The unavoidable financial hurdles in life can be extremely hard to deal with if you do not have a safety net of savings or family members who can support you. Many of the mentees involved in Pass the Torch for Women are first generation college students, single moms, and new members of the workforce. Arwa Ghalawan, our Mentee Spotlight feature this week, has no family or support network in the United States, only her husband who also works fulltime.

Pass the Torch for Women Foundation is establishing a need-based fund to help provide a safety net for mentees and allow them to stay focused on their goals. As we raise money, we are also featuring one mentee per week to show you the kinds of inspiring women this mentee fund would help support.

Arwa is a Project Grow and Ivy Tech graduate. She now works at Infosys as the Diversity & Inclusion Representative. Arwa is an immigrant and moved to the United States with her husband, leaving her community and her family behind. She also has two children and struggles with the challenges of being a full-time working mother.

The Benefits of Mentorship

Arwa has built herself a support network through Pass the Torch for Women and Ivy Tech. Being involved in Pass the Torch has not only made her feel supported, but has also helped her gain valuable skills such as stopping negative self-talk, and knowing how to be a team player in the workplace.

Using the skills she has gained through mentorship, Arwa’s goal is to continue to thrive and chase opportunities through her job at Infosys. “My long term goal is to grow with my company that I’m with right now, Infosys, and take on more opportunities, continue to learn, and contribute to the team as much as I can,” she said.

Pass Your Torch

In order to provide emergency support to mentees like Arwa, we need your help. Through our Todah campaign, no donor needs to give more than $350 for our goal to be met and the need-based mentee fund to become a reality. Whether you can donate $3 or $300, your donation will make a big impact.