As an integral part of the Lotus Flower team, we’re so pleased for you to know more about Nathifa, our Boxing Sisters trainer.
She has been displaced for a decade, and was forced to flee her hometown of Khanasor during the ISIS conflict. “We left everything behind and came here without having anything to eat,” she says.
After finding herself at Rwanga displacement camp, Nathifa began volunteering with the Lotus Flower in 2016, which she did for more than a year. She then began providing yoga and boxing sessions for other women and girls in the camp.
As a certified boxing trainer, she now runs our hugely popular Boxing Sisters programme at Rwanga, which is currently being supported by Medica Mondiale.
Speaking of her role in teaching participants boxing, Nathifa says: “Self-defence skills are essential in our daily lives, and I enjoy knowing that my coaching and training builds positive thinking and shows girls how to manage daily stress and gain muscle.
“I have a close relationship with all the girls inside the camp and try to help them when they’re having a tough time.”
Nathifa recalls another incident where she has personally made a real difference to a woman’s life, saying: “One survivor refused to leave her house. She had two children, and one day in my lunch break I visited her, but she still refused to leave. I kept visiting her until I convinced her to attend our literacy and sport classes.
“She was living in very poor conditions, and only had one blanket to cover herself and her kids. I tried to help her through donations here from the camp management, and asked other humanitarian NGOs to help. She now lives in an apartment provided for her, and keeps thanking me for what I did.”
Nathifa says having such a positive impact on other survivors brings her real benefits, too. “My work with the Lotus Flower enhances my own mental health, because my skills make a change in other people’s lives.”
in her day-to-day role, Nathifa values being part of the Lotus Flower family, adding: “All of my colleagues are very cooperative, and the management team are just like friends. We don’t hesitate to ask for help, because everyone is so supportive.”
In future, she hopes to get her international boxing qualification, as well as more advanced kit and equipment to benefit those she teaches. We’ll certainly do everything we can to make sure that happens!