We are so happy to share this article from The New York Times profiling Maryam Montague, owner of Peacock Pavilions and founder of Project Soar, a non-profit that offers girls academic support, empowerment coaching, health education, sports and arts classes. Project Soar has been our Give Back partner in Morocco for years now, and we are so happy to see it getting this coverage.
The article outlines Maryam’s journey from the US to Morocco with her architect husband and children, how they invested everything they had to create the beautiful Peacock Pavilions, and how Project Soar started and grew.
“As soon as we made money, we decided we wanted to be a social business,” Ms. Montague said. So, Project Soar was born.
It began as an informal community project to give back to the 350 families who lived in the village. The initial idea was to offer teenage girls an incentive to stay in school so they would postpone marriage and childbearing. In exchange for a commitment to continue their studies, the girls got access to after-school programs that otherwise didn’t exist in such villages.
Anyone who has visited and seen Project Soar in action will agree it’s incredibly inspiring. To hear young women shouting in unison, “I am strong! I am smart! I am capable!” is powerful and tear provoking. But their mission goes far beyond mantras.
“No country can get ahead if it leaves 50 percent of its population behind. The future must be powered by strong women,” said Ms. Montague. “Investing in a teen girl is investing in 40-plus years of a productive future.”
To learn more about Project Soar, visit their website here. And you can see it in action on any of our retreats to Marrakesh! Join us to support their amazing work.
UPCOMING MOROCCO RETREATS WHERE YOUR SIGN-UP WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE: