Help Emmanuel Harawa finish his Canadian education

University student.
Varsity athlete.
R&B artist.
Teammate.
Friend.
Brother.
Son.

All of these labels can be used to describe Emmanuel Harawa. I call him a best friend, a roommate, part of my extended family.

Emmanuel is a 21 year old third year Sport Management student at Brock University from Nairobi, Kenya. His parents currently live in Malawi, Africa. Wanting the best education and future opportunities for their children, his parents decided to send himself, and his two younger sisters, to Canada for school.  His youngest sister, Anna, attends Columbia College in Hamilton, and his other sister, Sarah, attends the University of Waterloo. 

Anyone who knows Emmanuel knows that he is incredibly kind-hearted, intelligent, talented, and hardworking. His smile can brighten the day of anyone he spends time with. His work ethic as a student, an athlete, and an artist is rivalled by none. He truly has been thriving during his time at university.

Academically, he is a Dean's Honour List student and an Academic All-Canadian. 

Athletically, he is one of the captains of the Brock University Track & Field team and one of the best runners the team has ever produced. He is currently ranked 15th in the Canadian USports rankings for the 300m. At Brock, he is a member of the record-holding 4x200m relay, 2nd all-time in the 300m, 5th all-time in high jump, and 10th all-time in the 60m.

Artistically, he is an extremely talented self-made R&B songwriter and artist whose music can be found on all major music platforms, including Apple Music, iTunes, Spotify, and SoundCloud under the name Harawa.

Recently, Emmanuel's smooth journey as a student became unsteady when his father, the sole provider of his family, had an unexpected loss of income. His hard-earned income was used to support all three of his children here in Canada and pay for their education, rent, and living expenses. With the loss of financial support from home, Emmanuel is facing a heavy financial burden and needs help in order to afford to remain in Canada and complete his education at Brock University. 

This is where he needs our help.

As a full-time student and full-time athlete with classes, practices, and competitions every weekend, Emmanuel's schedule does not leave much availability for a part time job. Additionally, his international study permit allows him to work a maximum of just 20 hours per week, which is not sufficient to support his tuition, rent, and living expenses. 

Without help financially, Emmanuel will not be able to stay in Canada to complete his degree at Brock, continue competing for Brock Track & Field, or further his education with postgraduate studies. He will not only be leaving behind his unfinished education, but would be forced to leave behind his friends, teammates, professional connections, and musical opportunities.

Emmanuel is an extremely humble person who simply would not accept help from others until he has exhausted all of his options. He already has an academic scholarship of $2500 per year applied to his tuition. Due to the timing of his loss of financial support, he is unable to apply for any additional scholarships he qualifies for as their deadlines for the school year are already closed. He has already applied for additional scholarships for next year, but none are guaranteed to be awarded to him. Because he is an international student, he does not qualify for the Ontario Student Assistant Program or other student loans.

He has been struggling financially in silence for months while he tried to make ends meet on his own. His $10,800 tuition for this semester is unpaid. His rent for this month is overdue, with next month's bills looming overhead. He finally decided to confide in his close friends, and we have encouraged him to reach out to the community for help.

He needs our help, and he needs it now.

Any donations will be so appreciated. Immediate donations will go towards paying off his tuition debt for this year, as well as helping cover his rent throughout the semester until he is able to work. Unable to know when or if his family's financial situation will turn around, all additional funds raised will go towards his final year of tuition, and to helping support his younger sisters here with him in Canada.

Every single donation helps bring Emmanuel closer to finishing his education and achieving his dreams. We cannot thank you enough for your generosity and kindness.

Harawa performing his song Chemistry at Kaleidoscope March 2017. 

Emmanuel Harawa--one of Brock Track & Field's finest.