Genevieve Sabala. Photo by Mary Dailey Brown, 2016.
Genevieve Sabala, professor of Social Work at West Texas A&M University, was a member of the Cook Leadership Academy when she met Mary Dailey Brown at an event in Grand Rapids, MI. Very quickly, Genevieve realized that SowHope was unique in offering women assistance in three areas: wellness, education, and economic opportunities. She saw the evidence of success in partnering with local leaders using local solutions to solve local problems. She accepted an invitation to join the board of directors of SowHope.
Genevieve, who speaks four languages, was born and raised in Kenya by a mother who was denied the opportunity of an education. As a result, Genevieve’s parents decided to instill in their children the values of hard work, commitment, and determination. She is bringing all of those characteristics to SowHope. She has seen that the women SowHope serves have great ideas about how to improve their lives and are only limited by a lack of resources to implement their own ideas. Genevieve is now part of the team that reviews applications for grants and helps SowHope identify projects that will have high impact.
She sees SowHope becoming a movement because the strategy is simple and can work in any culture: local leaders using local solutions to solve local problems. Genevieve thinks there is a time coming when the world will realize that communities do not need an outsider to tell them how to resolve their problems – instead, the best solutions come from within. As long as accountability measures for the projects are in place, Genevieve believes that SowHope will witness great success through partnerships with local leaders around the globe.
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