Katie Meyler’s childhood wasn’t easy. She was poor growing up in Phillipsburg, New Jersey. She didn’t have the money to fit in and escape her sometimes traumatic home life. Then, she went to Central America and experienced real poverty. She met “kids with big smiles with no shoes” and was inspired to do something about it. When she was nervous about starting her own organization, More Than Me, her friends encouraged her to “get over herself” — because it isn’t about her, it’s about them. Watch Katie’s amazing story in her exclusive video for ONE:
It’s about Elizabeth, who was able to go to pre-K, kindergarten and now first grade because of Katie. Elizabeth now wants to be a doctor. In post-conflict Liberia, where the official employment rate is 15 percent, most people subsist by selling things. Some people get by on selling fruit or firewood from a cart or under a big umbrella, but even that requires some investment. For girls in Monrovia’s West Point slum, when you have nothing, you sell yourself. More Than Me helps girls, some of whom were child prostitutes, paying their school fees and providing day care, meals and health care.
For the next week, thousands of charities will compete for a share of $3 million in the Chase Community Giving contest. The Facebook-based voting contest will award one grand prize of $250,000 –- money that would allow More Than Me to put 100 girls in school for seven years. The four charities that come in second to fifth place get $100,000, and the rest through the top 25 get $25,000. This contest is a huge opportunity for Katie, who has been effectively homeless for two years, relying on a network of friends for a couch to sleep on when she’s stateside. More Than Me has been holding solid at #11 but there is some stiff competition out there and votes are flooding in — so vote for More Than Me, then share Katie’s amazing story with your Facebook friends!
To vote, first “Like” Chase Community Giving, then vote for More Than Me!
Can’t get enough of Katie? Send her a tweet at @KatieMeyler and watch her last video for ONE here.
