Today we’d like to introduce you to Brooke Sulahian.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Brooke. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Hope for Our Sisters, Inc. was born out of a profound and life-changing reaction to two powerful books. I read The Hole in Our Gospel, by Richard Stearns, during the fall of 2009, and Half the Sky, by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, during the summer of 2010. I believe God used these challenging books to burst open the protective “bubble of safety” in which I lived, help me see the world beyond my immediate vision, and allow my heart to break due to the devastating and worldwide oppression of women and girls. I simultaneously saw the hope in the hearts of women and girls as I learned of their resilience when given the chance to heal, speak, grow, fight back, learn, and contribute. I felt called to both raise awareness around the crisis of fistula (birthing injury) and organize a group of women and men to advocate for women and girls suffering under the weight of this hope-destroying condition.
After serving as a volunteer group for one year and funding fistula repair surgeries, we established Hope for Our Sisters as a 501(c)(3). We did this to focus on the prevention of fistula and increased access to quality and timely maternal care. We saw that treatment through surgery was simply not enough. We wanted to partner with our sisters and their daughters before they got injured. Our work has grown to include hospital and clinic partnerships in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Nepal.
We are actively seeking to eradicate fistula and create avenues for health and hope by way of a three-pronged, cyclical approach – prevention, treatment, and empowerment. Our ultimate goal is for hope to be renewed in each woman and girl’s heart and for each of our sisters to discover and unleash her potential to be a positive change-agent within her family and community. We believe women hold up “half the sky.”
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has been a mix. There have been ultimate highs where I have sensed God’s affirmation of this calling and deep lows where I have questioned if we were making any progress or if I were fit for this role. Highs and lows have occurred during two trips to Angola and one to DR Congo. (I have a planned trip to Nepal in 2020.) First, the trips always break my heart as I see how our precious sisters are forced to simply exist in the margins of life. However, as I interact with these women, the very sisters for which we were called to advocate and partner, I encounter strength, resilience, dignity, courage, and hope. Meeting the women who had found their way into my heart through two books is a gift that I cherish even though their paths have involved suffering and despair. Lastly, fistula and maternal health can be very messy issues. We deal with maternal mortality (death in childbirth), death of children (the child dies 90% of the time fistula develops), incontinence, and far-away countries. At times, these can make it difficult to engage others in our work but we forge ahead in hope knowing more will say yes than no.
We’d love to hear more about this organization.
Hope for Our Sisters is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that advocates for women and girls suffering from and at risk for obstetric and traumatic fistula. We share their stories and raise support for the effective treatment and prevention of this hope-destroying condition. We partner with doctors, foundations, and others committed to bringing an end to fistula and to caring for these women and girls. Currently, our work is mostly based in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Nepal. We seek to eradicate fistula by way of a three-pronged, cyclical approach – prevention, treatment, and empowerment.
Our mission is generating hope through women’s health and empowerment. Our vision is a world where women are valued, live to their fullest potential, and are positive change-agents within their communities. We believe in this future and we pray and strive for this daily.
We are most proud of our decision to focus on prevention. This also sets us apart in our “space”. While prevention can be hard to measure, we see this as the best solution. We want to focus on the actual causes underlying the lack of maternal health care rather than only the symptoms. Our bold decision has been honored by investors and donors who also believe in this approach. We also see our sisters in Angola, the DRC, and Nepal as partners. They are fully capable to be change-agents and leaders, but their injuries and the related social stigma pushes them to the margins. We want to partner with them in such a way that they can create the type of social change that will play a role in the overall goal of providing access to quality health care for generations to come.
We will always fund fistula surgeries where the funds are not available, but prevention currently receives 50% of our funding. Our third focus area, and also one of great pride, is empowerment. This word can get overused, but Hope for Our Sisters invests in the women themselves through skills training, education, literacy, etc. so each of our sisters can share their skills with those at home, build their lives, and contribute to their families and larger communities.
Lastly, we are also proud that we provide avenues for those local to us to reach across the ocean through their time, talents and treasures. We believe everyone truly wants to be part of something bigger than themselves and to do good, but they need to find what that is. We provide the chance to impact others they may never meet in a way that will not only generate hope in one of our partner countries, but it can also be a very powerful experience for their own lives here in the Boston area. Sharing our resources can transform our hearts.
What were you like growing up?
I have always had a strong justice meter. I used to cheer for the underdog in all sports. I even felt sorry for the small water tower in a nearby Texas town when a new, larger one was built. I very much enjoyed my friendships and sports. I always found myself with a strong group of friends. I played soccer and softball in California and Texas, then turned to competitive tennis. Speaking of competitive, that is part of my DNA as well. When someone would tell me something could not be done, I proved them wrong. I was a very joyful child until our move from California to Texas. Although it was the right move, it was a very hard adjustment for me… Texas felt like another country. I found my way back to joy, but can certainly relate to those who have felt they were on the outside looking in. I have always enjoyed reading various types of books and writing poetry. When I was about seven or eight, my first career dream was to be the first professional football referee. My father got me a whistle that I wore around my neck. I think I wore it for a year. I also enjoyed make-believe as a child… it was fun being creative.
Pricing:
- $600 funds a fistula repair surgery or cesarean delivery (C-section)
- $1,000 funds a year worth of sewing supplies and furniture needed to enhance the sewing center, which will continue the skill training of the women while waiting for recovering from treatment
- $5,000 will support an emergency maternal health fund or ultrasound empowerment program for one hospital for one year, which plays a key role in the prevention of fistula and resulting death of children.
Contact Info:
- Address: 15 Lincoln St., #228, Wakefield, MA 01880
- Website: http://hopeforoursisters.org
- Phone: 781-399-0202
- Email: info@hopeforoursisters.org
- Instagram: brookehfos
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Hope-for-Our-Sisters-Inc-163363490394768/
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