My grandmother is a Russian immigrant and, as a child, I always dreamed of going to Russia and opening a nonprofit there. I learned Russian as a teenager through studying books in the hopes of moving there.
All our Russian friends told us we would never be able to help. But through determination and a strong desire, we were able to realize our dreams of building a shelter and helping hard-core street children leave street life.
We started working together with the city administration to help orphans. When we saw the needs of the homeless children, that is where our focus turned and continues to this day.
This option was the only one I could find at the time and it worked out perfectly. I was able to continue to work full-time with a charity my brother and I co-founded and attend a California community college simultaneously. I was able to study at night and work during the day.
