8/26/2025 Kenya (International Christian Concern) — For Sarah, a 21-year-old from Isiolo, Kenya, higher education was once a distant dream overshadowed by fear, rejection, and persecution.

Raised in a region where Christianity was a minority faith, Sarah and her mother faced hostility for openly declaring their faith. Her mother’s unwavering convictions made them targets in their community and their extended family. They endured harassment, social exclusion, and beatings from Sarah’s father. Eventually, Sarah’s father chased her and her mother out of their home, forcing them to stay with a local church family.

Sarah’s dream of earning a degree felt out of reach; her mother struggled just to keep food on the table, making academic fees seem like a distant luxury.

“School was my dream,” she said, “but it felt out of reach because we had nothing.”

Sarah’s life changed when International Christian Concern (ICC) discovered her through our community outreach efforts. Recognizing her resilience and academic potential, an ICC staff member sponsored her first-year tuition for a bachelor’s degree in education arts at Tharaka University.

“When one of their staff came to the university and paid all my entire first year tuition fee, I cried,” Sarah said. “It was like God opened a door I thought was locked forever.”

The organization covered her tuition, textbooks, and a small stipend, allowing Sarah to focus fully on her studies.

Despite her past scars, she found strength in her faith and the encouragement of her mentors at ICC.  “Every time I felt like giving up, I remembered the people who believed in me,” she shared.

Her dedication paid off when she aced her first-year final exams. “I never thought I’d get this far,” Sarah said, smiling. “Now I want to teach children to dream big, no matter what they face.

“The help I received didn’t just pay my fees; it gave me peace of mind, dignity, and the motivation to work even harder. I studied every time knowing someone believed in me.”

Today, as she prepares to start her second year at university in September, Sarah is excelling not just academically, but also growing spiritually and mentally.

“I want to be a teacher not just to share knowledge, but also to be a voice of hope, just like ICC was and is to me,” she said. “They changed my story, and now I want to work hard so that at the end of my studies, I can help others change.”

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