2024, A Year for the Books: Reflecting on our Journey

As I sit down to reflect on this year, I’m filled with immense gratitude, and it’s amazing to think about how much can change in just one year. This time last year, Káseré was just an idea—an exciting, ambitious one. I had a vision of empowering children through the performing arts, creating spaces where their voices could be heard and their talents nurtured. Today, I look back at how far we’ve come, and honestly, it feels unreal.

I remember calling my co-founder, Posi Ademulegun, to share the idea, and her excitement made me even more confident that we could pull it off. We both agreed—let’s just do it! That was the spark. From there, we put out a call for program managers to help shape this vision. Honestly, we didn’t know if anyone would respond, but they did. Slowly, things started coming together. We began building the structures, creating the foundation, and taking those first baby steps to bring Káseré to life.

There were so many brainstorming sessions with Posi—hours of bouncing around ideas, figuring out how to sustain Káseré and grow the vision. We had all these questions: How do we make this work? Where do we find the kids? How do we start? Those conversations were filled with big dreams and tough decisions. There were moments of pure excitement and, let’s be real, moments when the road felt tough. The broke moments? Oh, those were very real. But they taught us resilience, faith, and the power of showing up even when it felt hard.

From there, things started to roll. We built a website, put together a team, and began sharing our mission. We reached out to schools and communities, hoping to find partners who believed in empowering children through creativity and storytelling. Would anyone care? Would the kids connect with what we were trying to do? Those were the questions running through my mind.

Then came the magic.

We visited the Sought After Children Orphanage, and the kids blew us away with their energy and big dreams. Soon after, we met the incredible children at Let It Shine Academy (LISA), and that was when I knew we were on the right path. Their curiosity and enthusiasm lit up the room. Launching our bi-weekly club with them felt like the beginning of something so much bigger. Watching the kids sing, act, and share their dreams—it was everything we had hoped for and more.

And then there was our first mini play at the LISA graduation. That milestone still gives me goosebumps. Seeing the kids step onto that stage with confidence, creativity, and pure joy was like watching the vision of Káseré come to life right in front of me—even though it was just a small play.

Of course, the journey didn’t stop there. We rented a club space, expanded our reach, and met the amazing kids at Samfra College. Every step came with its own challenges—raising funds, managing logistics, balancing all the moving pieces—but also so much inspiration. There were days when I thought, Can we actually pull this off? But the smiles, the laughter, the growth we saw in the kids made everything worth it.

And finally, we ended the year with our first-ever Christmas party. It was the perfect way to celebrate everything we’ve accomplished. A day filled with joy, gifts, and laughter, with 100 kids coming together to share in the magic of the season. Watching their faces light up reminded me why we started this journey in the first place.

This year has been a wild ride—filled with highs, lows, and everything in between. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that every step of this journey matters—you really just need to do it. Every brainstorming session, every outreach visit, every performance, every broke moment—it all adds up to something so much bigger than ourselves.

Looking ahead, I’ll admit—I’m still a little scared. But it’s the kind of fear you get before going on a rollercoaster. Káseré is just getting started. There’s so much more to do, so many more children to reach, and so many more stories to tell. To everyone who’s been part of this journey—our team, volunteers, sponsors, partners, and most importantly, the kids—thank you. You’ve made this dream a reality.

Here’s to a year of growth, creativity, and resilience. And here’s to doing hard things.

With love and gratitude,

Mfonabasi