CELEBRATING OUR COMMUNITY
During our 2020 Finding The Light year-end campaign, we highlighted 8 short stories, one per week that uniquely epitomizes the profound impact of our community.
We invite you to revisit our collection. May our stories inspire you, and bring light to all the good you provide for our students. Only with the help of our community are we able to empower them through education.
Thank you for your continued generosity, lighting the way for our students to find their paths.
Week #8
The Gift of Hope
The Gift of Hope
Our partnership with CalSouthern gives us HOPE for a brighter future.
“The special connections that we build through our work sustain us far beyond financial means. These collaborations have rewards that transcend even our mission.” – Team Razia
We could not do our work without the incredible support of institutions and organizations who share our vision of a world where all girls receive the highest quality education possible. This week we spotlight California Southern University (CalSouthern), a global online educational institution, who has been an ardent advocate of affordable and accessible education for over 40 years. Through CalSouthern’s commitment to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP)’s sustainable development goals for quality education and gender equality worldwide, a partnership with our Foundation was borne.
The alignment of our Foundation’s mission and CalSouthern’s goals created a naturally strong connection that surpassed even the organizational level. At Razia and Dr. Gwen Finestone Hecht’s (CalSouthern’s President Emeritus) first in-person meeting, their shared passion for service, philanthropy, and women’s empowerment sparked a connection that forged a stronger bond between our two organizations.
In 2019, CalSouthern pledged to sponsor the majority of our kindergarten class at the Zabuli Education Center. They recently announced their intention to continue to help educate these 60 girls for the 2021 school year! Their generosity will indeed have a significant impact on empowering girls through education. We are truly grateful for their continued partnership and trust in our work.
As we collaborate with our community of supporters, like CalSouthern, it is clear that we are not alone in our passion and belief in a world where women are empowered with education to build their own futures. Working together, we create hope for a brighter future for women in one of the most impoverished regions of the world. Through our partnerships, there is hope for a better world. Hope, of all the rewards that our supporters create for us, sustains us to move forward in our mission day-after-day. Thank you for the gift of hope.
Razia Jan, Founder of Razia’s Ray of Hope Foundation (left), Dr. Gwen Finestone Hecht, President Emeritus of California Southern University (right)
Week #7
The Gift of Leadership
The Gift of Leadership
Razia Musawir – Graduating Future Leaders, a story of LEADERSHIP.
“We are incredibly fortunate to have Razia Musawir as headmistress for the past 12 years. Her leadership has been critical to the success of ZEC.” – Razia Jan, Founder
Fostering a love of learning while instilling confidence in both students and teachers derives from strong leadership at the helm of a school.
Razia Musawir, our Zabuli Education Center (ZEC) principal, is in large part responsible for setting a culture that inspires her teachers and students to be critical thinkers, innovators, artists, and problem-solvers. It is no secret, Razia leads ZEC with the intent of graduating future female leaders.
After teaching girls in a Pakistan refugee school for 23 years, Razia came to ZEC in 2006 to design educational programs and curricula for a modest size-school of 100 students. In the last 12 years, she has been a driving force of ZEC’s success and its growth. Today, the Zabuli Education Center proudly teaches over 700 students each year and has made a profound difference in the lives of over 1,000 girls and young women.
The power of education is a gift made possible by the generosity of our supporters. With your continued support, Razia Musawir and her teachers can deliver a rigorous curriculum that will undoubtedly create life-changing opportunities for our students. Together we can change the world for the better by graduating more female leaders in a region where there are few.
Razia Musawir (right) and part of her ZEC administration
Week #6
The Gift of Resiliency
The Gift of Resiliency
This week, we share a story about RESILIENCE. Meet Nadir and his 5 daughters.
“I want my daughters to be educated. I wish for them to achieve all their goals in life.” – Nadir
Nadir and his wife are blessed with five daughters. Since his oldest daughter was born, Nadir has been his daughters’ greatest advocate for a fair and rigorous education in a region of the world where there is little support for such ideals.
In the last sixteen years, Nadir has become arduously resilient to those who try to discourage him from educating his daughters. Unlike some fathers in Afghanistan, he believes in the power of education for girls and young women to create opportunities for a brighter future.
Today, Nadir’s five daughters all attend the Zabuli Education Center. Their schooling has led each daughter to set goals and ambitions that are only possible through education: Meena (age 16) aims to be a doctor, while her 14 years old sister, Mubashira, wishes to study engineering. Both Maimona (age 12) and Mashooda (age 7) love their teachers and aspire to be teachers one day themselves. And the youngest one, Mehria (age 6), is a budding artist who would love to be a painter someday.
Nadir’s resiliency against those in his society who see little value in educating girls combined with his daughters’ aspirations to lead brighter futures is not enough to educate Nadir’s five girls. Only through the generosity of our community are we able to empower them through education. With your help, all things are possible.
Nadir’s daughters at ZEC
Week #5
The Gift of Gratitude
The Gift of Gratitude
Gratitude for a remarkable educational experience.
On this day of giving thanks, we share a story of gratitude. We hope our weekly stories will inspire you, and bring light to all the good you provide for our students and teachers:
Eager and ready to learn, Noorsama began her studies at the Zubuli Education Center (ZEC) as a 1st grader in 2009. A senior this year, she is feeling both accomplished and nostalgic as she anticipates her graduation in March 2021.
Noorsama recently reflected on some of the remarkable experiences that have come as part of her ZEC education. With heartfelt gratitude, she affectionately recounts the special bond that she has with her sponsor, “For the past three years, I loved exchanging letters with my sponsor Bethany. Through our letter writing to each other, I am very happy to have made a good friend who treats me like a family member. My ZEC education was made possible by Bethany’s sponsorship. I will always be grateful for her friendship and support.”
The Razia’s Ray of Hope sponsorship program empowers Afghan girls, like Noorsama, to break free from the generational cycle of illiteracy and poverty. Bethany’s sponsorship provides the gift of education that will allow Noorsama to pursue her dream of becoming a journalist.
For this, Noorsama and all of us at Team Razia give you a warm-hearted thank you for being part of our community and believing in a world where women are empowered with education to build their own futures.
A few letters Noorsama has recently received from Bethany
Week #4
The Gift of Empowerment
The Gift of Empowerment
Zarafshan’s Journey To Empowerment
“If we educate a boy, we educate one person. But when we educate a girl, we educate her whole family.” – Zarafshan
When Zarafshan graduated from the Zabuli Education Center in 2018, she did not hesitate to begin her training as a midwife at the Razia Jan Institute the following semester. She is well aware that midwives are in great need as the nearest women’s doctor from her town of Deh’Subz is an hour’s drive away.
Not only does Zarafshan understand how critical her role as a midwife will be for her community, but she also recognizes that education empowers her to better serve her family and the town of Deh’Subz. She adds, “Education improves not only women’s lives but also the lives of other people of their community.”
Once she completes her current practicum and graduates with a midwifery certification in 2021, Zarafshan aspires to become an obstetrician and gynecologist and serve her town by working in a hospital. Through the generosity of our supporters, we empower young women, like Zarafshan, with education to become valuable and active members of their society. Our supporters provide the key to a clear pathway to sustainable employment for our students, ultimately serving to better their communities.
Zarafshan at practicum
Week #3
The Gift of Inspiration
The Gift of Inspiration
Zuhal – Inspiring Her Students Every Day
During our Matching Gift Challenge, we will highlight a story each week that epitomizes how your generosity has impacted our community. This week, we feature the Gift of Inspiration.
From the beginning of her studies at the Zabuli Education Center (ZEC), Zuhal knew that she wanted to become an educator. Her father, as well as her teachers at ZEC, were instrumental in inspiring Zuhal to work towards her goal of teaching. With much pride, she graduated from ZEC in 2016 and then pursued a degree in education.
Zahul’s path has come full circle. Today, she is an educator at ZEC teaching several subjects, including Math, English, and drawing. To her students, Zuhal is an inspiration – a daily reminder that with education, they too can achieve their goals. Zuhal adds, “My students are inspired by knowing that I was once like them, and now I am a teacher. I have a good job and a source of income that helps my family financially.”
Zuhal is a testament to the power of education. Through the generosity of our community, more girls and young women in one of the most impoverished regions of the world will be empowered with education to achieve whatever goals they set for themselves.
One more of Zuhul and her students
Week #2
The Gift of Strength
The Gift of Strength
Spogmai’s Inner Strength
During our Matching Gift Challenge, we will highlight a story each week that epitomizes how your generosity has impacted our community. This week, we feature the Gift of Strength.
Confident and focused, Spogmai is a third-year political science student at the American University of Afghanistan. She is a proud 2016 Zabuli Education Center graduate.
Through her own journey, Spogmai is well aware that girls and young women who wish to attend school face formidable cultural obstacles on their paths to becoming educated in Afghanistan. Her response to such barriers shows strength and wisdom beyond her years: “Despite obstacles in several forms, I do not let them deter me from pursuing my education. Instead, these experiences make me stronger.”
Spogmai aspires to one day break the norms that create barriers for women to be active contributors to the Afghan society. Through the generosity of our community, combined with Spogmai’s inner strength, she will certainly bring change to her country for the betterment of young women who come after her.
Spogmai and her colleagues at the American University of Afghanistan
Week #1
The Gift of Determination
The Gift of Determination
Mahnaz’s Determination
“ZEC has changed my life completely.” – Mahnaz
Paralyzed from her legs down, Mahnaz was struck with polio as an infant. Determined to attend school, her mobility challenges never once hindered her passion to learn. Reaching out to our community, The Rotary Club in Ellsworth, ME came to her aid and donated a wheelchair to help her increase mobility at school.
Today, Mahnaz is 10 years old, and every year, she has earned a spot at the top of her class. Mahanz aspires to be a doctor one day. Through the generosity of our community combined with Mahnaz’s determination to succeed, she will undoubtedly attain her goals. We hope our stories will inspire you, and bring light to all the good you provide for our students and teachers.
Mahnaz receiving a certificate from Razia Jan for earning the #1 position in her class
