MESSAGE FROM GREG MORTENSON
Dear Friends,
Asalaam-o-Alaikum (peace be with you). This letter is to share with
you that I will no longer be a Central Asia Institute employee or board
director after January 21, 2016.
To all the CAI team (past and present), board directors, overseas
affiliates, and, most of all, our loyal supporters and the dear
communities we serve, thank you for the journey of a lifetime. And
thank you for all your incredible support to make the dreams of
hundreds of thousands of eager children and people come true. But
the journey does not end here.
My transition to new beginnings next year is with happiness, renewed
strength, and a now healthy heart. With CAI, I will independently
support the organization as a strategist, statesman, and relationship
builder, and spend more time in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan,
to write about and share the inspiring stories of CAI’s important work.
Personally, I plan to simply remain a humble servant of humanity,
continuing to search for solutions to child slavery, girls dropping
out of school at puberty, female illiteracy, violence against women,
and early marriage — especially in areas of conflict or in cases of
displacement, as with refugees.
FALL 2015
I also will continue in graduate school with social impact studies. At
home, I will cherish more time writing, working in the garden, and
sharing long-overdue, precious time with my family, relatives, and
friends.
The organization is now in a good place, with the assets, resources,
and good people at home and abroad to move strongly into the future.
Thanks to all of you, the thousands of generous and caring people
who helped CAI along the way, on this incredible journey of hope,
education, and peace. Please continue to support CAI as it provides
those we serve with the gift of a lifetime, the gift of education and
literacy.
With my profound respect, thanks, and love,
Greg Mortenson
CAI co-founder
Ko ar qadr ke beland basha, baz am sar-e khud ra dara
However tall the mountain is, there’s a road to the top of it.
— Pashto proverb
JOURNEY OF HOPE | 21