Stella Damasus

I must tell you that what I saw was so heart wrenching that I broke down. The girls in the ward were between 10 and 14 and they were all mothers. Their kids had HIV, some of them had Vesico Vagina Fistula, VVF, and some had surgery to repair the effects of the abortions that had been done.

I came back to my own country and then felt like wool had been removed from my eyes because I started to meet little girls who were in so much trouble.

We are worrying about oil, business, aviation, power, government etc; meanwhile our future is fast going down the drain.

After I wrote down the idea, I left it and moved on to do other things but my spirit kept troubling me and my conscience would not stop pricking me. And so one day I decided to revisit the idea. Coincidentally, I met with the founder of Project Alert, Mrs Josephine Effah Chukwumah, who decided to make me an ambassador. Through this I was exposed to a lot of things happening to women that no one wanted to talk about. I was so moved and inspired that I decided to help fight the injustice.

In the course of all this, I also discovered that young girls have issues but they have no one to talk to, most cannot talk to their mothers, sisters or friends for fear of gossip. They can’t even talk to guidance counsellors because they believe counsellors are answerable to the head of school who will in turn tell their parents. Pastors are totally out of it.
At the end of the day, it turned out that they were going through a lot within their environment from their fathers, brothers, neighbours, teachers and house helps but can’t cry out.

Women who were also going through domestic violence did not even know they can be protected by the law, young girls in unhealthy relationships because of the promise of education don’t know they can get help and stand strong.
A lot of young women don’t know that they can learn and train to do any kind of work that they have the passion for without thinking it’s for the opposite sex only.

Most Teenagers don’t have parents who are bold enough to talk to them about sex before they hear it in school. When schools teach sex education, they talk about the parts of the body, what it can do and the fact that it will lead to pregnancy. They don’t tell them the psychological and emotional part of it, they don’t explain to the girls that they can say no and mean no, they don’t make them realise how important their bodies are. As the school depends on their parents to do the dirty job, the parents are too embarrassed to discuss it, so they wait for the school to do it. At the end of the day who is losing?

I finally gathered the courage to set up ADIVA which is a mentorship programme that helps women and young girls to rediscover themselves, unlock their potential, find their inner strength and become the best they can, also using God’s word.

I have seen different sides of life, from being married to being a mother and then a widow, a star, being judged and castigated, divorced, losing everything and starting all over again, running away from God out of anger and finding him again, from doubting myself to finding myself again and experiencing restoration.

It is tagged “Real Talk”. Let’s talk about God, men, sex, money and everything between. Admission is free and it is strictly for female folks who are 15 years and above.

Let us join hands and raise a generation of strong, beautiful, intelligent, decent, bold, industrious and courageous women.

A friend sent me a link and when I opened it, I was so touched by the story that i decided to share it with you all.

Really heart touching.........

I was walking around in a Big Bazar store making shopping, when I saw a Cashier talking to a boy couldn't have been more than 5 or 6 years old..

The Cashier said, 'I'm sorry, but you don't have enough money to buy this doll. Then the little boy turned to me and asked: ''Uncle, are you sure I don't have enough money?''

I counted his cash and replied: ''You know that you don't have enough money to buy the doll, my dear.'' The little boy was still holding the doll in his hand.

Finally, I walked toward him and I asked him who he wished to give this doll to. 'It's the doll that my sister loved most and wanted so much . I wanted to Gift her for her BIRTHDAY.

I have to give the doll to my mommy so that she can give it to my sister when she goes there.' His eyes were so sad while saying this. 'My Sister has gone to be with God.. Daddy says that Mommy is going to see God very soon too, so I thought that she could take the doll with her to give it to my sister...''

My heart nearly stopped. The little boy looked up at me and said: 'I told daddy to tell mommy not to go yet. I need her to wait until I come back from the mall.' Then he showed me a very nice photo of him where he was laughing. He then told me 'I want mommy to take my picture with her so my sister won't forget me.' 'I love my mommy and I wish she doesn't have to leave me, but daddy says that she has to go to be with my little sister.' Then he looked again at the doll with sad eyes, very quietly..

I quickly reached for my wallet and said to the boy. 'Suppose we check again, just in case you do have enough money for the doll?''

'OK' he said, 'I hope I do have enough.' I added some of my money to his with out him seeing and we started to count it. There was enough for the doll and even some spare money.

The little boy said: 'Thank you God for giving me enough money!'

Then he looked at me and added, 'I asked last night before I went to sleep for God to make sure I had enough money to buy this doll, so that mommy could give It to my sister. He heard me!'' 'I also wanted to have enough money to buy a white rose for my mommy, but I didn't dare to ask God for too much. But He gave me enough to buy the doll and a white rose. My mommy loves white roses.'

I finished my shopping in a totally different state from when I started. I couldn't get the little boy out of my mind. Then I remembered a local news paper article two days ago, which mentioned a drunk man in a truck, who hit a car occupied by a young woman and a little girl. The little girl died right away, and the mother was left in a critical state. The family had to decide whether to pull the plug on the life-sustaining machine, because the young woman would not be able to recover from the coma. Was this the family of the little boy?

Two days after this encounter with the little boy, I read in the news paper that the young woman had passed away.. I couldn't stop myself as I bought a bunch of white roses and I went to the funeral home where the body of the young woman was exposed for people to see and make last wishes before her burial. She was there, in her coffin, holding a beautiful white rose in her hand with the photo of the little boy and the doll placed over her chest. I left the place, teary-eyed, feeling that my life had been changed for ever...

The love that the little boy had for his mother and sister still, to this day, hard to imagine. Ansd in a frection of a second, a drunk driver had taken all this away from him.

 

PLEASE DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE

 

Now you have 2 choices:

 

1) Forward this message or

 

2) Ignore it as if it never touched your heart

 

For those who prefer to think that God is not watching over us... gop ahead and delete this. For the rest of us .... pass this on. 

 

The value of a man or woman resides in what he or she gives, not in what they are capable of receiving.

It is with great pleasure that I introduce to you ADIVA. This is the initiative of Nigerian movie icon STELLA DAMASUS. ADIVA is a mentorship program that helps women and young girls unlock their potentials using God’s word and principles, thus becoming the best they can ever be.

Stella Damasus is a household name in the African entertainment industry but beyond that, she is an accomplished teacher, singer, philanthropist, woman rights activist, mother and an intense lover of God.

Having worked with several organisations around the world in the fight against domestic violence, child enslavement, prostitution and campaign for female empowerment, Stella Damasus has seen the need to re-orientate and mentor young women. Having gone through personal struggles herself and still attained the height of international stardom, her mission is to make sure the average Nigerian woman can attain her full potential.

This is why she has organized the first ADIVA session in Abuja tagged REAL TALK. She intends to teach young ladies the need to run from every temptation of running after men and money, the dangers of pre-marital sex and how to value their bodies as the temple of God. These are issues that some parents are too afraid to discuss with their daughters.

Date: Friday 28th September, 2012
Venue: Savannah Suites, 8 Faskari Street, Garki, Area 3.
Time: 10am - 2pm prompt.


Please call LILIAN on 08067963535 for further enquiries. We await a positive response from you. God bless you.

This event is strictly for women and young ladies ONLY. No men are allowed. You must be 15 years old and above to attend. Admission is free.

There is a quote in the book that touches me every time I read it so I have decided to share it with you.

“Happiness is never something you get from other people. The happiness you feel is in direct proportion to the love you give.”

For every action, there’s an equal and opposite reaction. In THE COLOR PURPLE, the character Celie explained it to Mister: “Everything you try to do to me, already done to you.”

Today I try to do well and be well with everyone I reach or encounter. I make sure I use my life for that which can be goodwill. Yeah, this has brought me great wealth. More importantly, it has fortified me spiritually and emotionally.

I’ll never forget this couple who appeared on my show. The wife couldn’t understand why their relationship had broken down. She kept saying, “He used to make me so happy, He doesn’t make me happy anymore.”

If you think something is missing in your life or you’re not getting what you deserve, remember that there’s no Yellow Brick Road. You lead life; it doesn’t lead you.

This is the part I want you to read and meditate on. Many people blame other people, things or situations for their unhappiness but they don’t realize that the truth of the matter is that they are really unhappy because they have decided to give that problem front seat in their lives.

Love yourself, love others around you and I can bet you that you will be happier with yourself, your life, those around you, the things you do and so much more.





Quote: What you’re thinking, what you’re saying, what you’re doing, is having an impact on you and the people around you right now —Oprah Winfrey.

I had planned to talk about something else this week but something stronger happened and I feel so much pain in my heart that I just felt I should share this with you.