By Ariel Colhoun Passionate about increasing the sphere of influence for women & driving positive change.
“I tell my story not because it is unique, but because it is the story of many girls.” - Malala
Meet Malala
Born in 1997 in Mingora, Pakistan where according to Malala, "Welcoming a baby girl is not always cause for celebration in Pakistan", her father, Ziauddin Yousafzai, was steadfast in his mindset to give his daughter every opportunity any boy would have. He was a teacher and ran a girls' school in their local village. But when the Taliban took over their town in Swat Valley things changed and many rights were taken away - including girls attending school.
It was at that point at the age of 11, Malala wrote an anonymous diary about what life was like under the rule of the Taliban in north-west Pakistan. She wrote about how she wanted an education and how girls should have a right to learn. After speaking publicly in 2012 about her views, she quickly became a target and on her way home from school on the local school bus, a gunman boarded the bus called out "Who is Malala?" and shot her.
Recounting this terrifying experience Malala recalls, "I woke up 10 days later in a hospital in Birmingham, England. The doctors and nurses told me about the attack - and that people around the world were praying for my recovery." It was at this point that Malala's story went viral and quickly won the support of millions of people around the world.
To read her full story visit Malala.org.
"It was then I knew I had a choice: I could live a quiet life or I could make the most of this new life I had been given. I determined to continue my fight until every girl could go to school." - Malala
Ways To Give
After Malala was in recovery after several months of surgeries and rehabilitation, she knew she had a choice. Malala boldly made her choice, "I could live a quiet life or I could make the most of this new life I had been given. I determined to continue my fight until every girl could go to school." Sure the quiet life may sound appealing to most, but is the quiet life the most effective? If Malala chose to live the quiet life, we would never have heard her story - the story of millions of girls around the world. With an extremely difficult challenge on her hands, knowing that there are over 100 million girls worldwide that are unable to attend school, Malala rose to the challenge and wants "every girl to know that her voice can change the world." And that is how the Malala Fund was born.
Being presented with the strongest challenge to barriers that prevent girls from attending school, Malala's mission, "The Gulmakai Network - supports the work of education champions in developing countries and speeds up progress towards girls’ secondary education around the world. Threats to girls’ education - like poverty, war, and gender discrimination - differ between countries and communities. Local educators and activists understand challenges in their communities and are best placed to identify, innovate, and advocate for policy and programmatic solutions." The network now extends to Afghanistan, Brazil, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, and the Syria region.
To help Malala and her dream of seeing every girl in the world being given the opportunity to go to school, there are a number of ways you can help, but the simplest way to support the Malala Fund is to donate online at: malala.org/donate.
Here are some other ways you can help:
Give monthly.
Send a cheque.
Donate stock.
Bequests.
Fundraise.
Corporate sponsorship.
Support as you buy & sell online.
Corporate or employer gift match.
Malala's story is a great reminder that some of the best gifts that can be given are the ones that can change a life, literally. This holiday season give a gift that truly gives back and donate to Malala Fund.
All posts are intended strictly for educational purposes. It is not intended to make any representations or warranties about the outcome of any product/service.
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