By Grace Catan | Community Leader
My voice is not the one you’re used to hearing. Our Founder Laura Peña and Co-Founder Sara Surani built She Is The Universe because they knew girls like me desperately needed someone to believe in our dreams. Almost a year ago, they decided to believe in girls so much that they trusted us to actually lead the movement that changed our lives.
My name is Grace, I’m a 21-year-old from the Philippines, and I’m part of a generation of girls who are writing SITU’s next chapter right now. My name is Grace, I’m a 21-year-old from the Philippines, and I’m part of a generation of girls who are writing SITU’s next chapter right now. When I was a scared 16-year-old with a broken heart and a big dream, I applied for a World Changers grant at She Is The Universe to fund my project. I wanted to help survivors of gender-based violence tell their story to the people closest to them because it had taken me years to be honest, even with my mom, about my experiences. I didn’t want it to have to be that hard for the next girl. My life changed when I won that grant, but it wasn’t because of the money. It was because they saw me. Beyond funding, She Is The Universe also gave me what I really needed: a mentor, a community, and a place where I mattered.
When I wrote articles advocating for GBV survivors' rights, the Girls Galaxy taught me how and where to get them published. They believed in me when I was too embarrassed to tell anyone at school about my projects. They introduced me to girls doing even bigger things and, instead of making me feel jealous, those girls gave me hope. They showed me what was possible and proved that I wasn’t weird for having dreams and that I deserved space to try, and even fail, until I achieved them.
Today, we want to do the same for the next girl, and your support makes that dream come true. Our global team of young women, each with a unique story as powerful as mine, is about to share a beautiful new program with the world. It turns stories into tools that empower girls to take 8 Brave Steps toward their personal dream, while mentors support them and a whole community cheers them on. Her Next Chapter is my team’s first gift to the girls that will come after us, and we want to thank you for making that possible.
Every donation puts this gift into the hands and hearts of girls all over the world. Today, I invite you to imagine the girl who will be writing this report in a year or two. If all goes well, that report won’t be written by me but by a girl who is out there now, waiting for someone to believe in her. In her heart is a little candle that feels small because she doesn’t know she has sisters, building a huge bonfire every time their hearts connect and waiting to celebrate the day that she joins them. Whenever you give, know that it’s to help us find that girl, nurture her fire, and believe in her dreams the way that SITU believed in mine. If this story resonated with you, share it with a friend and know you’re part of the story too. Every time you tell someone about the work that we do, we get one step closer to finding that girl. Donate for her.
By Sara Surani | Co-founder of She is the Universe
By Sara Surani | Co-founder
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