SERVICE TO HUMANITY NOT SALARY.

Written by :Terry E. Adhiambo Kenya.

My mother taught me the two most important lessons in life: you really can do anything if you work hard and dedicate yourself to it; and, every person has a responsibility to contribute something toward improving the world.

These lessons in life have guided me in most of the things I do. I grew up in an ordinary family and nothing unique was worth sharing apart from the lessons learned from my mother and the difficult life I experienced when my father was laid-off.

No much income, zero glimpse of hope after finishing my high school. My dreams of joining nursing school went off due to our family financial challenges. I had to start a micro business to help me afford basics that any girl may need to sustain her life as I volunteered for a local youth organization in Mombasa.

During one of my field visit to the street children in September 2004, I met an old classmate whom we were together in Primary School. She sadly narrated her story of how she found herself doing prostitution after the sudden demise of her mother to support her young siblings.

Seeing my friend’s life made me want to do more for children and young people. The commercial sexual exploitation among the girls and children in Coastal region of Kenya was a serious challenge because of the health implications it has caused. It has exposed these innocent teenagers and children to HIV/AIDS and STDs and lowered their dignity.

In 2005, I founded Mombasa Beach Girls Rehabilitation Program Self-Help Group. The aim of the organization was to rescue children from the streets and the beaches with the aim of ending their exploitation and poverty.

A key goal of the group was to have the young people go back to school, receive counseling and medical services. I was able to turn ideas into successful projects by making good use of my boundless energy, optimism and my winning personality.

I started fundraising to support the children I rescued along the beaches. I managed to obtain the voluntary services of nurses and doctors to conduct vaccination clinics and malarial testing. I then wrote to local pharmacists to get medical aid in form of painkillers, first aid kits and so on for the practitioners.

 I arranged with the Mombasa Youth Counseling Centre to see girls who were willing to receive counseling. I received promotional material from a local bank to publicize the clinic and gifts to give to the children who attended. The clinics turned into well-attended monthly events that had great success in channeling many of the girls and street kids into counseling.

Through success stories, the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) approached me to learn more about my work and since then funded my organization projects amounting to over 8Million within 12 months and a further $3.5 M through a network.  

With no college education but driven by passion and service to humanity; this marked the beginning of my social development career; and since then have taken various roles in projects, fundraising, written award winning project proposals and supported organizations in achieving their objectives.

Through my achievements in 2006, I gained a scholarship to study Diploma- Development Leadership in Canada at the Coady International institute. This was the first time I embarked on formal education after high school.

The Coady programme empowered me with many skills, improved my leadership and team working skills and ways of engaging with the community. This marked the door for my higher education from Degree to Masters Level coupled with many other short courses. Through hard work, I self-sponsored my Degree and Masters studies in the UK.

“Careers are not made by chasing salary rather by chasing passion”

“You can do anything if you work hard and dedicate yourself to it”

“Every person has a responsibility to contribute something toward improving the world”

Highlights about Terry:

Terry E. Adhiambo (MBA) is self-directed and driven fundraising professional with a demonstrated history of setting up Resource Mobilization and Partnerships departments in various industries (Education, Sanitation, and Health) for over 10 years globally. She has a strong sense of personal excellence, cultural awareness, and the ability to work collaboratively in a team. Her passion to help young girls and women reshaped her career in Nonprofit Organizations and Social enterprises with a key focus in Project Management, Grant Management, Fundraising, Business Development, Partnerships, and Technical Writing (Proposals and Reporting). She is an accredited St. Francis Xavier University certified partnership expert. She holds a Master of Arts in Business Administration (Strategic Management) and Bachelor of Arts with Honors in Child and Adolescent Studies and Diploma – Development Leadership from Coady International institute – Canada. She aligns with LEFT values that JO Africa advocates for. The values include Learning and relearning, Engaging teams, Freshness in ideas, and Total honesty.