Hardship in Early Life

Agnes grew up with a single mother, who worked hotel shifts day and night to support them both. When financial pressures mounted, her mother’s commitment never wavered: “I’d rather walk barefoot and give you the shoes that I’m wearing,” she’d tell Agnes.

Agnes and her mother shared a single rented room and faced frequent evictions when money was tight. “You find another padlock on top of your padlock,” Agnes recalls. At school, Agnes would be sent home for unpaid tuition fees, a source of constant anxiety for both mother and daughter. Despite these challenges, her mother persevered, as did Agnes, who gained entrance to university with a partial scholarship. 

However, upon graduation, and despite her strong academic performance, she found herself facing a challenging job market. “Here in Kenya it’s very hard to get a job, especially when you have no connections, especially coming from such a humble background,” she shared. After months of searching fruitlessly, she began questioning her path. “Where is my life going?” she wondered.

Finding Generation 

Agnes’s mother learned about Generation through a colleague at work. Agnes was thrilled to learn about the opportunity. Even if it did not immediately result in a job, she was excited to just have somewhere to go in the morning, a way of getting out of the house and out of the cycle of applications and despair she had fallen into. 

At Generation, Agnes discovered more than technical skills—she found a supportive community that helped her develop confidence. “I have a community where I am looking forward to classes because they are interactive, they are fun,” she reflects. For example, the program helped her grow from someone who was hesitant to speak publicly into a professional who can “confidently present to clients in boardrooms.”

A New Way of Life 

After graduating from the program, Agnes was connected to Generation’s employer partner network. She was invited to interview at an insurance company. Her Generation training proved invaluable—she passed and was hired. “It was surreal for me because I had never, ever had a job in my life, an official job. I get to go to an office. I get to have my own desk.”

Her newfound financial stability has ripple effects through her entire family. “Now I’m able to help my mother. I can pay my bills, I give her some money to pay rent, I go and do shopping,” Agnes says. After years of watching her mother sacrifice and struggle to support her, Agnes can finally tell her, “Don’t work so much. I can assist.”

Her career growth has been significant. “The job that I have now is three steps higher than the job I began with,” she reflects. More importantly, the security extends to the next generation. Her three-year-old son “affords a good life” without the constant fear she knew as a child. “I don’t have to sleep at night wondering what if the house is closed tomorrow, what if we are evicted tomorrow. So financially, positive.”

“I don’t think I would have been able to do that today without the Generation program,” Agnes says. “They changed my life.”