R Star founder Rosalind Russell stars in video created by former TOW CLC student

Rosalind Russell, founder of R Star Foundation, was honored recently to be asked by senior Moragh Graf to take part in a video discussing the nonprofit’s work as well as its financial underpinnings.

R Star’s mission is to help needy families in rural Nepal gain economic independence “one goat at a time” – but the nonprofit goes much further than that, facilitating education for children and women in a country with a 92 percent illiteracy rate in its rural villages.

Rosalind estimates that R Star has touched the lives of approximately 44,000 people since she founded the nonprofit in 2003.

Two aspects of the invitation to be videotaped surprised her, Rosalind says: “I used to give presentations at the CLC at TOW Elementary, which Moragh attended way back. She’s now a senior student, so I had no recollection of her as a small child, but she remembered me. Now she is a graceful young woman who is sensitive, sweet and a pretty young thing. What a personal thrill to be remembered by such a sweet child. Guess we never know who we imprint upon, do we?”

Moragh Graf and Rosalind Russell

Rosalind was also flattered to be asked about the financial side of her charity. “I deal with all sorts of things going on in Nepal for our school reconstruction. It takes around four hours each morning to talk with them, text style, go over documents and attempt to understand how engineers, architects and builders think, while addressing the finances and questioning every detail.  You know what is interesting to me…I’ve realized I do know how to ask questions when prices seem too high to me.  So far I have been on target…thankfully I have some logic in me.”

It was this instinctive – and learned – financial acumen and the success of R Star that prompted Moragh to interview Rosalind.

“Moragh asked me about running the foundation, how we arrive at donors, as well as my challenges – and we have plenty of those. She’s creating a video of the interview which at some point will be on my website (www.RStarFoundation.org),” Rosalind says. “We laughed and enjoyed our time together.”

Moragh is now applying to Sonoma University and other colleges. “I was very glad to re-meet with her,” says Rosalind. “I’m always grateful to those who help get our message out and raise awareness for R Star.