More Than Me, Changing the Lives of Liberian Girls

Founded in 2009 by Katie Meyler, More Than Me is a non-profit organization that gets young girls off the street and into school in one of the world's poorest and most dangerous slums located in Liberia, West Africa. Meyler, who grew up in a disadvantaged family despite living in one of the wealthiest counties in America, has long had a passion to serve the poor. The first person in her family to go to college thanks to a scholarship, Meyler was determined to help children in developing countries as much as possible after she graduated. Seeing a part of herself in these kids, she applied to work with a non-profit organization that sent her to Koryah, a village in Liberia.

While there, Meyler lived at an orphanage and managed a literacy program for adults who were learning to read and write for the first time. After her contract expired, she moved to the country's capital city, Monrovia, where she later started More Than Me. “Often when talking to children in countries where there is not free education for all, children tell me that their biggest dream is just to go to school,” Meyler says. “I do not think that is too much to ask. So their dream has become our mission.”

More Than Me works with community leaders to find girls who are at the highest risk of being sexually exploited. The non-profit not only provides the students' tuition and school lunch, it also coordinates with the school and community to ensure their success. More Than Me has helped more than 200 girls to date and is now officially supported by the Liberian government. Meyler has received numerous awards for her work, including the NJ Commission's Outstanding Woman of the Year honor and the Boy Scouts of America's Extraordinary Woman recognition.