Mercy's Story: A Mentor’s Leadership and Soccer Skills Strengthen Her Community

Mercy is an ambitious young leader and Educate! Mentor from Soroti, Uganda. When sharing how she has navigated the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, she’s quick to note this isn’t the first time she’s embarked on a journey full of uncertainty. When Mercy first started attending a new school three hours from her home, she was deeply homesick. But by greeting each new day with a sense of possibility, Mercy faced her fears and built a strong community of peers. “Some of my happiest memories are the moments I spent with my friends at school, passing time together with fun activities, especially engaging in sport competitions,” says Mercy. After adjusting to life at her new school, it didn’t take long before Mercy began to exercise her strengths as a budding young leader. She sought out opportunities to step into student leadership roles, and her love of learning even led to a scholarship and the opportunity to participate in a district-level leadership competition.

When schools closed abruptly due to COVID-19, Mercy was worried that she would lose her momentum, and most of all, her community. Back at home, Mercy looked for ways to stay engaged with her education and came across Educate!’s VIP Bootcamp, our distance learning model. While she had always thought of herself as a leader, she now began to envision herself as an entrepreneur, putting skills from the Bootcamp into practice launching her own shop providing mobile money services.

But Mercy didn’t stop there. After excelling in the VIP Bootcamp as a participant, she set out to further develop her skills as an Educate! Mentor, supporting other young people in Educate!’s distance learning activities. “[Being a Mentor] has helped me to improve my communication skills and has also built my confidence in leading teams, even when we are not all in the same geographic setting,” says Mercy. “Because of the training I received. I felt empowered to get involved in other community activities to support more young people during this time.” Today, Mercy provides counseling to youth at her church and brings her peers together for community building through the initiative she started called the Pamba Women’s Soccer Association (PAWOSA).

Mercy put the Bootcamp into practice as she launched her own Community Service Action Project: PAWOSA. This part of the curriculum encourages youth to set up projects with a positive social or environmental impact, and Mercy’s initiative combines her passion for leadership and love of sports. She aims to use PAWOSA as an innovative new pathway to problem solving: “My community has a high degree of division based on tribalism,” she says. PAWOSA brings together women and young people throughout the community to form connections through sports. The trust and community formed through sport allows us to work together on other projects, like developing a village savings scheme and supporting community members in need.” When sharing her vision for the future, Mercy says:

“If I had all the resources in the world, I would use them to support the marginalized people in my community. I think if we invested in everyone, everyone could contribute to the community and pay it forward.”

In the face of immense challenges, Mercy has leveraged her skills for good and continues to bring her community together: “I am looking forward to the possibilities the future brings for new opportunities and for more progress toward unity and equity in my community.”