Empowering Future Generations

When & How Was OLSS Founded?

Founded in 2010 with significant financial support from Helen Nam from the USA. Helen is the founder and main donor of this school. Together with two brothers, Raji Ahmed, the co-founder (a tour guide by profession), and Mumtaz Alam (a government official), they set up the school.

It was later expanded, and Mumtaz Alam continues to oversee the running of the school. Meanwhile, Raji Ahmed works actively as a fundraiser for various projects alongside the school.

Why OLSS

In 2008, Helen Nam was traveling through Gilgit Baltistan, the northern region of Pakistan, as a backpacker. She met Raji Ahmed, a tour guide from the city of Gilgit. After hiking together to Fairy Meadows at the foot of Nanga Parbat, discussions began about local culture, traditions, and the role of women in the village.

Helen was shocked to learn that girls in Minawar received no basic education while boys had access to middle school. She returned to Pakistan in 2010 to collect data on female literacy rates, confirming that girls' education was severely neglected. This led her and the Ahmed brothers to take the bold next step: founding OLSS to break the stereotype.

How Far We Have Come

From a humble beginning with a vacant government building, the school expanded from grade 5 to grade 6, and then grade 7. By 2016, we expanded further into a secondary school. In addition to classrooms, a small library, a science lab, and a staff room were added to ensure the students received basic requirements.