Strength TogetHER 12- Session 1


12th June, 2021

" There's no limit to what we, as woman can accomplish."- Michelle Obama

With the very motto of women empowerment, Lokopakar, a organization working for the well being of youth, had launched a program Strength TogetHER a year ago in December, 2019. Originally targeted for outdoor learning, Lokopakar now, has been running four virtual interactive programs due to the prevailing lock down and chaos. The programs being run include Mentorship(Margadarshan), Mental Health Series, UDAAN and Strength togetHER.
   
Strength TogetHER operates in cohorts (groups) to guide young girls in the path of self-love, self-growth and self-confidence. Women, as far as the history holds, have always been found suppressed and "taught" their limits. Here in Strength TogetHER, we break the stereotypes and grow at our own pace breaking the chains forbidding us from flying.

Our very first session of Cohort 12 , the Introductory Session, had a participation of 20 wonderful girls. Our members from our back end team were present to make us feel welcome and homely. Our very own Aastha di provided us a brief introduction about LOKOPAKAR and its programs ; Margadarshan, Strength TogetHER, Udaan and Mental Health series. Our other senior, Binisha di, went ahead and gave us detailed information about Strength TogetHER, followed by Manaswi di sharing her experiences of being a former coordinator of cohort 5.

After knowing about LOKOPAKAR and it's history, we went on to have a short introduction round of the participants and then to break the ice, we played a fetching game where the one who fetched the highest number of things would win. And interestingly, we had two winners. The game not only broke the ice but also spread laughter and joy in the session. The session turned out to be really interactive and fun.
 
I, the coordinator of cohort-12, was overwhelmed by the initiation of this cohort and active participation of members. Looking at the youths of today being change makers and taking steps for the betterment of our society and country really inspires me to work hard so that someday I too will be able to bring a change. Getting to meet such lovely souls and the fact that we would be sharing a journey of 10 sessions and more had me really excited. I have a deep rooted love for writing and music thus, preparing for this blog was really a good learning experience. The journey from a shy, introverted participant of this program to being a cohort coordinator made me realise how much Strength TogetHER has helped me change for the good. 
Strength TogetHER has been a huge life-changer for many girls and we are working to make it reach a larger audience so that every girl would be able to make an impact in her life, in the society, and reach heights.

And just like Michelle Obama said, there is really no limit to what we, as a woman can accomplish.

Written by : Nirjara Shrestha
Edited by: Aastha Shrestha (LOKOPAKAR)

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