Name: Rooha Hagharmehdiabadi
TAC Project Name: Pangea Fundraising
Number Impacted: 20
Tell us about your Take Action Challenge. Why did you start this project, what impact did you want to make?
I originally had two ideas. The first one was to create an after school program for my friends and the goal of the club was to serve as a safe space for them to share whatever is on their mind and topics relevant to young women such as beauty standards or toxic relationships. The second idea was to raise funds for Pangea’s Kenya School Sponsorship.
What did you accomplish?
I raised almost $200 for Pangea from my gofundme page!
How did you overcome obstacles?
I overestimated how much free time I would have because in the summer it was so easy to plan things, but when I actually wanted to do them I didn’t have the time. Also, I overestimated how much people could donate. Most of the people I shared my gofundme page to were friends and family who aren’t in the situation to donate. And when talking about possibly starting a club, a lot of my friends were just not interested in it and were busy.
If you could advice to a future YWLC participant about her Take Action Challenge, what would it be?
Be realistic because it is so easy to make random plans that your community doesn’t actually need or that you don’t have time for. So be realistic – don’t overestimate or underestimate. It’s okay to have to change your plan and to fail. It’s a learning process and pretty much everyone’s first time doing a project like this so take it easy on yourself and just have fun.
