A bit about the Maasai Girls Education Fund, from the daughter of MGEF Founder, Barbara Lee Shaw The Maasai Girls Education Fund works to raise the status of Maasai women in Kenya and end poverty by educating girls, women, and the Maasai community. Our Scholarship Program sponsors Maasai girls from primary school through university who otherwise would not be in school. Our Community Education Program holds workshops for Maasai girls, boys, women, and men to focus on the cultural practices and beliefs that keep girls out of school. We work in partnership with a Community Based Organization that we co-founded and fund. It is managed by Maasai women, and includes a network of 43 women and 14 chiefs who volunteer throughout the area where we work. Scholarships Program: Since 2000, our Scholarships Program has sponsored 179 girls from pre-school to university. Many were rescued from child marriages as young as nine years old, and one from child labor. Three key policies: NUMBER 1: Our scholarships are based on need, not merit. They go to girls like: Jane Tulasha who was discovered when she was 8 years old selling food to construction workers to earn money for her family. She had never enrolled in school. Her sisters were married off at ages 12 and 14. She is now in the eighth grade. And Emily Namunyene, whose mother died when she was ten years old. She had just completed the second grade. Her father was so old that he was unable to take care of her so she was left in the care of an older sister and her husband. Her uncle refused to send her to school and had planned to marry her off when one of the Kajiado volunteers asked MGEF to save her. She has now graduated from the University of Nairobi with a certificate in International Studies. And Reson Mpatinae who was actually married off at 9 years old. With the help of women activists, she was rescued and brought to the Kajiado Adventist School which has a shelter for girls. Reson cannot go home. She is supported by MGEF, safely enrolled in boarding school. These are just a few stories of many, many more MGEF-supported girls whose parents simply cannot afford school fees. NUMBER 2: We do not drop students for any reason. Since our scholarships are based on need, we don’t know how our students will perform in school. Many of our students struggle throughout primary and secondary school. When they are having trouble, we mentor them, we encourage them, we stay with them, and they graduate and go on to vocational schools. Some even go to colleges and universities. Without exception, every single poor-performing student has excelled in post-secondary school, and all who have graduated are employed and self-sustaining. MGEF's graduation rate from primary school is 95% (compared to 29% of Kenya's general Maasai population); MGEF's transition rate from primary to secondary school is 98% (compared to 18%); MGEF's graduation rate from secondary school is 87% (versus 8%); MGEF's transition rate from secondary to postsecondary education is 95% (versus 3%); and MGEF's graduation rate from postsecondary enrollment is 97% (compared with
I've been sponsoring four girls for several years now, and I love watching them progress through primary school and onto secondary (high) school. Their focus on their goals to do well, to graduate from high school and to pursue a college certificate or university degree is inspirational. I am very proud of all four of them. And I really like knowing that not only will they be able to take care of themselves financially but also will be empowered to make life decisions such as when and whom to marry, when to have children, etc.
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Our founder, Barbara Shaw, more than twenty years ago, articulated MGEF’s enduring philosophy:
“A woman needs two things to rise out of poverty—self-esteem and self-reliance. Education will give her both.”
This is what we do – support impoverished Massai girls from 1st grade through university by providing them tuition, room & board and needed personal & school supplies. Currently, we have over 100 students progressing toward their goal of earning a college or university degree. And when they do, as over 60 MGEF scholars already have, they find jobs in a variety of fields such as education, administration, science, medicine and law as well as many others. These good paying jobs not only permit these young women to support themselves but also provide them the opportunity to make their own life decisions such as where to live, when and who to marry, when to have children, etc. In addition to materially improving their own lives, these young women inevitably end up helping their families and contributing to their communities.
MGEF has done an incredible job providing educational opportunities and support for Maasai girls and young women in Kenya. MGEF’s vision has led to the empowerment and independence for so many girls. It is an honor to be a donor and supporter of MGEF.
An outstanding organization that transforms the lives of those it touches. Responsible leadership utilizes funds efficiently to support its mission.
MGEF really does help level the playing field for girls and young women. Small nonprofit with limited overhead. Every dollar provides an opportunity to break the cycle of poverty.
MGEF is a fantastic organization lifting up young Kenyan women through providing critical education and support. An incredible organization!
Empowering girls through education to change their lives, their families, their communities, and the world.
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I have been impressed with the agility and compassion in which MGEF has met the needs of their students during COVID-19. This is a small organization that is personally involved with all of their students allowing them to meet the girls and their families where they are and give them the support that they need to be successful in school. I could not be more proud to be a part of such an impactful organization!
My name is Beatrice Yiamoi Kasairo, I am 26 years and I come from polygamous family. My father is married to 2 wives and has 10 children though one is deceased, my elder sister died of pneumonia because there were no funds to take her to the hospital. My father is unemployed, and he used to burn charcoal and sell them for money, both my mother and step mother are house wives and we all depended on my father's little money for food and other family basic needs.
Life through my primary level was so tough because of lack of school fees and the school was too far that i walked kilometers to reach there .when i completed my grade 8 in 2009, I got good grades which enabled me join secondary school, i could not join due to lack of school fees .I stayed at home for two months waiting for my parents to look for school fees. Through the help of well-wishers from my community they were able to contribute little amount which enabled me to join Secondary school . At grade 10(form2) I was lucky to receive a scholarship from MGEF through a board member and since then my education life became smooth as i was able to learn without being send back home for school fees as the organization catered for everything including fees, school supplies and uniforms.
I completed my secondary level and did well and i was able to joined college to pursue my dream course where I took a diploma in business management and completed in 2016.In 2017 I requested to volunteer at the Maasai Girls Education office as a way to give back my application was accepted. I got a chance to talk to the girls about the importance of education in their lives . After one year of volunteering in the organization i requested Maasai Girls Education Fund to allow me upgrade my studies to Bachelor degree in Business Management which they approved and they paid all my school fees until my completion in 2020.I graduated in October 2020 and currently working as an intern at MGEF office as it is hard to find a job with the current effects of Covid-19 . I am forever grateful to MGEF organization for changing my life and for their continuous support of empowering more girls in the Maasai community. Long live Maasai Girls Education Fund.
The Maasai Girls Education Fund has done an incredible job of pivoting during the pandemic to meet the needs of their students. School was still the goal, but the basic health and safety of their students was in jeopardy due to increased poverty from the pandemic. MGEF quickly found a new to keep their students on the path towards health, independence and education through a family stipend. This allowed families to pay for food and see their assets instead of a liability to be married off! Kudos to MGEF and their hard working staff for moving quickly to address the changing situation in the Maasai community and continuing to prioritize the safety and education of Maasai girls.
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MGEF is a top-notch organization. I have been involved as a volunteer, a donor and now as a Board Member - and I've been proud to be a part of it at each level. MGEF works tirelessly with local Maasai in Kenya to identify girls in tough situations and help them get out of that situation to go to school. These girls are given hope for a life beyond childhood marriage. Many of them have gone on to have a career and come back to help provide much needed capital for their local community. MGEF's dual board (In the US and in Kenya) is an important key to success, always involving those on the ground to help make decisions and identify young girls in need. We are seeing a trend that the girls who were sponsored by MGEF and have graduated come back to work or volunteer for the organization. This speaks volumes to the positive and lasting impact that MGEF has in the lives of these young women.
My husband and I have had the joy of sponsoring two wonderful young women through the MGEF. I love everything about this non-profit that empowers women to gain education and the opportunity to become successful business people upon gradation. We are planning a trip to Kenya next year with the goal of meeting our sponsee in person for the first time!
For two decades, MGEF has been devoted to giving Maasai girls an education and empowering them to be able to achieve their dreams not just of an education but ultimately economic independence. With more than 250 scholarships provided, more than 95 alumni, an amazing and locally-respected staff in Kajiado County, and many dedicated sponsors and supporters, MGEF is an ever-evolving and growing family. The dedication of this family has enabled MGEF to continue it mission to educate girls even in the face of the COVID pandemic. In recognition of its work, MGEF recently received the 2021 Best NGO on Gender Equality Award at the National Diversity and Inclusion Awards & Recognition ceremony in Nairobi, Kenya. I am honored to be able to help this organization.
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The Maasai Girls Education Fund provides scholarships to Maasai girls who would otherwise not be able to go to school due to poverty or cultural barriers. And it further promotes systemic change through its Life Skills Workshops and Women's Business Training Workshops.
More than 13,000 Maasai men, women, girls and boys have attended MGEF's Life Skills Workshops and 300 Maasai women have gone through its Business Training Program. The combination of all three programs - Scholarships, Life Skills Workshops and Business Training Workshops is producing change and empowering Maasai women to become economically self-sufficient.
Maasai Girls Education Fund is a run by a group of tight-nit individuals that work incredibly hard to arrange education for Maasai girls.
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The Maasai Girls Education Fund(MGEF) is an impressive nonprofit organization. With a relatively small budget, they do a tremendous amount to improve the literacy, health, and economic wellbeing of Maasai girls in Kenya. For over 20 years, MGEF has been providing scholarships for girls to go to school until they enter the workforce, provided community education workshops, and business training for rural Maasai women. Going to school helps give the girls the self-esteem and self-reliance necessary to join the workforce; and they use their income to help support their families and parents. The testimonials I have heard over the past few years from girls who have gone through the program are heart-warming. As a public health education specialist, and member of the general public, I am impressed with the results of MGEF's work in breaking the cycle of poverty and subjugation of women through education and training. (submitted by Emily Glazer)
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I have been an MGEF donor for 20 years. I sponsored a girl from first grade through law school and am now sponsoring another elementary school girl. MGEF provides girls excellent support and everything they need to be successful in school. It has been very rewarding to watch these girls grow, thrive , and ultimately giving back to their community as well educated professionals.
We were delighted to sponsor a girl to attend high school for a year through this non-profit of hard-working, caring people with close connections to the community they serve. Immensely valuable organization, because we know the alternatives to high school would not have been great.
Tim Beardsley
One of the most amazing things about MGEF is how effectively they are achieving their goal of educating Maasai girls.
Students accepted by MGEF enter primary school at their age appropriate grade level, but because MGEF scholarships are awarded strictly on the bases of need, more than a few of these students find their classes challenging. Despite this, 81% of these students graduate from secondary school (high school)! Compare this to the secondary school graduation rate of Kenya's general Maasai population -- it is less than 1%.
Wow! How is that possible?
MGEF understands that more than just financial aid is needed to insure success. Both the student’s progress and their schools are monitored by the MGEF staff. In addition, the women on MGEF’s Kenyan Board of Directors, who identify the needy girls from their districts, keep in contact with their girls (more likely cajoling them to do well) until they complete their education. Perhaps more important, the mentoring by our current cohort of more than 60 college and university graduates inspires their “younger sisters” to achieve their goals.
Even more astounding is the fact that nearly 95% of the MGEF scholars who graduate from high school continue on to enter either college (2-year program) or university a (4-year program) and earn a degree in one of a variety of professions – education, administration, research, law and medicine, etc. This success rate assures MGEF’s donors and sponsors that their generous support is achieving their goal of educating Maasai girls, giving them both self-reliance and self-esteem.
Having met some of the girls and seeing what wonderful women they have been able to become, I am proud to support the charity
As longtime supporters of the Maasai Girls Education Fund, we have found the dedication of the non-profit to be as fierce and inspiring as their work has been life-changing and likely, life-saving, for the young women Maasai women.
I grew up with MGEF and it is incredible how the organization has remained laser-focused on creating real impact at the individual and community level. Their model enables real change in the Maasai community and should be a model for organizations seeking to promote women's education and empowerment in communities across the globe.
The Maasai Girls Education Fund (MGEF) continues to encourage and support girls who otherwise would not be able to afford an education. Girls are encouraged to continue their education leading to financial independence. MGEF provides guidance from kindergarten until they have skills leading to employment. It is a great organization that also works with the community to educate community leaders about the importance of educating women, eradicating female genital mutilation, as well as the problems relating to early marriage.
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I have been involved with the Maasai Girls Education Fund for 20 years. This organization takes a personal interest in every girl, supporting and encouraging them in their educational goal.
Each girl who receives an education through this program becomes part of the MGEF family.
Girls are encouraged to continue their education until they have skills to support themselves and become contributing members of their own communities. The Maasai community is involved in helping to select needy students to receive a scholarship, and students are encouraged to give back to their community, to encourage other girls from their community who will attend school, and provide information and encouragement to current students. Workshops are provided to the community on the importance of education for girls, health issues, and barriers to their education. Educating girls in areas where they would not have a chance at education, helps improve lives there and helps the whole world.
This is a wonderful nonprofit that changes the life of Maasai girls in Kenya, providing them with an education, mentoring support and the opportunity to become economically empowered. Getting an education and enabling a Maasai woman to get a job is life changing, not just for the empowered individual but also her family. I have sponsored the education of many girls through MGEF, and know that my contribution makes a huge difference in their lives. Even during the COVID pandemic, MGEF in both the US and Kajiado are working hard to support its students and working to ensure their safety and health.
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The Maasai Girls Education Fund (MGEF) is uniquely improving the lives of Maasai girls and their families, and changing perceptions of the value of women in the Maasai community. Their programs are targeted and effective, developed and administered in close coordination with MGEF, by a local, on-the-ground Community Based Organization staffed by Maasai women, who are role models themselves.
MGEF's Scholarship Program provides schooling to girls who would otherwise be unable to attend, either because of poverty or cultural beliefs that deny girls an education. Our family is currently supporting two Maasai girls - a 3rd grader and a university student. The 3rd grader's father does not believe in educating girls, and was going to marry her off and force her to undergo female genital cutting when she was 11 years old. MGEF's scholarship, awarded in 2016, has protected her from this fate. We have sponsored the university student since she was in 1st grade. Her father died when she was 10 years old, leaving behind two wives and 11 children, all of whom had to drop out of school. The scholarship has enabled her to not only graduate from secondary school (an amazing accomplishment for a Maasai girl) but also enroll in post-secondary school.
We are proud of the organization and look forward to more opportunities to help.
I have emailed the charity many times about a few Maasai girls in Shompole Kenya that need help with school fees. They have never returned my messages or the messages from the community who call for help.
This is a touching, personal, inspiring organization. I've been a sponsor for a short-time, and I know my donation goes straight to the source, and hearing from my sponsee is touching and fulfilling. I'm so thankful for this organization and the amazing life-changing work they do!
I have been involved as a volunteer and sponsor for MGEF for 5 years. It is a wonderful organization that cares deeply for the well-being and education of the Maasai girls and their community at-large. I admire their deep commitment to enrolling the girls in safe, high performing schools and staying in close contact with them throughout the school year. Holding informative workshops for males and female, young and old and helping woman start their own businesses, so that they can become independent, proves that MGEF cares about the entire Maasai community and their success. 5 Stars for an amazing, inspiring and caring organization!
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The philosophy behind the MGEF is unique and inspiring. Every person that participates in the programs that MGEF offers, benefits in so many ways. The workshops educate, boys, girls and adults in healthcare, healthy life styles and nutrition, which in turn helps educate whole communities and generations of people. Girls are given support and encouragement to go to school beyond primary grades, so that they can become independent, successful adults. In turn the girls return to their communities in one capacity or another to help make it stronger. The girls have gone on to become teachers, nurses, lawyers, even doctors. The partnership between MGEF, the communities it has touched and the students is lifelong. Most importantly, the graduated students become mentors to the younger girls and the positive cycle continues.
The Maasai Girls Education Fund is an organization built by women for girls with the heart of lioness. This amazing organization does so much with so little funds. By providing full access to education to girls that will not been able to go to school otherwise the MGEF empowers generations of women. MGEF is the kind of organization that changes a girl life. MGEF's approach is respectful and kind. Managed by local women with a local understanding of the culture and a vision of reaching for the stars, I have been honored and blessed to known some of these women I will not hesitate a moment to highly recommend the MGEF as one of the greatest non profits in Kenya.
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I have known Barbara the founder of Maasai Girls Education Fund for more than a decade and saw her love and commitment with the Maasai Girls. Her dedication and honesty transformed lives for good of many girls and their families. Then Tracey Barbara's daughter decided to continued her mother amazing legacy and honored her work. MGEF is the story of women helping women without borders and with no limits. I have contributed to MGEF not only because I know what the organization is capable of but also because the world is every day a better place due to their work.
The Maasai Girls Education Fund is an inspiring non-profit that provides tangible changes to the lives of Maasai women. My late wife, Barbara Shaw, was the creator of this beautiful organization, which has now been passed down to Tracey, Cassidy, and Hannah, who are also exceptional women working to empower the young women of Maasai. This year, MGEF planned the Barbara Lee Shaw Memorial College Fund to celebrate their 20th anniversary and honor her legacy. I am grateful to be a part of this special organization and the amazing work they do, not only to provide scholarships to young women, but working to lift the Maasai community as a whole.
What makes MGEF so incredible is the straight line from the donation to the dramatic impact on not only the life of a girl who would have been married off at 12-13 (with no future, other than having babies until she no longer can, and doing as she is told by her husband), but on her family, her immediate community and as the program continues to grow, all of the Maasai. There is no fundraising bureaucracy. Only a few pennies of every dollar donated goes to overhead. And MGEF does so much more than putting girls the through school - girls who would have about a 1% chance of going to school otherwise; things like attacking FGM head on. I have not come across a more effective nonprofit- ever!
MGEF does an amazing job in changing the lives of maasai girls.
I'm an alumna of maasai girls education fund so I'm a testimony of what MGEF does.
MGEF sponsored me through to the University and now I'm a teacher. During holidays, I lead the alumni team in mentoring the young girls in primary and secondary school.
Education does not only change the life of an individual but also that of his/her family and community.
What MGEF does is incredible!
Every donor/ sponsor should support this organization .
It is the best!
The Maasai Girls Education Fund does very important work and I feel honored to help support "our" student. The program is about so much more than education--it is about changing the life course for each student, her family, and their Maasai community. I trust that the program is well run and treasure student updates. I am continually grateful for the opportunity to be a small part of this wonderful effort!
The MGEF is a wonderful and tightly run non-profit! Doing business in Africa is very challenging and I love their hands-on approach to making sure that my modest donation goes directly to underwriting the education and care of the little girl that I help sponsor. The MGEF has thoughtfully planned how they seek to help the Maasai make change in their own culture by empowering women through education from grade school through college. It brings me no small amount of joy to know that one day the child I help put through school might one day become a teacher, nurse or doctor and bring these professions back into her own community to continue to support a positive and sustainable culture.
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We have helped sponsor a little girl for several years now and what has so impressed us about the MGEF is that they never turn a child away. They always find a way to place every little girl that shows up on their doorstep and there are always more that are in need than expected. They are also dedicated to onsite visits to the many schools where the girls are placed to ensure that high educational standards are being consistently met and that the students are safe, happy and doing well in school. We regularly correspond with the little girl that we sponsor and are really honored to help support her. We trust that she has a promising future ahead of her and are confident that the MGEF will provide consistent ongoing support for her and her family. Thanks to MGEF for giving us this wonderful opportunity!
The Maasai Girls Education Fund is a phenomenal non-profit. I was involved as a supporter and volunteer, then I joined the Board of Directors and recently started sponsoring a girl. Throughout each phase of my involvement I have been impressed with their dedication to their students. MGEF helps young Maasai girls get the education they deserve and serve the community in the long run by coming back with degrees and skills to provide for their family. MGEF has proven their ability to problem solve - involving the local community and the international community to create the best possible outcome for their students. I am proud to be a part of such a top notch charity.
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I was previously a friend of the charity and have since joined the Board of Directors. From the beginning I have been impressed by the impact this charity is making. As a non-profit professional, I can say honestly that the Maasai Girls Education Fund does it right. Lives are completely changed for the girls that we help, not only of the lives of the girls who are able to go to school, but their families and those in their community who benefit from their education.
Maasai Girls Education Fund has been changing the lives of Maasai girls for over 18 years. They have worked with tribal men and women through lifestyle workshops to assure them of the value of educating their daughters. Many young girls and women have received full room and board to attend primary school near their villages and some have gone on to college and graduate education. In most cases, the girls return to their villages after graduation to better their communities. By attending school, these girls avoid early arranged marriages and are empowered to may decisions regarding their own futures. The small MGEF staff is committed to their cause and follows in the steps of MGEF's founder, Barbara Shaw, who knew that an education was the only way the Maasai women would gain independence.
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MGEF has transformed the lives of hundreds of Maasai girls, providing them opportunities for education, better health, deeper happiness and self-sufficiency. Each of these girls has then helped her family in innumerable ways, financially, materially, spiritually. But the thing I love most about MGEF is how happy everyone who touches it is -- there is a tremendous spirit of enthusiasm, good will, comeraderie, and nuturing, from the leadership of the brilliant founder, the late Barbara Shaw, to current leader Dr. Tracey Pyles, to all the staff and especially the girls themselves. I can wait to travel to Kenya next year to meet more of them!!
I am a young woman and had the opportunity to visit a Maasai village in Kenya. The work that Maasai Girls Education Fund it is so important to give opportunities to girls to access to education it is a basic human right and in the case of girl it is crucial to empower them and their communities . We need more MGEF !! congratulations and keep going!
The Maasai Girls Education Fund is a brilliant oraganization. They have educated many young girls; a couple have gone on to become Doctors, and Nurses. I am proud to be a Doner for the MGEF.
Respectfully,
Michael Frizzell
The maasai girl education fund are doing an amaizing work.I am a maasai girl myself i know and understand the struggles we go through...it has taken me alot to be in the universty now...mybe luck.i thank God for them and the hope they are giving to the maasai women in empowering them through education.Giving a maasai girl education is giving her the power to fight for herself and defence against the oppressing power...Many more years to the maasai girl education fund
MGEF is the only organization of its kind which pledges to stay with our students no matter what --- that means no GPA quotas or performance baselines, no limits on the number of degrees earned, no invasive or unrealistic standards of progression: just real support for dedicated students who are working hard to learn and improve their lives. That's material impact in a community. The business training workshops for women that MGEF organizes (in addition to its fantastic scholarship program) are an excellent example of our commitment to facilitating valuable women's education in any way we can, for every member of our communities who wants to pursue it. You will not find another organization of this kind that fulfills this commitment as effectively, or that serves its communities with greater impact.
I am a donor and I sponsored a student through MGEF; it is an amazing organization! Every dollar has a direct impact on improving lives. The young women who MGEF supports are inspiring both in the obstacles they have faced and the way they have persevered. MGEF connects directly with communities in need in a respectful, productive, and empathetic way to create real change. I can think of no other organization with a worthier goal, more committed staff, or more impressive impact.
I have been involved with MGEF since its inception. The girl I sponsored now has a 2-year degree in early childhood education. She plans to continue to receive her 4-year degree. MGEF also does community development/education programs for the Maasai Tribe. They are a top notch nonprofit.
Maasai Girls Education Fund is an organisation filled with people of great dedication. Every time I meet one of them it amazes me what they do. Especially their founder, Barbara Lee Shaw was an incredible, inspiring woman that I would have loved to talk even more to.
I am proud to have worked with Maasai Girls Education Fund for more than ten years and to be a sponsor of a Maasai student. What this small, effective organization has been able to do for Maasai girls and young women in Kenya is close to miraculous. Not only does the organization find and stick by girls in need of an education, often helping them escape early marriage and a life of poverty, it also works to educate all members of the Maasai community about why it is important to educate girls. Young women go on to higher education and eventually jobs, which, more often than not, involve giving back to their own communities. I could not recommend this organization more.
The Maasai Girls Education Fund (MGEF) is a successful nonprofit that is helping women and girls achieve their dreams by funding education scholarships. One example is Gloria Mumeita Kotente who almost had to drop out of primary school because her family couldn't afford the school fees. Now she is studying to be a doctor! And, when she completes her medical training, she will be one of a handful of Maasai women physicians. You can support a student like Gloria or give to the general fund. Chris Jahnke
Over the years, I have sponsored three girls' educations through Maasai Girls Education Fund. I love the work MGEF does to empower girls and young women which in turn builds more successful communities. This is an excellent organization run by people who genuinely care about those they serve. Highly recommend!
They do great work promoting and providing education to girls of all ages. Really helps their communities
I am writing this as a relative of one of the beneficiary. Through them many girls from our community get to have the chance to go to school which is not usually a priority for most parents in our community. Having being orphaned at a young age, MGEF came through with my sister's education till she graduated with a university degree.
Keep up with the good work of empowering the Masai girl child.
A remarkable charity, founded by a remarkable woman who saw an unmet need, the education of Maasai girls and young women, and resolved to do what she could to provide them with schooling and the life opportunities that education would open to them. The work is continued now by her daughter and granddaughter. This is a non-profit that has zero to do with the financial benefit or the personal fame and prestige of those who run it. This is all about helping girls and young women.
I spent a lot of time in Kenya witnessing the deeply impactful work that MGEF is doing for girls, women and their communities. I got to see the incredibly committed and passionate teams at work both at the office in Kajiado, Kenya and in Washington,D.C. They are tireless in their pursuit of continuing MGEF's vital mission. I saw young girls go from afraid, timid and out of school to strong, empowered and making top grades because of the scholarships they received from this organization. Their empowerment led to the empowerment of their communities as a whole. Amazing organization!
Barbara, Tracey, and Cassidy -- three generations of strong women making a difference in the lives of so many Maasai girls. I am proud to be associated with this group (as a sponsor). It is inspiring to see the passion and dedication of all involved in helping these girls find their voices! The smiles on the faces in Barbara's beautiful photos say it all.
This extraordinary organization was founded through the love and dedication of Barbara Shaw working with equally extraordinary Maasai leaders. I feel privileged to have met one of the 'girls' who is now training in medicine. MGEF changes lives, and through those lives improves the living conditions for all.
Back in college, I learned about the harsh realities many young women in developing countries have to face. I ultimately wrote a term paper about how education could change these young lives if the privilege could be granted to them. Fast forward a few years later to when I was introduced to this incredible organization. I was in awe of the lives they had already transformed through their sponsorship program and the overall positive ripple effect they have had on the Maasai community. MGEF has truly made a difference in the lives of these young ladies, and I am confident it will continue to do so for many others. I truly believe a pencil can change the world, and I am proud to support MGEF and its amazing mission.
Caroline is a direct beneficiary who was taken through a college and university from 2006-2013.
A graduate nurse now working with an inter national christian organization among women and children under five years.
MGEF has helped me live my dream and realize my life purpose.
The commitment of Dr. Piles and the vision of this non-profit is admirable. To see the impact and to meet the young women who have been helped by the hard work of everyone involved in this organization is very touching. I hope they get recognized, they have certainly earned it.
I volunteered for MGEF in the past and fell in love with its mission, and with the passion exuded by the women and men that carry out its mission. The impact that this organization directly has on girls and women in Kenya, and indirectly on their families and greater communities, is real and truly inspiring. I am now proudly serving as a member of the Board, and am excited to do what I can to further its mission.
Fantastic organization. I've traveled to Kenya with MGEF on many occasions, and I'm always amazed by the great work we do.
MGEF is a fantastic organization. I have had the unique and rewarding opportunity to be one of the sponsors of a wonderful young woman who will shortly be the first Maasai female physician. The organization is very well run and Barbara would be proud of her daughter and the others who are continuing the legacy of improving the lives of the Maasai girls and their families. Can't recommend them enough!
I attended a fundraiser for this wonderful organization and was very impressed at their mission and effectiveness. Educating these young women not only creates opportunity for each individual girl, it also brings economic resources back to their families and community. But on some level I was most impressed by the accounts of how the success of these girls have been able to change deeply embedded cultural gender biases that limit the role of women. We hear a lot of talk from governments and big organizations about the need to empower women in places where cultural and religious practices relegate women to subservient roles. This grassroots organization appears to be doing not talking; effecting change on the level that really works, one person, one family, one village at a time.
I also like how my modest donation goes such a long way. I feel like I'm having a direct impact on real people. I can follow these girls progress and see tangible results. I find this so much more satisfying than the more anonymous experience of donating to a huge organization where I never am sure how my contribution is used.
I traveled to Kenya to help out MGEF and see their impact on the women of the Maasai community. I met so many amazing girls and young women who have been able to go to school because of this organization, as well as young schoolchildren who greatly benefit from their workshops. MGEF is truly an excellent organization.
The Maasai Girls Education Fund (MGEF) has always been a source of inspiration. It's mission is clear and elegantly simple: to equip Maasai girls with knowledge and awareness so they can take control of their lives and reach for opportunities not otherwise available to them. By empowering others, MGEF can lay claim to the many benefits that follow, with the girls whose lives it enriches finding so many ingenious ways to give back to their families, their communities, their country, and, indeed, the world. But in keeping with the spirit of its founder, the late Barbara Shaw, the MGEF is quick to let the girls it educates get all the credit; throughout Barbara's inspired life, it was reward enough to see the intelligent spark in the eyes of those whose education the MGEF had provided. Yet the time has come to grant the MGEF the recognition it has long deserved -- as one of the most thoughtful and truly extraordinary non-profit organizations one can find.
The many years we spent sponsoring a little girl from 3rd grade through high school was a very satisfying experience. The work of MGEF is so valuable in this world where education is the answer to so many problems. Kudos to MGEF and thank you for the opportunity to enrich our lives.
We have enjoyed sponsoring a student from 2nd grade through high school.
It was a satisfying experience for our family and what we have learned through this experience has changed our lives.
