UPDATE! (August 31, 2025) We've reached the goal! Actually, we've now surpassed it because I seem to know the BEST HUMANS in the world who have given so generously. SO GENEROUSLY! Thank you! xoxo

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Hello everyone! I'm Abby and I'm raising money on behalf of a young man named Bright. He's now going into his 4th year as a Computer Science student at Copperbelt University in Zambia. 'A Bright Future for Bright!' is a GoFundMe I've created to raise money to cover Bright's university tuition and accommodations. If you're new here, welcome! To all of your wonderful folks who have been showing up for the last few years, thank you and welcome back!

Alright, let's talk about where it all started. I met Bright in 2018 on my first visit to Zambia. At the time Bright was a youth volunteer with the organization I had just started working with. You know how you just connect with some people? How they just sort of stand out to you? That was Bright for me. Perhaps it was his contagious smile and upbeat attitude. I noticed that he was always around, attending the trainings I was leading and sure enough he eventually joined the training team as well. I saw his willingness to learn and grow, his faithfulness and hard work, and also his joy. I just kept thinking: Bright is such a good kid!

One day during our lunch break I remember asking Bright about what he wanted to be and do when he grew up. I've asked hundreds of kids this question over the years and I'm always interested to hear their answer. I'm not sure what I expected to hear, but Bright told me that he wanted to go on to university and study computer science. I was like, alright, go get it! I told him he better take his current studies seriously. He assured me that he was. A few years later he had graduated and that's when we got talking about his plans for university.

From the beginning Bright had his heart set on Copperbelt, but I suggested that he submit applications to multiple universities just to better his chances. We walked through the application process together. Sure enough Bright was accepted into all 3 universities that he had applied to, so his dream of going to Copperbelt University was a reality.

I'm a believer in education and also a believer in helping where I can with what I can. Maybe you're like that, too. (Well, I'm sort of hoping on that if I'm honest!) I knew that promising to cover Bright's tuition wasn't a realistic commitment I could make. So I got thinking about what I could do. If I couldn't pay for it all myself, then maybe a group of us could do it together. So I put aside the awkwardness I felt in putting myself out there on the interwebz and just asked friends and family to join me in supporting Bright's education fund. Once I got over the cringy bit of asking people for money, I realized something truly amazing was happening: people were actually giving! And people have continued to give 3 years in a row. People here in Canada, in England and Scotland, the Netherlands, Germany, the US, and folks from all over the world, have shown up and blown me away by their absolute generosity. More than one person has even thanked me for providing them with an opportunity to give toward something real and good for another person.

Now...to my ask: I'm looking to cover tuition fees (this is the first priority to get covered) and accommodation for Bright's 4th year. Tuition is the same, but accommodations have increased quite a bit actually. Electrical power outages have been really common this past school year, so the increase is to cover getting steady electrical flowing.

Tuition: 32,000ZMW

Accommodation: 21,000ZMW

Total: 53,000ZMW = $3,200CAD (I've rounded it up)

Tuition fees are due September, 5th, so I'll be sending all the funds we've raised to Bright no later than Monday, September 1st.

*As always, I will cover the costs for the Western Union transfer and any fees associated with GoFundMe. I believe in transparency and being a trustworthy person, so once everything is sent I will post screenshots on my Instagram and Facebook accounts showing clearly that Bright received the full funds raised and has paid for his tuition with it. In fact, if you're interested in seeing what was raised, and the receipts from the last 3 years then they are still up on my accounts. On Instagram I've also got a Highlight saved called 'Bright Future' if you're interested in checking that out as well.

On a personal note: For years when I worked in New York and wasn't making a whole lot of money, I got to experience the generosity of people who gave toward me. It was often random, and sometimes I didn't even know the person. Sometimes I'd just be given an envelope with my name on it or so. The support and encouragement from other people really went a long way and encouraged me a lot. As someone who has a lot of familiarity with being un-weathly, I know first hand how someone else's generosity would often meet unseen and unspoken needs and even wants. It was often an answer to prayer that they certainly knew nothing about. Sometimes it was just enough to provide me with a little extra for something I wouldn't have had the luxury of getting for myself. Those people, their generosity throughout many years of my life, really meant a lot and it's obviously stuck with me. It's my hope that Bright can experience that same type of blessing, too. A community of people who are generous and kind toward him without even personally knowing him. People who are rooting for him and invested in his success and cheering him on from somewhere far across the world. I think that's a beautiful thing and I'm inviting you to be a part of it!

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this. Thanks for taking the time to give, to share, to write an encouraging little note for Bright, and for being a kind human out here in the world. Your kindness and generosity is appreciated so much.

Much love,

Abby

P.S. You can follow along and see more updates and videos from myself and Bright here: https://www.instagram.com/abbigailrioux/