My Communities

Our children deserve so much better

I am often moved by the personal journeys and stories of founders of non profit organizations. Their drive, passion, grit and perseverance are inspiring, and often a motivator for funding their organizations.

A story I found very captivating is a story about a community with potable water challenge, the women travel long distance to fetch water on their heads for their family use. The problem was easily identified, it will solve their problem if a borehole was constructed close to their homes. and so, a motorized borehole was constructed.
A follow up on the project revealed that the women abandoned the borehole and continued to fetch water from the long distance stream.

What made this story memorable for me was their reason for abandoning the borehole. The women hardly have time to socialize and do their socialization, their long walk to the stream is the only time they have for that.

This story got me so connected to the rationalization behind what one would generally consider irrational behavior, and it effectively delivered the message it was intended to deliver in a very very memorable way - Never assume the needs of a people, always conduct a need assessment before embarking on any social project.

Because of this story, I hardly embark on any social project without first carrying out a need assessment.

A very touching story of how a child was left by the parents while young and is now a marine lady was very emotional to me and in the process I felt the need to empower this lady with nice encouraging comments on her Instagram page.

We work to tell the story of our school district on a daily basis. Student achievements are the most impactful; athletic, artistic, musical- we try to tell the story of how we work with students and how these impact the greater community.

Here too Sanaa,
It is not easy to work for a nonprofit organization- long hours, low wages and often difficult conditions. The ability to stay true to the vision and mission when faced with these issues is inspiring.

A story I found really powerful was The Good Girl's Bad Boys by RubixCube89201.. It's a book about bullying and it captures how awful high school can be to a socially awkward person. It's extremely relatable, and every chapter has its funny moments. The comedy, the premise, the adventure, and the character's past will make you feel things. It's extremely witty and it will make you laugh. This book made me feel more for the victims of bullying because every character experienced these difficult paths.

aww bless your heart. I totally agree with you. Cats are lovely companions.

A story I found really powerful was of a secondary school girl, who rose above her adversities to remain in school. The covid-19 pandemic has ruined a lot of plans, especially of those in school. This girl was in a public school in Malawi. When schools closed due to the pandemic, he had no other way to access school materials like some students from private school. And so she waited for the governments to open schools again. During this wait, she fell pregnant, an unplanned pregnancy. This also meant it would be difficult for her to go back to school. she experienced ridicule and bullying from her friends and community. She began to feel like she could not go back to school, although this was her dream. However, with the right counselling and support, she decided she would go back to school no matter what. This story made me feel inspired, this school girl faced many things that would have made me give up, but she reminded herself why going to school was important to her. It made me realize that life does not always, usually not, go according to plan, and that we always have choices to make every situation a better experience.

this is touching

A story I found really powerful was the story of a family with blind children.The family could not afford to take children to the school of disabled due to the high school fees.God intervened and a certain organization came and rescued the family.They managed took the children to the school of disabled.They paid school fees and supplied all necessary school needs. Some managed to complete their schooling and passed with flying colors.They were now empowered.They managed to source donors and places for the other siblings.If it was not for this organization these children could not have accessed their right to education as they were marginalized in the community.

A powerful story I head was that of Marcus Garvey, Jamaican born Black nationalist who ended up shaking the foundations of the global racial hegemony by leading a Pan African movement that sought to unify all Africans & people of African descent, worldwide. Having seen the state of the black populace globally & not having much hope insight for major change, Marcus's story gave me hope as I realised that the vision for Africans to self rely & self determine, is possible. it inspired me to bandy with a group of like minded friends and start "Awakened Minds" as an NGO. His story was more than just a feel good story that you read and continue with your life. it is truly inspiring & has brought me thus far.

@cleodudu said in Module 1 Discussion: The Power of Stories:

A story I found really powerful was the story of a family with blind children.The family could not afford to take children to the school of disabled due to the high school fees.God intervened and a certain organization came and rescued the family.They managed took the children to the school of disabled.They paid school fees and supplied all necessary school needs. Some managed to complete their schooling and passed with flying colors.They were now empowered.They managed to source donors and places for the other siblings.If it was not for this organization these children could not have accessed their right to education as they were marginalized in the community.

This is a powerful story, access to education especially for the visually impaired is also a huge problem this side of the World in South Africa and there are not much organizations in the space funding & supporting this sector. that story is truly powerful. thank you for sharing.

A story I found really powerful was of my own mum, she lost her husband at an early age with eight children. she had to take care of us all without a job while she was struggling with her in-laws over property. Mum worked so hard with her two hands and put all her trust in the Lord. I felt remorseful for her of all thing she went through and my love for her will never end.

A story I found really powerful was the story of a child born with an open stomach that was discovered during ultrasound and whose mother decided to give birth despite the advice of doctors. It made me feel really sad.

A story I found really powerful was about a teenage street hawker that had a natural talent for music but had no support from anyone to pursue her dream of becoming a musician.
The made me feel like supporting her to achieve her dream.

A story I found really powerful was the story of Les Brown on his journey to achieve success.  It made me feel I was a hero who needed to fight more in live. It is an inspiring story.

The story I found really powerful was a story of a 7 years old girl, living in a community in Africa where they practice Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) she tells the story in the present and I could literally feel my blood rushing, wanted to go rescue her.

“A story I found really powerful was the story of my mom's favorit doll when she was a child. It made me feel really sad because those days it was really expensive to buy toys and when she lost her doll she couldn't sleep for one week and cried ." That doll was really valuable for her as it was presented by her dad.

A story I found really powerful was a story of 7 children who were left by their mother to seek work in a neighboring country, the mother never came back and it had been 3 years. The kids lived with their very old grandmother who struggled to make ends meet. The story made me sad.

• The kids who were so poor they had no clothes
  -I was shattered, i cried and couldn't sleep for months after seeing them.
  -this story compelled me to write an article about that family for our newspaper. i even went as far as organizing people and organizations to donate to the family.

I’ve been volunteering for the High Atlas Foundation for about 2 months now. During my first days in Morocco we visited the Akrich cemetery, a jewish cemetery that built in cooperation with the HAF a tree nursery. Now, Akrich is a place where the jewish community works with rural muslim farmers. Furthermore, the in third generation care-taker Aberrakim Baddah makes a livable wage due to HAF.
It made me feel proud to support such an organisation and happy to be at a place of interfaith dialogue.
This story made me want to listen to Morocco's diverse history and the stories of individuals that want to work together towards a prosperous future, regardless of their background, religion, gender or sexual orientation.

The story i found powerful was the story of saint Patrick who was kidnapped from his hometown to Ireland, who later escaped from his kidnappers and went back to his home, but God later told him to go back and tell them about his kidnappers about the love of Christ, which he did. the story moved me to be more obedient to the ways of God no matter how others might have wronged me and also to be generous to missionaries as they obey God and take the gospel to places whether it's favorable for them or not.

A story that really moved me, was actually the real life narration of someone's situation.
In an indigenous area, where people have been living since times immemorial, I met a family. The father, helplessly and almost breaking down, narrated how they are being uprooted from their lands of their forefathers for a "development" project. A project, that will not even benefit them.
A migrant myself, I am still working with the community due to the bond we created due to the story that the man shared with me.

Beautiful story and an insight into how we often get into problem solving mode without understanding the nuances of the situation.

It's amazing what stories can do. I recently read Abraham Lincoln's Biography... The man, a superb storyteller, accompanied almost all of his political arguments with a story.

I'm in a slightly different category because I was a journalist for 40 years and part of my job was to NOT get emotionally involved in what I was writing about.
Of course some things get to you no matter what. One was a court case of a woman who had just started university in London and got drunk at a party, wandered off and was raped by a taxi driver. The same day there was another rape case at the same court which was waaaaay more horrific in every sense, but the first one resonated with me far more because I could imagine lots of my female friends finding themselves in exactly that awful scenario.
I struggle to respond positively to the mouse story because it seems like it's one of the stories invented as part of the storytelling experiment. (I suspect that's the case, and the penny next to the photo as in many of the others suggests it is part of that series, although it's possible it is actually legit.) I responded with $1 as the value because even if real, the story doesn't add any intrinsic value to the mouse to anyone other than members of that family. If it's a made-up story to prove the power of storytelling, it makes me feel like I'm reading the work of unethical journalists who make stuff up because they know they can get away with it.

A story I found really powerful was of a little boy by the ocean who collected one fish by one that were off shore and returned them in water. When a stranger asked why he did so, he said that he was saving nature. It made me feel the need to be nature friendly despite of age ,place or quantity.

A story I found really powerful was that of a close friend of mine. She missed something I would call a lifetime opportunity due to her carelessness and she wouldn't heed to corrections. Although I don't know her plans or her fate, but it made me feel so sad, and angry at the same time.

A story I found really powerful was actually a fable about the Ant and the Cricket.
it got me thinking about the values of hard work and how much they are important.

A story I found really powerfully was a story of a man who gave up searching for gold while he was almost there. I felt pity for this this man, even though the story was fiction. But it comes to play, when I want to give up on a task cause I don't want to make a similar mistake, as this man did; To give up while almost at the finishing line.

I've always been a fan of stories and brands that use storytelling as a part of their marketing strategy. One story that I found really powerful was this story about how housemaids/babysitters know and connect with the kids they take care for more than the parents themselves. It made me feel mixed emotions because I never realized how the absence of parents takes a huge toll on their children's lives and relationships.

Ooo I know this story! And I like it too because it motivates me to do better in life.

One story I find most memorable is one told by a man who went to school in a neighboring country in the mid 1950's and had to take a train at the start of the school term. His father though well off did not understand the value of education. At the beginning of the journey he would give his son 5 cents for pocket money which he was expected to bring some change. The son therefore devised a way to raise more money by picking sugarcane that grew on the sides of the railway line and selling to other passengers on the train. This way he was able to raise enough pocket money to survive the term and always brought change to the father.

The story is memorable because it provides encouragement to me that one can always find a solution if pushed hard enough or has no alternative.

The story encourages me to always find solutions to any challenges that I encounter at a personal level or at work

It is a great story with lessons to be learnt.

The story i found really powerful was a story told by a woman who advocates for the rights of sex workers. It made me feel empathetic towards her. She narrated a story about a gang of men who tricked her colleague, hired her off their usual spot drugged her and took her to a forest. The men then gang-raped her and tore her tissue with their aggressiveness. They then tied her to a tree with her legs wide apart and her hand also tied over her head and left her to spend the night there.

she screamed her voice hoarse but there was no help because it was already getting dark and yet the forest was quite a distance away from the nearby residence. The blood the flowed from her bleeding private parts then attracted ants that moved straight up to her sex organs. They feasted on her the whole night as she wailed helplessly in pain throughout the night.
She was only rescued by some little children who had come to the forest to collect firewood. when they saw her they called for help. The local authorities came to her rescue immediately and tried to look for her identity. She only survived for a day in the hospital and died.
It was later established that she had been gang-rapped because the men felt that she took to sex work because she was not getting sexual satisfaction from her partner yet in actual sense she was in sex work to earn a living.

A story I found really powerful was with regard to a young woman who came to our organization for assistance. She was a disabled, young widow who never had children. She found herself in a position of being asked by the local county children's services to assist in the care of not one, but two children who had been abandoned by their mother. One of the children was this woman's biological family member, who she was willing to take to assist her family member in getting custody of the child. However, this child had a half-sibling, who she did not want to abandon and asked my client if she would take her sister, too. My client agreed to take both children, and it made me feel so much compassion for this dear woman, who had been through so much herself, to take on the care of both of these children. I assisted her in many ways with all she needed to bring these children into her home and with the necessities to care for them. Watching the care and love she provided to these children still warms my heart today.

Thanks for sharing this story!

I heard the story of a man who decided to attend a church service after much persuasion from his friend. His initial initial hesitation was due to the fact that he detested being the practice of preachers asking gullible congregants for monetary contributions at the end of the service. To make sure this did not happen, he resolved to carry in his pocket just a few cents, intentionally.
So he accompanied his friend to the church service, just to verify his commendations.
Alas! by the time the storied preacher was done, our good man not only gave what he had but borrowed for offering a few hundreds for which he promised to reimburse later that evening.

1. What made the story memorable was the man's change of mind
2. I felt exited to now the content of the preacher message
3. It compelled me to want to find out what was preached about

A story I really found powerful was about Joel Osteen, the lead pastor of Lakewood church and how he was able implement amazing strategies to see the church grow in numbers from when he took over the church from his dad. He was able to buy the current auditorium of the church which can carry over 16000 people in attendance, and the church has millions of followers listening to their messages online and from different parts of the world.

This story was one of grit, resilience and passion. Joel never expected to be the lead pastor of the Lakewood church because he was working on the background with his dad, for years and when his father died, the church appointed him to take over. He has over hundreds of messages on YouTube, preaching about hope, salvation and converting people to Christ.

I hope I didn't forget to add that he is a New York best-selling author. His books has changed my life and I got to know an indepth of this story from this book titled Becoming a better you.

This story left a huge impact in my life, I was inspired to become better and live a life that would touch the lives of others positively.

A story I really found powerful was about Joel Osteen, the lead pastor of Lakewood church and how he was able implement amazing strategies to see the church grow in numbers from when he took over the church from his dad. He was able to buy the current auditorium of the church which can carry over 16000 people in attendance, and the church has millions of followers listening to their messages online and from different parts of the world.

This story was one of grit, resilience and passion. Joel never expected to be the lead pastor of the Lakewood church because he was working on the background with his dad, for years and when his father died, the church appointed him to take over. He has over hundreds of messages on YouTube, preaching about hope, salvation and converting people to Christ.

I hope I didn't forget to add that he is a New York best-selling author. His books has changed my life and I got to know an indepth of this story from this book titled Becoming a better you.

This story left a huge impact in my life, I was inspired to become better and live a life that would touch the lives of others positively.

A story I found really powerful is the story of my handcrafted jewelry business. The story make me feel defeated with a renewed determination to energize Africa with renewable energy using my handcrafted business as one of the means.

A story I found really powerful was Blake Lively talking about the Child Rescue Foundation - I felt sad, disgusted and hopeful about the work the foundation does. It made me connect with the charity online to see how I could support

Wow, inspiring

The story I found compelling was of a young mother who was selling bananas in the streets and was chanting " buy a banana so that a little girl can learn how to read and write.
I felt so bad for the little girl who was standing beside her mom and was indeed looking deprived of so many things. She was holding an even smaller baby for her mom who was obviously a teenager.
I was compelled to buy a banana and inquire more about the little girl so that I can see how to help them permanently

A story I found really powerful was a story about the effects of the HIV pandemic in the early 2000s which was in a form of a short film titled "The forgotten Children of Zimbabwe". To tell the truth , I cried when I watched it , I was really touched by young innocent children whom I saw their plight in the story and it made me feel more like helping even though I was still young and with no resources to do so.

A story that really touched me was about the Purple Truck project from Purple House, the project has a dialysis machine on wheels that serves remote communities in NT. My father passed away due to kidney problems and I know the struggle it is to depend on a machine. I was very glad to know there are charities focused on remote areas providing care and support to Aboriginal people.

I love hearing about charities that support women, specially the ones designed to help people in vulnerability. Hope you get the chance to volunteer :)

A story i found really powerful was on how to overcome obstacles. it made me feel motivated

A story i found really powerful was there is a man who live in remote village in China and one day a kidnapper just kidnapped his child and sell the boy to the rich family in town. For that the father drive his bike around China to find his boy and one day, he finally found his boy after years searches. It made me feel touched by a father's love to his son.

i story i heard as a child was that of an "ANT", and how the work with good collaboration and the benefit of working with people of diverse background focusing on their strength.

A story i found really powerful was that of a young boy (grew up as a cattle herder) whom beyond all odds ensured he àttended school, pushed his way through and currently giving back to his community which has resulted to increase in school enrollment and change in cultural norms and perspective on education.

One story that i found really powerful was about the orang utan research by Dr. Birute Galdikas. Her story of dedication to understand more about orang utan as a way to conserve the species is giving me a goosebumps. Years of study, spent in the depth of rainforest in Indonesia, her struggle and perseverance is extremely mezmerizing! It also made me feel upset to know about how humans being harmful to the nature.

Welp, thanks to you, i get to see more inspirational story! I was scrolling through the post to see more interesting story and i found yours!

A story I found really powerful was one by a certain Lady who happened to be a TB survivor and a person living with HIV. She shared with me about her journey. How she had faced many challenges due to the stigma towards people living with HIV and those with TB in our community. She lost friends and family members forcing her to be isolated. Fortunately she had attained some form of education and was able to sustain herself and be independent. But she thought of those other individuals like her who however do not have the luxury of being independent or being educated. She realized it was up to people like her to help them. By supporting them as well as educating the people around them about HIV, TB and mental health, with the aim of removing the stigma. That's how she started an initiative of volunteers working together to help people living with HIV and TB in communities. The initiative then grew and became an organization.
Hearing this story made me feel so passionate and evoked something in me. Being a TB survivor I was able to relate so much to her story. I felt sad and then hopeful. Sad that stigma in our community does so much harm but hopeful that there are people like her who are doing something to help others facing the same thing. This is what led me to become a volunteer and later an advocate. Her story is one of the reasons I chose to be in the community development field, focusing on health.

A story I found really powerful was one by a certain Lady who happened to be a TB survivor and a person living with HIV. She shared with me about her journey. How she had faced many challenges due to the stigma towards people living with HIV and those with TB in our community. She lost friends and family members forcing her to be isolated. Fortunately she had attained some form of education and was able to sustain herself and be independent. But she thought of those other individuals like her who however do not have the luxury of being independent or being educated. She realized it was up to people like her to help them. By supporting them as well as educating the people around them about HIV, TB and mental health, with the aim of removing the stigma. That's how she started an initiative of volunteers working together to help people living with HIV and TB in communities. The initiative then grew and became an organization.
Hearing this story made me feel so passionate and evoked something in me. Being a TB survivor I was able to relate so much to her story. I felt sad and then hopeful. Sad that stigma in our community does so much harm but hopeful that there are people like her who are doing something to help others facing the same thing. This is what led me to become a volunteer and later an advocate. Her story is one of the reasons I chose to be in the community development field, focusing on health.

wow, love this

Hello fellow learners,

My name's Dieune and I'm from Haiti. I am taking this this course to learn the practical skill of Budgeting to apply in and help my organisation accomplish its mission.

I love this community and I look forward to learning from and with you all.

Thank you and happy learning!

This story was memorable to me because it went into my feeling soft spot. It created some very powerful energy inside me that nearly overcame me. It was tough to control, it was a good feeling, a feeling that it was so great and ethically right what this person has achieved that I almost cried at the spot. Helping people out and motivating the children to be better, overcoming their struggles. It compelled me in the sense that it motivated me to do something similar to what the person telling the story had achieved.

Yes, I think when a writer is able to transmit the feelings, sufferings and the efforts been through to achieve something or fight something. Those feelings will influence the reader's emotions if he/she thinks in a similar way as the writer

Wow, that is a compelling story. I felt moved by it

In the build-up to Nigeria's 2015 general elect, former president Goodluck Jonathan had one of the most inspiring campaign. That was primarily because of the story he brought to the minds of the people. He sold to us the story of how he "went to school without shoes on his feet".

This story, though was a common experience with many people, raised peoples empathy and support for the man who later became the president. He was not the only one who ever went to school without shoes. Many other people may have experience a more difficult situation. But the story sank in people's minds, including me and we gave their votes eagerly.

Interestingly, I was particularly moved by this tale. So I wanted to do something to ensure that children in my community do not go to school without shoes on their feet. I thought of other ways to support children from vulnerable families and promote access to education such as providing writing materials, school uniform and more. This was inspired by the story of one man who became president by telling the the electorates story they could connect with.

Storytelling can be one of the most valuable resources in a communications practitioner's toolbox. No matter what industry you work in — private, government, nonprofit, etc. — the most successful communications practitioners are always trying to persuade someone, be it a journalist to cover their company's news, a stakeholder to partner with them on an announcement or a member of the public to like their tweet.

But storytelling can do even more powerful things than persuasion. Storytelling can raise awareness of issues in your community and around the world. Impact stories put a face or name on your organization, bringing its mission to life and providing a glimpse into the lives of individuals or communities. These stories connect with our emotions and can inspire people to act — to bring about change.

A story I found more powerful is the story of my current boss on the UN women website. It made me want to meet her in person and be part of those bringing about the growth and development of children in an environment free of child sexual abuse.

The story was about how she was severally sexually abused as a child by her uncles and how she turned her pain into purpose.

As someone living with sickle cell. On of the story that really inspire me, is the story of a woman who live with sickle, becomes a nurse , got married and also have an Non governmental organisation that gives information about sickle cell disorder. She coined the word Sickle cell warrior, which allows me to see my self in another light

I read her story at my lowest time, when I never believed someone living with sickle cell can be successful, married or impact others life.

This led me to work on my self, started my NGO to create awareness on sickle cell in rural communities.

Her story inspires and also gives hope.

If I didn't read her story, I might have ended my life or gave up on me. But her story is helping to impact other people living with sickle cell in rural communities

Happy to know, you never gave up thanks to that story, and who knows how many you will impact with your own story. all the best

A story that really impacted me was an incident about the death of a mother and the new born child in a remote area due to the lack of travel facilities and how the situation was handled by establishing the hostel for the Pregnant women solved the challenges and saved many lives. I felt the need to contribute for addressing this problem after listening to this story.

The story I heard that melted my heart was a story of a young school graduate who was murdered as a result of attending a fake job interview and job
hunting..
And then I was compelled to building more caring communities

A Story I found very powerful was that of this young man in Nigeria, that will always write about Tony Elumelu a Nigerian Entrepreneur, and how he aspired to be like him. He will dress like him, and post his picture and that of Tony Elumelu side by side.
Eventually he got noticed by this Entrepreneur and today he is officially his mentee. He was bold enough to shoot his shot and that yielded him a position, he will forever be grateful of.
It made me feel the need to be more bold and that dreams come through, sometimes in ways you may have never imagined.

Pain always brings a lesson, when you choose not to let it decide your fate. She turned her experience as a victim to a powerful tool. Today her experience is the reason why so may people will never have to go through what she went through. Never give up, and never let the circumstances you are in today define your fate. There is light at the end of the tunnel. Just believe and act

The best stories are generally those with which the audience feel a direct connection with the story. It hits differently. Nice one buddy

The story I found touching and powerful was about improving the quality of life for SOGIE person in Harare South Zimbabwe. The context was memorable, which spews the situation in which a young transgender in the community in which they are highly stigmatized and discriminated in her community and also very vulnerable to HIV infection because she cannot come out public and access health.

When I heard the story, I was moved and touched at the same time. The story portrayed the real situation in my community .

The story has transformed me from being negative to a positive minded person.

That is touching

That is touching

A story i found really powerful was of 3 children who walked over 8 kilometers to school because thier family had to move from their old abode to a much farther one out of town after they were ejected for not paying rent. The parents could not enroll them in any nearby schools becausze they did not have funds and the children were determined to get an education so they kept walking to their old school which was free as it was a social intervention program.

it made me give and want to keep on giving to ensure that they have money for transport and to eat.

The story I feel was memorable was of a young lady that was arrested for attempted kidnap. While in prison, she enrolled for a Bachelors in Law course and started working in prison. She explained the law to her different inmates who really appreciated her efforts. I felt emotionally happy because a person who was a criminal had transformed and was becoming a lawyer. The story made me believe that change is possible its just a matter of time

A story I found really powerful was written in the blog section of the Aggrey and Clifford's Tanzania website. The story was about a boy who moved with his family to another country in Africa. When the boy get there, he was admitted to one of the schools in the country where he met with fellow student whom was narrating a story about the tallest mountain in Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro and how he and his family are adamant to visit the country where the giant mountain is located. The boy found himself into squabble which results into physical confrontation because he corrected the boy that the mountain was not in the country he said he was about to visit but the boy refused and called him liar It made me feel happy because it is the kind of the confrontation I encountered when I met with others when I tell the same story

A story i found powerful was the story about an individual on his first day of work, illustrating teamwork.

The story I found realy powerful is a story of a survivor of rape who went from struggling with suicide and pschological trauma to being a champion against rape culture. presntly she has supported ove 2000 survivors of child sexual abuse and rape. Supporting over 20 in continuing their education.

A story I found really powerful was the story of a young lady who defied the odds of her disadvantaged background and has become such an inspirational leader in the world today.
It made me feel like really nothing is impossible when a decision to break status quo is made by any person.
With this story, I knew I didn't have any excuse not to be the person I see myself becoming; if someone like that could break through and make something valuable of herself, then I can.
That young lady is Dr. Cindy Trimm!

Wow, well done!

This is really inspiring! Well done on taking action.

Thank you for sharing! This is wonderful and shows how a powerful story can stay with you for a long time.

A powerful story I heard was at a conference, of lady's experience with a sinking car with her family at risk of drowning. First they showed her story on video, and then we heard it first hand - which was really emotional and the atmosphere in the room was silent. It gave me motivation in my work and inspired me to do the best job I could do to assist the organisation in preventing similar critical situations.

A story I find really powerful (recently) is that of "Chess In Slums". An initiative by Tunde Onokoya to help raise young boys from under the bridge and slums of Lagos State, Nigeria, through the game of chess. It made me feel alive! It further affirmed my belief in the fact that chasing after your dream will give light to the reality of other peoples' dreams. Plus, the magical doings of the game of chess is beyond the board.

A story I found really powerful was about a transgender man dealing with his problems in his family. It made me feel deep about our mentality towards them and how they have to suffer due to our perception about them.

Such an inspiring story!

A story I found really powerful was this physiotherapist that worked for APAC (Association in Favor of People with Cerebral Palsy) for 40 years. I met her in my first day of work, she told me that although she is old enough to be retired, she stills goes to work everyday beacuse she loves doing it. She looked so happy yet humble. The way she aid this made me feel that she values her work, the institution and its beneficiaries. I felt enthusiast to start raising funds.

What a great story!

One of the stories I find memorable and sad was that of an innocent man who was a victim of Jungle justice in Aba, Nigeria. He was accused of stealing and burnt alive after which they found what he was accused of stealing in the shop of the accuser. His wife gave birth minutes after his death.

A story I found really powerful was about the story of a religious leader who supported internal displaced people residing in the church. The religious leader is prominent and easily heard by faith community in his surroundings. He was able to collect food items, closes and was able to provide without any discrimination to displaced people during the conflict in northern part of my country, Ethiopia. Both Christiania and Muslim immigrants were served equally. It made me feel very happy to see this religious leader serving internally displaced people while watching the war coming to his territory.

Interesting, well done!

A story I found really powerful was the case of a woman who was not allowed to continue her primary school education because she lost her dad and had to move in with her uncle who force her to get married an a tender age, despite the fact that she didn't complete her primary school education she was still able to read a little and communicate in some way of writing,it made me feel the need to always want to support disadvantaged kids to continue their education and not lose hope,also I found some people at my place of work who can't bargain well because they don't have a certificate or could read well,so they sign documents that ends up biting them in their ass

A story I found really powerful was the case of a woman who was not allowed to continue her primary school education because she lost her dad and had to move in with her uncle who force her to get married an a tender age, despite the fact that she didn't complete her primary school education she was still able to read a little and communicate in some way of writing,it made me feel the need to always want to support disadvantaged kids to continue their education and not lose hope,also I found some people at my place of work who can't bargain well because they don't have a certificate or could read well,so they sign documents that ends up biting them in their ass

A story I found really powerful was a story which was shared by an organisation which helps girls during the transition period from high school to tertiary institutions. The story is about a girl who soon after completing form 6 in a rural area in Zimbabwe decided to get married before the results were announced. She got married to a man who had not completed school and was employed as a cattle keeper. When the results were announced she had passed exeptionally well in her studies, she had 15 points, the highest possible achievement for form 6. The people working for the organisation got in touch with her to find out her next move only to hear that her husband would not allow her to go to university. The organisation went to the house to counsel the husband until he let her go. She got a full scholarships to study in Ghana and is about to complete her studies.
Now the husband, still in Zimbabwe rewrote his O levels and then wrote Alevels and passed and now awaits going to university as well. This story was touching to me because it made me realise how much guidance young women need at transitioning stage. This one girl was lucky because of the support which she had from the organisation. Some girls who maynot be so lucky lose out on the opportunity for a better future. The speaker was the counselor who dealt with the matter and she spoke from the heart. I will do so in my own storytelling.

NB. 15 points is the highest possible achievement for students who would have written 3 subjects

A story found to be really powerful is that of creation and the fact that all the incredible construction was put under the care of a man this story may sound strange to some but the enormosith of it influence has changed my thinking and influenced my actions in the past years.

An inspiring story to say the least, love how women are becoming more independent although this is not to support the absurd claims of some but hey a nice world will be formed when the creative juice of the gender is considered to be capable in our now society.
#BreakTheBias

A story I found really powerful was a story about a grandson that asked his grandpa how it feels to be in a 63 year long relationship with his grandma. His grandfather answered it felt like I have been with 8 different woman and I loved all 8 versions of her. A person changes/grows over the years, but if you give eachother the freedom to be who you are/want to be you can grow together. It made me feel heart warmed, because it showed me that love indeed can be forever.

I've told a story frequently about a man who was homeless. In the years prior to his homelessness, he'd lost his nephew, father, mother, had a stroke, and lost his wife 3 days prior to coming to our rescue mission. To top it all off, his children told him they weren't going to help him and he needed to "figure it out". This story is of a man I met and spoke with personally. His life story made me feel so much pain for him; especially the tears in his eyes as he told it. It caused me to realize that the stereotypical homeless person who is a drug-addict, low-life is not an accurate one. These are real people, with real issues, who need real help. I've been compelled to love them even in their brokeness.

A story I found really powerful was that of Virginia Burton. It made me feel a myriad of emotions - pensive from the strong doses of resilience and hope amid impossibilities, happiness that in the end, self-love prevailed, and sadness for all the struggles she went through first.

I do love reading her story for it sends a clear message to the humanity - that it is possible to be sober regardless of the addiction source. This prompted and allowed me then to be more vulnerable, reachable, and understanding to anyone for behind the smiles, laughter, tears, and apathy, a person is trying to survive at the very least.