reading
That's Sharon. That's five years later. Voice Reading

Table of Contents