“I signed up because I wanted to do something meaningful,” says Grace Okon, 26, a community volunteer with Help The Woman Campaign for over a year. “I didn’t expect it to change my life too.”
Grace joined HTWC after seeing one of our Facebook posts about the Uyo awareness walk. She had no healthcare background — she works as a tailor in Eket. But what she had was something more important: the trust of the women in her community.
Learning To Be A Health Ambassador
“At orientation, I learned things I didn’t know myself,” she says. “I didn’t know the HPV vaccine existed. I didn’t know cervical cancer could be prevented. Nobody had ever told me.”
After completing her training, Grace began sharing what she had learned — first with her friends, then her neighbours, then the women who came to her shop for alterations. “Women talk when they’re sitting waiting for their clothes. I started using that time.”
The Moment That Stays With Her
“There was a woman — she must have been 50 — who came for a screening after I spoke to her at the market. They found something early. She got treatment. She is fine now.” Grace pauses. “That’s why I do this.”
Join Grace
Grace is one of 357+ volunteers working across communities in Akwa Ibom. You don’t need medical training. You need commitment and care. Become a volunteer today →