When she thrives, we all thrive
Together this giving season, we can make a difference that ripples outward to benefit everyone.
Talent Tokoda: Newly qualified doctor!
We are thrilled to share the news that Talent Tokoda, a young woman supported by Camfed through secondary school and university, has just completed her training to become a fully qualified doctor.
Talent’s journey from her rural home to Zimbabwe’s top medical school required inspiring perseverance, a long-term investment in her education, and the support of her entire community. In Talent’s words, “I will always say hard times never kill, think differently and see possibilities beyond what you are now. Now I am looking at myself with so much pride and I can’t hide the joy exploding in my heart.”
When Talent was eight years old, her father died. When she was 10, her mother left her and her two siblings in their rural village to look for work. Talent’s aunt took the children in, but she struggled to earn enough money as a shopkeeper to send them all to elementary school. When Talent graduated from middle school, her aunt told her she couldn’t afford to send her to high school.
She was devastated:
I wanted to change my life through education. I didn’t want to continue to struggle, being poor all the time.
It was at this stage that Talent was identified by her community as among the most vulnerable children, and Camfed committed to supporting her through her education – guaranteed support that she could count on for the long-term.
Talent graduated from high school and now medical school at the University of Zimbabwe. “I don’t want to disappoint those who are supporting me,” she said during her medical school studies. “I have faith the gates to success are wide open. I just have to walk through them.
In a speech last July at the launch of 24,000 new bursary places supported by Camfed in Zimbabwe, Talent remarked, “Having 24,000 girls like the little insecure and unsure girl I was getting the same chance is wonderful promise. I foresee communities and our country going far. I see destinies changed and futures brightened. The sky is always the limit when you grab the chance with both hands and you have the support of those closest to you.”
Camfed celebrates each individual’s success, knowing they will also transform their families, communities and countries. Congratulations, Talent, on this incredible achievement!