Help Robert Shoot for His Dreams
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About The Athletes’ Perspective
With the pandemic raging around the world, many things have changed. Despite training and competitions being affected, our love and passion for sports remain the same. The Athletes’ Perspective is a blog that interviews athletes from around the world and shares their stories. To find out more about The Athletes’ Perspective blog, we welcome you to our website. This fundraiser campaign is for our most recent interviewee, Robert Ogola.
About Robert Ogola
Robert Ogola is a 19-year-old basketball player from Kenya. He is a passionate, 6’ 7” basketball player in the small forward position who is currently on the Kenya junior national team.
In the summer, Robert was accepted (see link for more proof of acceptance) to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College for their basketball team. He will be joining their basketball team in January. This is the best opportunity he has ever been presented. Unfortunately, it is extremely expensive for an international student, and his family simply doesn’t have the resources. As much as they would all love to support him, they are unable too. He has reached out to other friends, but they have their own financial issues to worry about. Robert will need to arrive on campus before January 11, and will need to complete the VISA process within a few weeks. More about Robert and the finances needed are outlined below.
His story:
When Robert was in elementary, a friend introduced him to basketball and he fell in love with it. He loved it so much that he started having dreams of one day playing for the NBA. None of his friends had ever dared to dream that big, but Robert is crazy enough to do so. And he wants it to be more than just a dream. He wants it to become reality.
Unfortunately, as an athlete growing up in Kenya, his family was unable to support him financially. Nonetheless, they encouraged him to pursue his dreams. Despite not having the proper footwear or the vast amount of opportunities that others may have, Robert didn’t let that stop him from practicing. He would wake up at 3 am and practice for a couple of hours while others are sleeping. When others left the court after training to go for dinner, he stayed to practice his ball handling, conditioning, or shooting. He works tirelessly every day just to improve his game and to do what he loves. As a result, Robert became the team captain of the national team and was named the MVP from 2017-2019.
To read his full story, click here .
He needs your help.
Now, he needs your help to go to the US. When he was 16, Robert had missed an opportunity to go to the States because of financial issues. Help stop this from happening again. The amount of money he needs is outlined below. Support his journey so he can make his family, his coach, his friends, and himself proud. Every dollar will make a huge difference in his life.
VISA interview: $250 USD (approximately $345 CAD)
SEVIS fee: $350 USD (approximately $465 CAD)
Plane ticket: approximately $1000 USD (approximately $1300 CAD)
TOTAL: $1600 USD or (approximately $2100 CAD)
Other fees can include, but are not limited to, bus fares and tuition fees. Note that there may be additional conversion fees.
*Any extra donations will help Robert pay for his school fees, especially for the first semester. An estimate of the cost for a full year of attendance at Saint Mary of the Woods College is $44 000 USD. He has received a scholarship of $26 000 (SMWC doesn’t offer full scholarships), but he will still need to pay for the remaining $18 000. Although Robert will be looking for a job once he arrives, it wouldn’t be fast or easy for that to happen.
Your support will be greatly appreciated! To spread the word, please consider sharing the link to the fundraiser on your social media.
Below is Robert's acceptance letter:
With the pandemic raging around the world, many things have changed. Despite training and competitions being affected, our love and passion for sports remain the same. The Athletes’ Perspective is a blog that interviews athletes from around the world and shares their stories. To find out more about The Athletes’ Perspective blog, we welcome you to our website. This fundraiser campaign is for our most recent interviewee, Robert Ogola.
About Robert Ogola
Robert Ogola is a 19-year-old basketball player from Kenya. He is a passionate, 6’ 7” basketball player in the small forward position who is currently on the Kenya junior national team.
In the summer, Robert was accepted (see link for more proof of acceptance) to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College for their basketball team. He will be joining their basketball team in January. This is the best opportunity he has ever been presented. Unfortunately, it is extremely expensive for an international student, and his family simply doesn’t have the resources. As much as they would all love to support him, they are unable too. He has reached out to other friends, but they have their own financial issues to worry about. Robert will need to arrive on campus before January 11, and will need to complete the VISA process within a few weeks. More about Robert and the finances needed are outlined below.
His story:
When Robert was in elementary, a friend introduced him to basketball and he fell in love with it. He loved it so much that he started having dreams of one day playing for the NBA. None of his friends had ever dared to dream that big, but Robert is crazy enough to do so. And he wants it to be more than just a dream. He wants it to become reality.
Unfortunately, as an athlete growing up in Kenya, his family was unable to support him financially. Nonetheless, they encouraged him to pursue his dreams. Despite not having the proper footwear or the vast amount of opportunities that others may have, Robert didn’t let that stop him from practicing. He would wake up at 3 am and practice for a couple of hours while others are sleeping. When others left the court after training to go for dinner, he stayed to practice his ball handling, conditioning, or shooting. He works tirelessly every day just to improve his game and to do what he loves. As a result, Robert became the team captain of the national team and was named the MVP from 2017-2019.To read his full story, click here .
He needs your help.
Now, he needs your help to go to the US. When he was 16, Robert had missed an opportunity to go to the States because of financial issues. Help stop this from happening again. The amount of money he needs is outlined below. Support his journey so he can make his family, his coach, his friends, and himself proud. Every dollar will make a huge difference in his life.
VISA interview: $250 USD (approximately $345 CAD)
SEVIS fee: $350 USD (approximately $465 CAD)
Plane ticket: approximately $1000 USD (approximately $1300 CAD)
TOTAL: $1600 USD or (approximately $2100 CAD)
Other fees can include, but are not limited to, bus fares and tuition fees. Note that there may be additional conversion fees.
*Any extra donations will help Robert pay for his school fees, especially for the first semester. An estimate of the cost for a full year of attendance at Saint Mary of the Woods College is $44 000 USD. He has received a scholarship of $26 000 (SMWC doesn’t offer full scholarships), but he will still need to pay for the remaining $18 000. Although Robert will be looking for a job once he arrives, it wouldn’t be fast or easy for that to happen.
Your support will be greatly appreciated! To spread the word, please consider sharing the link to the fundraiser on your social media.
Below is Robert's acceptance letter:
Organizer and beneficiary
Athletes Perspective
Organizer
Calgary, AB
Hong Xing
Beneficiary
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