About Us

 VWV  was founded in New Hampshire in 2003 by a visionary leader who  immigrated to the U.S. from war-torn Democratic Republic of the Congo.  President & Founder Mary N. Georges understands firsthand the  experience of starting a new life in NH, and she began VWV as a  faith-based organization to support the African community. By 2010, VWV  had expanded and secured its 501(c)(3) nonprofit status to more formally  bridge social and cultural gaps arising from differences between  American and immigrant or refugee cultures. Over the past decade, VWV  has assisted more than 75 families and has contributed to the success of  over 100 young women who are now adults living, working, and thriving  in and beyond the Granite State.  While VWV has worked diligently with  immigrant and refugee families in the greater Manchester area for years,  these efforts have been largely voluntary, relying upon the founder’s  vision and dedicated leadership. VWV’s President & Founder and  members of the VWV Advisory Board recognized the need to develop a more  solid organizational structure and programming to ensure VWV’s  sustainability. In 2016, VWV was awarded an Opportunity Grant from the  Endowment for Health to develop a strategic plan. VWV contracted with  the T. L. Hill Group to facilitate a strategic planning process with  VWV’s founder and board from October 27, 2016 through September 30,  2017. 

 President & Founder Mary was born and raised in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where she earned her first degree in nursing and worked as a nurse.  After coming to America, she studied at Springfield College earning a Bachelors in Human Services Sciences, then a Masters in Organizational Management and Leadership. She established a non-profit organization and is known for her work in developing a community of practice, statewide system change, and strategies for  community interventions. She is known for being a strong ethnic community leader in New Hampshire and the United States of America, and she is the founder of the Congolese Community. She is also a mother of four, an ordained minister, and a member of the Manchester School Board Committee.