My name is Rebecca, and I am a University of Nairobi student. I joined Moja Tu in 2017. The previous year was challenging because I lost all hope of enrolling in high school. I come from a disadvantaged background, and my father struggled to put me through primary school. However, I knew he’d still do everything he could to get me through high school. My expectations were low, but I figured I could at least go to the village day school, which is affordable.
I enjoyed school and did well in my primary exit exams, so attending any high school would have been a dream come true. I knew it would be a difficult road, but I was willing to work on weekends to assist my father with my school fees.
However, my father died before the year began. That day, as I remember, all my hope died with him. I realized I would never be able to continue my education again. As I mourned my father, I began to accept that I would end up like many other girls in my village who were married off at a young age. The thought of it broke my heart.
I was overjoyed when I was summoned back to school and told about the opportunity to join Moja Tu. I couldn’t even put into words how I felt at the time. It was as if I had been given a new lease on life; now, I could look forward to a future I could shape. My entire life had been altered, and I could not be more grateful. I went to high school that year, ready to do everything I could to shape my destiny.
When I first started at the school, I had yet to decide what I wanted to do after high school. However, my biology teacher chose me to be a biology representative [teacher’s assistant] in my first year. When the teacher was absent, I often ended up peer-teaching my classmates. That’s when I discovered my passion for teaching, which I pursued throughout high school.
I am now a student at the University of Nairobi’s School of Education and couldn’t be happier. My ultimate goal is to return to my village, encourage all other girls not to give up, and assist them in pursuing an education for the sake of themselves and their families.
Moja Tu changed my life, and I hope to change the lives of many others in the same way—through education.