A summary of our success to date

As Penda prepares for her second visa interview, this time at the US embassy in Dakar, Senegal, I wanted to take a moment to highlight the support we have received that has gotten Penda to this point:

• St. Thomas Aquinas College offered Penda a generous scholarship package that would allow her to pursue her dream of an American college education.

• Since March 2018, The Gambian Ambassador to U.S., the Honorable Dawda D. Fadera, has provided me the full support of his position and his embassy. The ambassador is interested in adopting my program to scale it at a national level. He also coordinated an in-person meeting between me and The Gambian First Lady in April. (Click here for more information.)

• The Gambian First Lady, Fatoumatta Bah-Barrow, not only granted me an in-person meeting but she also agreed to support the Starling Sponsorship Program by paying for Penda's airfare. (Click here for more information.)

• New York Senator, Kirsten Gillibrand, provided Penda with an official letter of support to include in her visa application

• Several wonderful families in the Rockland County area were vetted by the Starling Sponsorship Program to act as Penda's host family. They were all ready to warmly welcome Penda into their home and their families.

• Momar Taal, Managing Director of one of the largest food processing companies in The Gambia provided a job offer letter to Penda to include in her visa application. The absence of this document is the reason why most visa applications are denied. It is usually very difficult for student visa applicants to receive a job offer letter prior to their college graduation.

• The West Africa desk at the US State Department also granted me a meeting and was so moved by the project that they helped expedite the scheduling of both visa interviews for Penda.

• On July 23, in a total of 4 hours the parish of Saint Paul - Saint Ann raised the final $3,000 USD necessary to cover all of Penda's miscellaneous financial needs for her four years (health insurance, meal plans, text books, school supplies, etc.) (Click here for more information.)

I wanted to take a moment to recognize and thank all of the individuals who made these milestones possible. You have helped to give Penda the best possible chance of getting her student visa accepted!