Current Status: Alumni
Graduation Year: 1999
Rebecca Snavely's (’99) passion to communicate “people stories” has led her down a path that will impact lives for generations to come.
After college, Rebecca worked as a staff writer and web producer for the Los Angeles Times. She then ventured into a career in the film industry as an assistant to producers and directors on feature films including What Women Want and Legally Blonde 2. Although the experience of working with well-known directors and producers was exciting, Rebecca did not feel as though she was fulfilling her true calling -- which she later discovered was to help people tell their compelling stories.
In 2010, Rebecca began exploring this calling further and was connected with Amani Matabaro Tom, founder of Actions pour le Bien être de la Femme et de l’Enfant au Congo (ABFEC). ABFEC is a non-profit organization in the Congo that works to provide a sense of purpose and self-worth for the Congolese by teaching them how to sustain themselves economically. Rebecca was driven to action after Amani told her of the atrocities that occurred during the civil wars in the Congo. She wanted not only to help the Congolese share their personal stories, but also to help them create a better future for themselves and their descendants.
Six years ago, Rebecca and her friend Catherine Haight co-founded Action Kivu as an American partner of ABFEC. Action Kivu is a non-profit organization that provides victims of violence in the Eastern Congo with the opportunity to rebuild their lives on a foundation of hope, dignity, and economic self-sustenance. The organization provides Congolese children with education assistance and provides women's entrepreneurial programs to create a path towards peace and prosperity in Congolese communities.
Rebecca does not currently take a salary from Action Kivu, but instead freelances in the entertainment industry in order to earn a living. She has worked as a casting director for Project Runway annually since 2010, and also does freelance work as a writer and copy editor.
As a contract student, Rebecca Snavely (’99) studied at both HIU and Cal State University Fullerton (CSUF) while earning her undergraduate degree in Communications. She firmly believes that the rigor of her HIU writing assignments and being challenged to research her beliefs has greatly benefited her career(s) today. “My classes at Hope taught me how to think critically,” stated Rebecca.
Miss Snavely’s dual-track lifestyle continues to this day, but her sole passion to bring hope to others remains intertwined through it all.
# # #
