As a mother of two daughters, it really hit home to learn that many girls in Kenya of similar age to mine are not able to attend school, in part because they do not have supplies for managing their periods each month. For The Good has gotten our daughters involved in raising awareness and money to be able to send supplies to their sisters in Kenya. But For The good does so much more than that! I'm hoping one day my older daughter can travel to Kenya with Kayce and witness the educational programs for the communities there that stress the importance of keeping girls in school, and the impact that has on those very communities and the world.
On an ever warming planet, one of the critical factors that face us is to curb our soaring population. Educating girls is the most important piece in beginning to solve this puzzle. For The Good helps communities understand the importance of educating girls and is addressing the issues that have long stood in the way of making this a reality (FTG began their work developing menstrual pads, enabling girls to stay in school, as the beginning of a girl's period had previously marked the end of her education).
FTG does their work with awareness, integrity, and an honest assessment of how they are having an impact. And what an impact! FTG has had a deep and lasting influence on those communities with whom they have worked, and have inspired others to take action in advocating for girls.
I was introduced to For the Good through a friend that supported the organization. As a female professional athlete, active volunteer for Girls on the Run, high school female XC coach and long term employee of a locally owned and operated female business; female empowerment is very important to me. The work that For the Good does to encourage young girls to stay in school is just one of the many good deeds they do in order to help create an opportunistic future for young girls as they grow and mature. I've seen first hand in my own life how important it is that young girls are given the tools to chase their dreams and understand that the sky is the limit. For the Good does just that!
Our book club was introduced to this wonderful nonprofit group a couple of years ago. We continue to support hem annually and are appreciative of the great work they are doing in Kenya to help young women continue their education and empower their lives.
For The Good is an incredible nonprofit which not only allows girls across the world to gain control of their lives with an education, it also allows local youth to get involved and make a difference. Kayce Anderson, For The Good’s incredible founder, has made sure that young girls in the community are informed about the issues girls just like us are facing in Kenya. Fundraising and spreading For The Good’s message has empowered me and shown me that I truly can make a difference in the world. I have learned so much about how girls on the other side of the world live and how their potential is being wasted, and that I can help change their lives.
Many years ago, For The Good began as For The Good Period as a caring group of individuals empowering young girls to continue their education through access to menstrual supplies enabling ongoing attendance. Since this endeavor, this nonprofit has grown and expanded it's rural reach to include new local players. Parents, teachers, community leaders and young women in Africa now have begun to advocate for the one life-changing social, emotional and intellectual norm, education of young girls and women across the country.
I am honored to have participated in support and funding to For The Good for many years and will continue to share their story and successes for years to come.
Laurie Blackwell
For The Good continues to inspire girls all around the world, giving them hope and confidence to move forward in this world in a positive directions. Not only does FTG help communities in Kenya, they continue to reach out to our local youth to help make changes globally. FTG is literally changing lives one starfish at a time! An amazing group to be part of!
I learned about For The Good through a presentation they did at our local movie theater several years ago where they also showed the film Half the Sky, based on the book by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn.
For The Good understands that a critical factor in alleviating climate change, poverty, high birth rates, corruption and human rights violations is through the education of women, offering them an opportunity to have a voice and a seat at the table where decisions and policies are decided.
In the spring of 2018, my 14 year old daughter and I traveled to Kenya with the organizations executive director, Kayce Anderson, to learn more about the program and meet the Kenyan team and advisory board. We had the opportunity to visit several communities and meet teachers, children, elders and many men and woman from the area. In each community, members expressed their desire and understanding of the importance of wanting to send all of their children to primary as well as secondary school.
Today, FTG is engaged in an area of Kenya where there are currently very few schools, working with local community volunteers to put the necessary steps in place to bring schools to their area that will qualify to be primarily funded by the Kenyan government. This approach will allow for a lasting impact that is sustained over the long term by the Kenyan people and their government rather than through outside donations.
As we engage communities as they work towards this goal, please consider joining us in supporting this important work whose long term approach is self sustaining.
I was introduced to For The Good by a family member. Her enthusiasm quickly became my own as I learned more about the dedicated founders of this small but big-hearted organization and the wonderful work they do in Kenya. Partnering with local families, teachers, community leaders, and activists, FTG works with, not “at” these rural communities.
I’m so impressed by how For The Good has created a multicultural network, bringing together Kenyan communities and loyal supporters in FTG’s Colorado home base. Many of these committed Colorado folk are young girls themselves, raising funds and spreading the word to help their Kenyan counterparts.
And FTG is agile and flexible—having achieved success in their initial undertaking, they are now turning to an even more rural, isolated area where many more girls and young woman have hopes of freer, healthier, and more productive lives.
I am proud to be a supporter of For The Good; please help it flourish!
Before I formally joined the staff of For the Good, I volunteered with the organization for two years, donating my professional skills in photojournalism, video, graphic and web design and PR. This sometimes meant putting in 10-15 hours a week in the evenings after a 60-hour a week day job, but none of those hours ever felt like work. Instead, it was a gift to have the opportunity to use my talents to raise awareness of an organization that was not only working on an issue I'm deeply passionate about, but was approaching and implementing that work with such integrity, cultural respect, honesty and awareness.
Driven by the continual research and thoughtfu leadership of Kayce Anderson, For the Good continually evaluates its programs with an honest and critical eye, relying on evidence based methods + open dialogue and deep listening to the communities it serves to devise effective, culturally and contextually relevant and respectful interventions. The organization partners with the communities it works in in rural Kenya to reduce tangible barriers to girls' educations. Equally important, For the Good works to address the intangible barriers that keep girls out of school: namely the belief that education is not relevant for a girl or worth the return on investment.
Opportunities for girls will change in lasting ways when this belief changes. I became a passionate advocate and supporter of For the Good because of the sensitivity it brings to the complex, nuanced work of changing this belief and the idea of girl's value - and remain an ardent supporter now as a part time staffer. The change they are creating has the potential to be powerful and lasting.