There is an old saying: “Where there is despair, sow hope.”
Mary Dailey Brown, founder and CEO of SowHope, will give a presentation at Ferris State University in IRC 120 on Tuesday, Feb. 8 at 11 a.m. The event, presented by Ferris’ Globalization Initiative, will showcase Brown’s inspiring projects aimed at one of the most disadvantaged groups globally, women who make less than $2 per day.
“It’s easy to feel helpless about having any impact on global problems, so we want the Ferris community to hear about something exciting going on,” said Rebecca Sammel, an assistant professor in Languages and Literature at Ferris and a member of the Globalization Initiative Steering Committee. “Mary Dailey Brown uses a self-help model that is effective in both individual lives and communities around the world. Students will see how the SowHope model can work here in Michigan communities as well.”
SowHope helps disadvantaged women through programs that include loans, healthcare,
counseling, scholarships, literacy classes and vocational training. The organization
has supported more than 18,000 women in nine developing countries.
SowHope has implemented an anti-human-trafficking program in Bangladesh, where 50
girls a day are kidnapped into lives of forced prostitution in Pakistan and India.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, SowHope has helped to build a birthing center
for poor women. In Rwanda, young women with AIDS can learn math, reading, writing
and sewing through the efforts of SowHope. In Uganda, SowHope is helping 60 women
develop financial independence by obtaining microloans for businesses.
“We were interested in Mary because she helps women help themselves,” Sammel said. “Her work empowers women to become self-reliant and productive, against the odds of extreme poverty. The success of her self-help model is very impressive.”
Brown earned a bachelor’s degree from Southern Illinois University, where she majored in Psychology and Photography.
Brown’s presentation is free and open to the public. Anyone with questions should contact David Kelson at (231) 591-2464 or Rebecca Sammel at (231) 591-3073.