When asked about my dream, a Mark Twain quote immediately comes to mind: “The two most important days in your life are the day you are born, and the day you find out why.” My first name, Evanam Helenam, means “She came for me, she is there for me” in my country’s language, Ewe. I think my dream of becoming a humanitarian aid worker was set from the time I was born.
At age 7, I envisioned myself raising funds for children who were victims of war. Maybe it was because I always saw my mother helping others as an OB-GYN—she was a champion in her community—or maybe the blue UNICEF logo inspired me. Either way, I remember playing with my dolls and imaginary friends, pretending to be in a refugee camp raising money to buy medicine and milk for the refugee children. It seems I had already decided to pursue a career in humanitarian aid.
At age 24, I moved to the US to study. There, I prioritized community health studies and devoted my time to humanitarian work. The following year, the presidential election in Cote d’Ivoire sadly led to a civil war. I was ashamed for not choosing to be closer to my family, and every time the phone rang, all I could think about was if it was to tell me my mother had died. My grades were dropping, and I think I was dealing with depression at the time.
In the midst of all this, my dream finally became a reality. At age 27, I got an internship with the Red Cross to help raise funds to vaccinate an entire village against measles and rubella. And at age 31, I joined the United Nations Global Health Fellowship and saw a terrible reality. Every day, 314 children were dying from measles-related complications, meaning there were 13 deaths per hour due to the vaccine’s poor quality. It was shocking to learn, but I was also able to do fundraising work with the UN Foundation, which helped me become confident in my career. Since returning to Cote d’Ivoire the following year, I became involved in a citizens’ group called “Listen to me too civ.” The group is dedicated to the health, education, and prevention of gender-based violence in my community, especially among the youth.
Between now and 2030, I would like to open the Helenam Knowledge Center to help young people pursue humanitarian sector careers and provide mobile transit shelters for sexual violence victims. I promise myself I will spend the rest of my life helping others achieve their dreams.
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If I were asked today, where I am with the Helenam Knowledge Center, I would answer with this quote from Jeanne Moreau who said “Life is what happens to you when you were planning something else. Two years ago, I promised myself that by 2030, I would do everything I could to start my adventure with the Helenam Knowledge Center to help young people start a career in the philanthropic sector and to offer mobile shelters to victims of sexual violence. I was in planning mode and unfortunately suffered a trauma that affected my memory and left me with a legacy. I have experienced failure, dehumanization, psychological death at terrible moments but I must believe that I am now rewriting a new chapter where perseverance is the pencil that transcribes my story. I hope that my experience will offer a rebirth through post-traumatic stress. I will never stop learning and giving back to those who need it. After all my first name “Helenam” means in Mina She is there for me.” May your difficulties turn your failures into experiences and make those experiences essential baggage to start a new adventure more beautiful than ever. I am learning to live again and to plan my life from now until 2030 with my initiative. I continue to move forward, to build myself, to rebuild myself to better embody a post-traumatic stress advocate in my country. Thanks to the World Project Dreamer, I am continually encouraging myself to be 2023 has taught me that being fulfilled in one’s life is mostly a question of mental balance. I try to get better I try to stay focused All I can do today is try.