When Sarnaver was a student attending the Loise Nanyuki girls High School in Nanyuki, Kenya, the PA-MOJA team invited her to join the Butterfly Effect; an online learning and sharing platform because she was a leader, a top student and was the head girl at Loise Girls’ School. Sarnaver expressed her initial excitement to learn and connect with Canadian students, saying “I was among the lucky girls who were chosen for the program, even with no prior exposure to a computer. It was an opportunity that introduced technology to my world, allowing me to express my ideas openly, develop research skills, and more so, connect with Canadian students, both online and in person.” One of Sarnaver’s inquiry projects focussed on the benefits of bacteria in the human body, which led to her to discover her passion for science.
Two weeks before her final high school exam, Sarnaver was sent home from school, because her school fees had not been paid. “This was the lowest point for me. The future I once thought bright, had started fading away. Fortunately, the PA-MOJA team was visiting my neighbourhood, and spotted me; they recognized me from the Butterfly Effect program, and questioned why I wasn’t in school. I was embarrassed to explain why I wasn’t in school. I didn’t want to seem needy or to ask for charity.” The next day Sarnaver received a call to go back to school. Through consultation with the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, it was decided that PA-MOJA could clear Sarnaver’s fees so she could finish school . “You can imagine the joy that this news brought.”
In September 2016, Sarnaver was accepted to attend the Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology in Western Kenya to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Biotechnology. Sarnavar continued to support PA-MOJA throughout her undergraduate degree by being a mentor on Butterfly Effect, speaking at PA-MOJA scholarship mentorships days and tutoring some of PA-MOJA’s scholarship students when they were on school holidays. Sarnaver graduated among the top students in her class from university. As of 2022, Sarnaver is pursuing a two year Master’s degree in Medical Life Sciences, specializing in Molecular Genetics at the University of Iceland.
Once she has completed her university education, Sarnaver hopes to return to Kenya to help other deserving students achieve their goals and support their families and the community at large.
“Being part of PA-MOJA has been a life-changing experience for me, and I hope other deserving Kenyan students get such a fantastic opportunity. Thank you, PA-MOJA community, for your love and unfailing support.”
Additional information from Sarnaver:
I have been thinking of the best way to Support PA-MOJA as an Alumna for years.
When I visited Canada I got a first hand experience on how dedicated and selfless the PA-MOJA team was and I was so inspired by how much the team cared about our community growth and student’s education, and always wondered what I can do to help. So when I got a chance to ask Alison for advice and she asked if I would like to be a committee member, I was excited to join the team.
These are some of the roles I have in the committee:
To give a Kenyan community perspective
To be a student mentor and to offer encouragement to Kenyan youth.
To help with language barrier issues.
To represent Kenyan student voice having gone through the Kenyan school system with PA-MOJA’s help.
