Picking our scholars

Thursday we had to make our final decision on which girls would receive the scholarships from Students for Students International for their secondary education. It was definitely the most difficult decision I have ever had to make. All the girls were so passionate about helping their family and country and all of them had need. I just wish we could've been able to pay for more of them.

We spent from 1-11 pm trying figure out our decision. We rewatched the interviews on the video camera, reviewed applications and evaluated financial need. It is so difficult because we all knew that the scholarship would drastically change these girls lives for the better.

After reviewing all the girls applications and interviews, I was inspired by their passion to get an education despite what they deal with at home. I would say I'm the most emotional out of the three of us and I struggled with the decision the most. The girls on the border definitely tore me apart. We couldn't give the scholarship to one girl who has 7 other siblings and really needs the money. I'll admit that I just about cried when I watched her interview again after we had decided not to pick her. She talked about wanting to be a doctor because she wanted to help her community. She also said that if she could talk to President Jakaya Kiwete she would tell him to build hospitals and nursery schools in the villages because some of the people there can't afford to get to Stone Town frequently. Not being able to choose her made me realize the value of raising money for that one extra scholarship.

The even harder part turned out to be telling the girls. We tried to put it as nicely as possible to the girls who didn't receive the scholarship, but it was still extremely difficult. All of them looked so disappointed. But telling the girls who received the scholarships was amazing. One girl couldn't stop smiling and her eyes started to water up. I could tell this was going to alleviate so much financial stress for her. Another girl screamed and couldn't believe that she had actually gotten it. I'm so excited to get to know the scholars better in the next few weeks.

We will be posting scholar bios shortly.