“Don’t worry, if God closes all the doors, he will open windows for you to get out!” Beldina’s mother.
Beldina Opiyo-Omolo is the founder and director of Alice Visionary Foundation Project (AVFP) in Kisumu, Kenya. AVFP is a NGO with the vision of improving the quality of life of impoverished western Kenya communities through education, food security and poverty alleviation.
In this episode, she joins Judithe to share her work and her story of returning to Kenya to help pull her country and her people forward through one of those "windows".
“There is an aspect of also including the partners, the boys in this empowerment, so they understand we’re not empowering them so that women have more power, but that we’re empowering them so that the whole family can live in a cohesive way.
“Unless you get your education, you’ll never get where you want to be, and we all want to be somewhere.”
Find more about Beldina and her work here: https://www.womenstrong.org/people/beldina-opiyo-omolo
“The desire that forces us to move or migrate, remains safety. Safety in terms of our physical safety but (also) safety in terms of opportunities, options, securities; the safety to dream, hope and have the opportunities to work toward our dreams and aspirations.” -Judithe Registre
In this solo episode, Judithe celebrates and recognizes Refugee Week by discussing the collective history of human migration and the universal nature of displacement as well as the pursuit of safety and opportunity that all humanity desires while sharing her story as an immigrant and world server working across conflict and post-conflict countries.
“Hope and optimism. It is the thing that keeps us alive, the oxygen that keeps us breathing.” -Judithe Registre
In this episode of The Get InPowered Podcast, Judithe returns to her hometown to visit in person with Karl Jean Louis, Executive Director of OCAPH, the Observatoire Citoyen de l' Action des Pouvoirs Publics en Haiti, which works towards "less corruption, better governance, and a more open and free society" in Haiti.
Karl and Judithe especially focus on Karl's efforts to build and strengthen a generation of young activists-turned-civil-servants that can carry on his and OCAPH's mission to its eventual success.
Find out more about Karl and the mission of OCAPH by visiting their website.
"Being a mediator, being a facilitator, it’s interesting and challenging because you have to have the trust of both sides.” - Karl
“We consider the Church to be an institution, and it is indeed that. But I think when it’s most effective, it operates as a movement.” - Pastor Dexter
Reverend Dexter Nutall joins Judithe this week to discuss the historic and future importance of the church as a stabilizing factor and institution in the lives of African Americans. They discuss some of the root issues that have hindered the church in its mission and how Pastor Dexter and others like him are revitalizing and rebuilding the ties between church and community across generations and political lines.
From his childhood in the pews of New Bethel, to his days behind the pulpit now, Dexter Nutall has devoted his life to his community and his church. Hear his inspiring message of Love in this episode and find more about Dexter and Bethel at their site: http://newbetheldc.org/about-us/pastor-first-lady-nutall/
You ought not just be coming to grow, you ought to be coming to give. - Pastor Dexter
“The mission requires relationships…Religion and Relationship are two different things.” - Pastor Dexter
“In the essentials, unity. In the non-essentials, liberty. But in all things, charity.” - Pastor Dexter
“That was the thing I think I remember so much about my childhood, that feeling of belonging, not to yourself, but to a group that is bigger than yourself, bigger than your family.” - Ruth Kissam
As the Director of Operations for the PNG Tribal Foundation, Ruth Kissam works to promote a culture of freedom and equality that encourages initiatives for women and girls in settlements to work in partnership with relevant stakeholders and better their lives. In this episode, Ruth discusses the state of PNG and the challenges her people face as they adapt quickly to the digital age.
“All this development has to be a bridge of what we are, what we used to be and what we want to be.” - Ruth Kissam