Welcome to the 3rd edition of Spotlight by Let's Talk Nation. Hope you've been enjoying the weekly feature so far and have been encouraged to start making a difference in your community. We were all created as answers to the world's problems; it is essential to know your why and how you can use it to bring about change. Philanthropy is one of the many ways people use to make a difference in their communities and today we are spotlighting a great philanthropist and humanitarian, Seyi Oluyole. She is the founder of the non-profit organization, Dream Nurture Foundation. She started this organization when she took notice of some kids who lived by the beach in Lagos, Nigeria, that had no means to good education.
Seyi Oluyole & The kids from Dream Nurture Foundation
They were street kids and looked for ways to make a living. Some of them cleaned gutters to make ends meet, while others washed dishes for local restaurants. They barely made it to high school and the girls were at risk for unwanted pregnancies at such a young age.The houses they lived in was built out of wood with no toilets or bathrooms. Moved by her passion to make a difference, Seyi decided that she will help these kids through arts, especially dance. She used dance to lure the kids; promising them that if they agreed to go back to school, then she will teach them how to dance and they will perform and get prizes for their performance. As children, you know they were thrilled to go back to school so that they could dance. That was how she was able to get a good number of children off the streets of Lagos. Whatever proceeds they realized from dancing, she put back into the organization for the welfare of the children.
She started this initiative as a teenager and convinced her parents for some of the children to come live with them and continue their education. With the parents’ consent, her family allowed for the children to stay with them. The dance arm of the organization (Dream Catchers) was shot into the limelight recently when famous people like Rihanna, Naomi Campbell, Sean Combs (p.diddy) and John Boyega, featured them on their Instagram page. They were thrilled at the way the children danced and wanted to be a part of the extraordinary work Seyi was doing. Naomi and John visited them while they were in Nigeria on business and encouraged Ms. Seyi to keep doing what she is so great at doing.
The organization provides food, shelter, clothing, and education for the kids as well as school supplies. They aim to nurture the dream that every child has, so they can make a life for themselves in the future and break that cycle of poverty that they were born into. As pointed out in this statement from their website "The Dream Nurture Foundation believes in the validity of the dreams; every child deserves an opportunity to succeed. Our faith in Christ teaches us is a gift to the world at large, irrespective of gender, faith or race.” They are helping every child in their surrounding areas that are in need, without discrimination.
At only 26 years old, Ms. Seyi Oluyole has been able to achieve a lot of things through her foundation. Through the help of her team, she has put smiles on a lot of these children’s faces. These children now have a second opportunity at life and can now go ahead to achieve their God-given purpose. Some of the children she started out helping while she was a teenager, are now in college. On the heart of God, are those who can’t care for themselves, and His earnest desire is for believers to remember to help the poor.
"If one of your brothers becomes poor and falls into poverty among you, then you shall help him."
To learn more about why the spotlight is on Ms. Seyi Oluyole and her foundation, visit dreamnurturefoundation.org. There you can learn how to donate, volunteer and be a part of the great work that they do.
Seyi Oluyole featured on BBC pidgin
Dream Catchers dance Youtube channel
Comment below if you have any further questions on how you can be a part of this organization, or if you know anyone who is making a difference in their community and will like for them to be featured here. Have a blessed week, and I hope you are motivated by this post to start making a difference where you are. Don't forget to subscribe to never miss an update!