Spring Break
Restore Humanity: non-profit organization focuses on helping poverty-stricken
Niketa Reed
Issue date: 3/5/08 Section: Life & Style
Women's History Month was kicked off with a presentation by Sarah Fennell of Restore Humanity at 11 a.m. Monday in the Multicultural Center.
Fennell is the founder of Restore Humanity, a non-profit organization set up to start projects or help fund existing projects that will provide a solution to a problem in the world. The organization is dedicated to bettering the lives of the less fortunate people of the world, she said.
Most of the projects worked on to date have been focused on poverty stricken areas and populations with high cases of HIV in South Africa and Kenya. Founded on September 6, 2006, the organization, is in the process of starting an orphanage in the Nyanza province of Kenya, Fennell said.
Monday's presentation served as an introduction to the organization's mission, purpose and goals. Fennell also spoke about the lives of extraordinary women she met who remained strong despite living in grim situations.
"I was inspired by many, many people in South Africa and Kenya, but the strength of the women amazed me," Fennell said. "It continues to inspire me as a woman.
"You listen to these women and they bring you to tears, but at the same time it's powerful," she said.
Inspiration was a theme she touched on frequently throughout the course of the presentation, unable to explain life altering experiences in these countries outside of the words "amazing" or "incredible".
Fennell also showed a clip from the organization's documentary entitled "Taking the First Step," which shows how the organization began and its progress in South Africa.
Before starting Restore Humanity, Fennell worked as a language and culture teacher in Fayetteville and volunteered in South Africa in 2005. In South Africa, she worked with AIDS patients, orphans and abused children in poverty stricken areas without luxuries such as running water, electricity, sturdy shelter, and indoor plumbing, she said.
"I had no idea about the poverty issues. After two weeks, I said I couldn't do this," said Fennell, who was initially discouraged by problems in this area that seemed overwhelming and shocked that more people didn't take action. "The more I talked about it, the more I realized that people just don't know."
She advises people who want to make a difference in the world to first educate themselves and make it a priority to reach out to other people who might not be aware of dire situations.
"Giving and helping and supporting other people also empowers you," Fennell said.
The Multicultural Center acknowledged the Martin Luther King book scholarship recipients after Fennell's presentation. The scholarship, funded by the Northwest Arkansas Martin Luther King, Jr. Committee, is awarded annually. There were 10 recipients this year.
To be considered for the scholarship, students should be actively involved on campus in leadership positions and should have participated in activities relating to diversity either through the Multicultural Center, the MLK committee or similar organization, said Veronikha Salazar, associate director of the Multicultural Center.
Fennell is the founder of Restore Humanity, a non-profit organization set up to start projects or help fund existing projects that will provide a solution to a problem in the world. The organization is dedicated to bettering the lives of the less fortunate people of the world, she said.
Most of the projects worked on to date have been focused on poverty stricken areas and populations with high cases of HIV in South Africa and Kenya. Founded on September 6, 2006, the organization, is in the process of starting an orphanage in the Nyanza province of Kenya, Fennell said.
Monday's presentation served as an introduction to the organization's mission, purpose and goals. Fennell also spoke about the lives of extraordinary women she met who remained strong despite living in grim situations.
"I was inspired by many, many people in South Africa and Kenya, but the strength of the women amazed me," Fennell said. "It continues to inspire me as a woman.
"You listen to these women and they bring you to tears, but at the same time it's powerful," she said.
Inspiration was a theme she touched on frequently throughout the course of the presentation, unable to explain life altering experiences in these countries outside of the words "amazing" or "incredible".
Fennell also showed a clip from the organization's documentary entitled "Taking the First Step," which shows how the organization began and its progress in South Africa.
Before starting Restore Humanity, Fennell worked as a language and culture teacher in Fayetteville and volunteered in South Africa in 2005. In South Africa, she worked with AIDS patients, orphans and abused children in poverty stricken areas without luxuries such as running water, electricity, sturdy shelter, and indoor plumbing, she said.
"I had no idea about the poverty issues. After two weeks, I said I couldn't do this," said Fennell, who was initially discouraged by problems in this area that seemed overwhelming and shocked that more people didn't take action. "The more I talked about it, the more I realized that people just don't know."
She advises people who want to make a difference in the world to first educate themselves and make it a priority to reach out to other people who might not be aware of dire situations.
"Giving and helping and supporting other people also empowers you," Fennell said.
The Multicultural Center acknowledged the Martin Luther King book scholarship recipients after Fennell's presentation. The scholarship, funded by the Northwest Arkansas Martin Luther King, Jr. Committee, is awarded annually. There were 10 recipients this year.
To be considered for the scholarship, students should be actively involved on campus in leadership positions and should have participated in activities relating to diversity either through the Multicultural Center, the MLK committee or similar organization, said Veronikha Salazar, associate director of the Multicultural Center.
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