Be a Champion
February 10th, 2011 § 3 Comments
Yesterday morning Jared and I met Jessica Jackley, co-founder of KIVA. She is walking inspiration. And KIVA is quite an organization with an equally compelling story. Listen to it in her own words here: http://www.ted.com/talks/jessica_jackley_poverty_money_and_love.html It’s less that 20 minutes, if you want to be inspired today (and really none of us can afford to not be inspired), watch this and watch it all the way through, her last 3-4 minutes are the most powerful part of her story.
One of my favorite things about living in Africa is WHO I get to meet. It seems that daily some of the most incredible people are breezing through my life. Some stick and our souls bond, others I only get to enjoy for a short season, but ALL are living stories worth telling. And so today, I want to tell you about one of them. There are so many more, but if I can capture your attention for just this one today I will have accomplished today’s experiment which is “Be a champion.”
This week we want to hear about what you care about and why. We want you to champion some one or some organization that deeply moves you, make their story a part of your story. Share, share, share. Good stories only live when they are told. So please do tell. And if you’re already telling, then just send a quick note about it, we want hear about the movements that move you.
Today I will champion, Robinah.
"Robinah with Grace"
ROBINAH: My dear friend Robinah, a young and strong Ugandan woman, came into my life about five years ago, just after she had moved in with about 30 young girls, ages 9-25, who had just come out off the streets where they were selling their bodies to survive.
At age 27, Robinah became the young mother of 30. She lived with them, counseled them, cooked with them, dropped them off at school, sat beside them when they were sick and she loved them each unconditionally. Robinah lived in what we called the King’s Daughters home for the next 3 years. Day in and day out, they knew she would be there, no matter what. And, of course, she was.
Robinah continues her work through an organization she founded called Set Her Free. She fearlessly frequents the dangerous streets of a large African city searching for young girls and women who would like a way out of the horrible circumstances life has served them. She continues to befriend them, mentor them, fight for them. She counsels, she teaches, she gives generously of herself every day. She tells their stories too, she can’t help but tell the world what she sees and about the transformation. That transformation is not only possible but that is IS happening in the lives of people most of us have written off.
Robinah is changing hundreds of lives. Yes, there are days when she is exhausted to tears and doesn’t know if she can or should continue, but somehow she is able to dig deep and find the strength to keep on keeping on. I would imagine too, that even the women who don’t leave the streets when she invites them in, are in fact altered by her unconditional love when she goes out and meets them where they are.
Robinah, yours is a story I cannot stop telling. Thank you for being who you are. You are true and you are courageous.
thank you Ilea I love this. you touch my heart.
Robinah
Thank you Ilea, i was so suprised to see myself and story on your blog. I keep telling people that if I had not met Ilea in my life I wouldn’t have been what I am today and I wouldn’t have done what i’m doing today. You discovered the potential that was inside me, you made me feel that I was somebody in my life. Your staying in Uganda was specifically for me to discover myself and the ministry that was within me.
You believed in me and I got to believe in myself.
Thank you Ilea and Jared, you’ve made me discover myself
Yes, I’m now the founder of Set Her free Uganda, it’s a non profit organization that seeks to help young who are sexually exploited by giving them a chance to be loved. When I say to be love, Ilea and Jared you understand me. The reason to why many girls end up into prostitution is simply because no one was there to love or care. These girls sell their bodies just because they don’t love themselves.
Set Her Free Uganda is here to love these girls and also to make them love themselves.
Thank you Ilea and the Everydaexperiment team.
Robina
Great post Ilea! Robinah is truly an amazing woman. I am always impressed with how she is able to do so much with so little. She is driven and passionate, and that seems to get her through every obstacle. I think that’s true for all of us. If we’re driven and passionate enough about something, nothing can stand in our way.