News / International
Zimbabwean woman to speak at Martin Luther King Jr Day event
15 Jan 2012 at 10:41hrs | Views
Dr. Tererai Trent, whose moving story of being "the woman who buried her dreams" earned her the designation last May as Oprah Winfrey's favorite guest of all times, will speak at Western Michigan University Wednesday, Jan. 25.
Tererai Trent, proclaimed by Oprah as her all-time favorite guest, will also be the keynote speaker at the Springfield NAACP's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day March and Celebration.
In Springfield, Trent will talk about what Martin Luther King Jr. represents and try to motivate the audience to believe in themselves and possibilities.
When Lela Panagides, chairwoman of the event, saw Trent on "Oprah," she knew she wanted to bring her here.
"This would be a person who can drive a message in Springfield that is positive and uplifting and bring our community together. Her story is so inspiring," Panagides said.
Trent, who grew up in poverty in Zimbabwe, realized one of her goals in December 2009 when she earned a Ph.D. in interdisciplinary evaluation from WMU. She started her adult life as an impoverished cattle-herder who defied a culture that places little value on the contributions of women. She educated herself, setting a path and an example for her own five children and for other women in similar circumstances.
Trent's story was first chronicled on the pages of the New York Times, and in a book, "Half the Sky," by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. An October 2009 episode of "Oprah" placed Trent on the national stage, where she became known as the woman who "buried her dreams."
Both the book and the "Oprah" show detailed how Trent developed a list of goals for herself as a very young woman living in a rural village. Her list was buried in a tin piece behind her home in a field where she herded cattle. Over the next 20 years, she accomplished each goal, retrieving the list each time to cross off the achieved goal and move on to the next one.
Trent plans to return to her nation in the future. Her dreams of building a school there will become a reality, thanks to a $1.5 million donation from Winfrey. The school and an initiative with Save the Children are expected to impact 4,000 children in Zimbabwe.
Tererai Trent, proclaimed by Oprah as her all-time favorite guest, will also be the keynote speaker at the Springfield NAACP's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day March and Celebration.
In Springfield, Trent will talk about what Martin Luther King Jr. represents and try to motivate the audience to believe in themselves and possibilities.
When Lela Panagides, chairwoman of the event, saw Trent on "Oprah," she knew she wanted to bring her here.
"This would be a person who can drive a message in Springfield that is positive and uplifting and bring our community together. Her story is so inspiring," Panagides said.
Trent, who grew up in poverty in Zimbabwe, realized one of her goals in December 2009 when she earned a Ph.D. in interdisciplinary evaluation from WMU. She started her adult life as an impoverished cattle-herder who defied a culture that places little value on the contributions of women. She educated herself, setting a path and an example for her own five children and for other women in similar circumstances.
Trent's story was first chronicled on the pages of the New York Times, and in a book, "Half the Sky," by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. An October 2009 episode of "Oprah" placed Trent on the national stage, where she became known as the woman who "buried her dreams."
Both the book and the "Oprah" show detailed how Trent developed a list of goals for herself as a very young woman living in a rural village. Her list was buried in a tin piece behind her home in a field where she herded cattle. Over the next 20 years, she accomplished each goal, retrieving the list each time to cross off the achieved goal and move on to the next one.
Trent plans to return to her nation in the future. Her dreams of building a school there will become a reality, thanks to a $1.5 million donation from Winfrey. The school and an initiative with Save the Children are expected to impact 4,000 children in Zimbabwe.
Source - newsleader
