In It for the Long Haul: Why Carrie Has Believed in IAWA From the Start

Most people find IAWA and then decide to believe in it. Not Carrie Miller Brandt — she believed in our mission and the impact we could have, even before we had a name. She and our Founder, Meisha Robinson met as Peace Corps Volunteers in Benin, West Africa, years before IAWA, and what Carrie saw in those early conversations stayed with her: a woman with a clear-eyed understanding of what young people needed and a relentless determination to do something about it. And when IAWA finally launched, she was already in.

Travel PartnersGuest BloggerOctober 8, 2026donors, monthly giving, fundraising, Benin, Peace CorpsComment

Shaping the Next Chapter: Welcoming Morreenie Legote to the IAWA Team

We’re excited to welcome Morreenie Legote to the I Am, We Are (IAWA) team! Her journey with IAWA began in May 2025 as a Research Assistant for the 10-Year Impact Study. In this role, she conducted focus groups and questionnaires with both program beneficiaries and facilitators to assess IAWA’s overall impact over the past decade. The insights gathered from this study are helping shape the future direction of the organization. Now, as a full-time Operations and Development Coordinator, she is committed to driving IAWA’s mission forward and ensuring the next ten years are even more impactful/

Travel Partners, Walk with UsMorreenie LegoteSeptember 15, 2025nia circle, team membersComment

Our Community Has Expanded

We’ve had some new additions and some heartfelt farewells in our community at the top of this year. Find out who are our newest community members, meet our newest Directors Circle members, and learn about our new Impact Assessment Team.

Travel PartnersGuest BloggerJanuary 21, 2022nia circle, community, directors circle, Board of DirectorsComment

I Am, We Are Receives $10,000 from National Peace Corps Association

I Am, We Are (IAWA) is pleased to announce that National Peace Corps Association (NPCA) has made a generous contribution of $10,000 to directly support IAWA’s South African participants in the Morafe* Leadership Development Programme. The grant from NPCA’s Community Fund comes at a critical moment, as the COVID pandemic continues to affect young students. The recent return of South Africa to level four quarantine resulted in school program cancellations, thus affecting students' social and mental well-being.

IAWA Welcomes DJ Holla

Jason Holley, also known as DJ Holla, is flying in from North Carolina, USA to support the IAWA Ambassador’s Battle of the DJs Saturday September 22 at Robega Community Hall. Jason shared, “I’ve always had a passion for helping others, building future generations, and passing along valued lessons to the youth. Being able to be apart of such a great program, event, and to assist a fellow Hawk was the chance I needed to give back.”

Travel PartnersMeisha RobinsonSeptember 20, 2018Comment

I Am Man Conference

This open male only forum allowed the young men in attendance to truly open up and share some of the obstacles and challenges they were currently facing. They were able to see they were not alone and there were others around them they could turn to.

Our Visible Figures

A big round of applause is in order for Mr. Dave Ryan, the Royal Royal Bafokeng Institute's Numeracy Lead and Maths Teacher Extraordinaire. We would like to thank Mr. Dave for his virtual tutoring assistance. Over the last year, Mr. Dave has been assisting our Ambassadors with maths tutoring.

Travel PartnersMeisha RobinsonFebruary 20, 2018maths, RBI, Dave Ryan Comment