My story spans continents, identities, and unimaginable transitions; from being orphaned at five in Ethiopia, to becoming a pregnant refugee at seventeen, to immigrating to the U.S. and building multiple businesses as a single mother.
It is a story that challenges audiences to confront adversity honestly, draw strength from within, and re-imagine what is possible beyond survival.
O
rphaned at the age of five, Shegitu has known tragedy first hand. In the 1980s as war raged in Ethiopia, Shegitu fled to neighboring Kenya where she lived in a refugee camp. Three and a half years later she immigrated to the United States.
Kebede started several successful businesses and philanthropic ventures centered around empowering women, who like herself, were subject to vulnerabilities. Shegitu has devoted her life to making a difference in her local and global community.
In 2012, Kebede founded Women at the Well International, a humanitarian organization aiming to improve the livelihood of refugees and bring awareness of the plight of the refugees around the world.
Since 2017, Shegitu has travelled to Ethiopia to launch a center where women in poverty receive vocational training and a micro-loaning program for women interested in entrepreneurship. She also raises funds to provide for the needs of orphans in Ethiopia.
Dedicating her time to sharing her story and advocating for the vulnerable, Shegitu speaks on TV, at conferences, churches, university lectures and news interviews on topics ranging from immigration and refugee issues, faith, business and politics.
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