After graduation, Aggies continue to uphold the tradition of selfless service, but one former student created her own way to help those in need.
Margo DeKoch, Class of 2018, began her blog, MargswithMarge in the fall of her junior year. Several years later, DeKoch would continue to collect her stories until she transformed them into a book with the support of her friend Metra Mehran, Class of 2018. The book: “The Misadventures of Margo Marie” contains 12 essays that detail what DeKoch defines as “hilarious and somewhat awkward transition we all make from adolescence to adulthood.”
DeKoch created the book to raise money to pay for the nursing degree of Afghan student, Alia and to aid the Tasahol Library located in the capital of Kabul, Afghanistan. By August 1, DeKoch hopes to raise $3,000 through donations and selling copies of her book for $10. Since the book was made available on June 17, the project has amassed $410.
During the conception of the project, DeKoch reached out to Mehran who was working for several aid organizations in Afghanistan and was connected to Alia. Through their collaboration, DeKoch was able to find a purpose for the book.
“I reached out to [Mehran] and asked, first, if she would write the foreword for the book,” DeKoch said. “She also happened to know of a young woman who is from Afghanistan and…was going to go to nursing school to become a midwife for her village. She is approaching her final year and she was going to need help with tuition.”
Mehran pushed further by suggesting to DeKoch that she also aid the Tasahol Organization. From there, DeKoch set out to raise $1,000 for Alia’s education and $2,000 for the Tasahol Library.
“[The Tasahol Organization’s] job is essentially to provide resources for young scholars traveling from outside villages and provide a place where they can study and have access to internet,” DeKoch said. “They are newly established; within the last two years. Their goal is to set up a library.”
DeKoch spent the past 10 months teaching English in Morocco, which gave her a large amount of free time to continue writing.
“The book is divided into two halves: section one is wacky and section two is wise,” DeKoch said. “The wacky [section] is tales from elementary school, middle school, and high school; some are from Morocco. The wise section [stories] are personal reflections.”
DeKoch said that her book was the perfect combination of her love for storytelling and advocating for women across the world.
“This is a way for me to combine my hobby with my passion,” DeKoch said. “My hobby is creative writing and that’s why I had a blog. I’ve always enjoyed story telling… My passion is advocating for women’s rights nationally and internationally. I saw it as an opportunity to combine the two, do something I love and benefit a cause I care about.”
For more information on DeKoch’s book, visit https://margomarie1.wixsite.com/tmomm?fbclid=IwAR22jp4b0-Rz6LlogtlFat8l3-ZfvSuy2y4RZn_RoCgU8vQNhJf7sBzk-uU.