From The

I only discovered this leader’s story recently. She is believed to be the first Hmong girl to attend school in Laos and learn English and French. As a teenager, she helped to inspire and embolden an entire generation of Hmong women to get an education and be a part of the war effort against communist forces in Laos. Her name is Choua Thao.

Fresno’s only female city council member brings genuine passion and life experience to her work, which will help support people in poverty and immigrants trying to find a better life for their families. The problems of Fresno are not just concepts to her – she has lived them, challenged them personally and overcome them. Her name is Esmeralda Soria.

I met the mother of one of our youth reporters for the first time recently, and hearing her story explained a lot about that young man’s achievements. Her resilience in providing for her family and her gritty determination to make sure her children succeed have moved me to believe that she can make anything happen through sheer will alone. Her

We came from the hood and we are now sisters, we created sisterhood Our voices are louder and more beautiful than Carrie Underwood 5 days? Make it longer if you could. We are not someone's tool, we are one. Thank you to the shakers and the organizers, Thank yourselves because we are now sisters

Let your voice roar, be heard, make noise & take the power to move like a twister We rose

From our head to our toes

We let that negative energy decompose

Don't judge us by our clothes

You don't know the power we bestow

We don't need "Caballeros", we need us. We rise as one We are sisters, from the planet to the sun

We shine bright

And this here tonight is the last of us being together And let me be the first to say it was my pleasure. I made sisters, not just for the past 5 days but forever Aside from our amazing bonds like Oakchella We did learn each others struggles at home

We are one because we share so many problems

WE ARE NOT ALONE

These problems are known

And this here space is our zone

This sisterhood will make people mind-blown Congrats sisterhood Rising 2014 name is Enedina Bibanco.

We're the first and not the last Now let's make next year another blast. Love Yall!

Another member of The kNOw team is always striving to better herself and the community. Hoping to help offset the cost of a prestigious summer program for emerging young leaders she has spent the past several months getting up at 5 am to cook egg rolls to sell later in the day, all the while staying on top of schoolwork and photography for The kNOw. She recently reached her goal of $3,000 through gritty determination, hard work and a lot of egg rolls. Her name is Marissa Vang.

My life encounters with these amazing women are not unique. Look around and you’ll find superheroines all around, young and old. While their achievements haven’t always made the front pages of your daily newspaper, their impact on our lives and on this city are profound.

-Steve Thao

Written By Diana Castellanos (age 19, Coachella)