Help us build the Monica Terez Girl Power Fund

Monica Terez was the ultimate champion for lifting others up and paving the way for their success – whether it was a colleague, her family, or a stranger in need. She lived a life of service, devoting her last years to providing critical care for infants and women in the developing world. “Girl Power” was her call to action.

Monica’s life ended too soon – and her network of family, friends, and superfans are determined to honor her in a way that strengthens our next generation of difference-makers. We are building the Monica Terez Girl Power Fund. Will you join us and help us make this fund a reality?

What will the Girl Power Fund support?
Every dollar will go to programs that build confidence in pre-teen and early-teen girls. These are formative years – and a time when many girls struggle with issues that lead to negative self-talk and self-image. Monica was all about  “girl power” in these crucial years. The Monica Terez Girl Power Fund will be thoughtfully invested in organizations whose workshops, activities, and events help girls grow their confidence and build a strong sense of can-do capability. Monica would love this, and we hope you do too.

Maximizing our impact
To make sure we maximize our impact, we have teamed up with the Women’s Fund of Central Ohio. They have 20 years of experience in grant-making and social change for girls and women, so they’re the perfect partner. They will guide us as we form a small “giving circle” made up of Monica’s daughter and nieces to review grant applications. In December, we will announce (and celebrate!) the selected programs receiving support from the Monica Terez Girl Power Fund.

We hope you will join us
Monica encouraged people to think big, so we are aiming to create a big fund that turns her legacy into a lasting force for good. Right now, we are looking for people (like you!) to help us in this effort. Any and all support is so appreciated, and we promise to keep all our contributors up to date as this special Fund comes to life. Thank you!

More about Monica and girl power:

Monica’s career was more like a mission. She trained countless nurses. She cared for newborns, moms, and families. She saved lives and brought prayerful comfort to the dying. And when an earthquake devastated Haiti in 2010, she packed up and took her nursing skills to Port-au-Prince, working in a tent hospital at the main airport. These first trips turned into six years of intense service as she provided care to the neediest among us – and extended her impact with service in Kenya, Rwanda, and Ethiopia.

On the home front with family, Monica brought “girl power” to life. With her daughter and six nieces, she talked it up, walked the talk, and made “girl power” an empowering call to action. She was always embracing them with love and strengthening their self-belief and inner confidence.

In central Haiti, Monica led the creation of a specialized newborn care unit. When she first saw the space, it was a vacant, worn-out restroom – but Monica saw possibility. She gathered a team, coordinated construction, got the equipment, trained the nurses, and made it happen. Since then, thousands of fragile newborns have received outstanding care in this special place.

Many times in her life, Monica cared for others to the very end. On one of her trips to Haiti, just hours after arriving, she found an old man dying of cholera. The man's daughter couldn't believe it – her dad had been fishing just a few days before. Monica washed him, wrapped him in dry blankets, soothed the daughter, explained what was happening, prayed with her, returned to the man throughout the night, and prayed over him one more time when he passed away. Monica shared this experience with a few people after returning home – she was still processing one of many experiences where she treated unimaginable heartbreak with unconditional love.

Thank you so much
Monica gave so much in service to others. With the Monica Terez Girl Power Fund, we are trying to give back – in a way that builds up our next generation of women leaders. Thank you for helping us turn this vision into a reality.