Former Minister of Finance Kemi Adeosun turned 55 recently, but there was no cake or party to herald the occasion. Instead, the financial expert organised food supplies to a number of orphanages via the Dash Me Foundation. Although she is no longer in government, she is still finding ways to serve by using her skills to uplift the needy.
Launched in June 2021 by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, the Dash Me Foundation works to raise funds for Nigeria’s army of small orphanages, Internally Displaced Persons (IDP)
camps, domestic violence shelters and groups working with the needy. The most recent grants from the foundation showed a range of deserving beneficiaries with projects spread across the nation.
A major grant beneficiary was the Feet of Grace, an organisation providing false limbs to amputees on low incomes and wheelchairs to polio victims in Kano, Nassarawa, and Cross River states. Other beneficiaries include Peculiar Saint Orphanage, provided with a fully funded cerebral palsy therapy room, and Sought After Women, which received funds to resettle women who had been trafficked.
In Nigeria, the Dash Me Foundation operates two thrift stores. One is an upscale boutique located in highbrow Lekki Phase 1 and the other, named Discount City, opened
The well laid out shops resemble any other boutique: crammed with shoes, clothes, furniture and accessories but uniquely, all the stock were donated by generous supporters in New York, London and Nigeria.
The revenue from sales of all items in the boutiques goes to support the needy. Dash Me even reaches out to corporate organisations to donate their unsold stock, many of which are brand new.
Armed with a contact book that boasts some of Nigeria’s richest and most influential, Mrs. Adeosun personally encourages this category of Nigerians to donate generously at regular intervals.
It is certain that thousands of orphans and vulnerable persons will be delighted that she has turned her attention to this sector.
