How do I find my 100% African SOULMATE in the diaspora?
That was the question Michelle kept asking herself when she arrived in the United States over a decade ago. It was not easy to find her match despite her thorough search and her hard belief that THE man of her dreams could come from one of the many dating (web)sites she registered in. She fortunately and finally met and marry her soulmate some years later, but her difficult experience made her to realize that many people from Africa, like herself, do not always fit into the culture of existing dating (web)sites. She then came up with the idea of creating a website where Africans living out of Africa can connect and meet. Before we continue, you get to know who Michelle is.
Who is Michelle?
Michelle D. Young is a Cameroonian born who has been living in the USA for over 12 years now. She works in a healthcare unit as occupational therapy assistant; Michelle is also a mother of five and a wife to a Cameroonian. Lucky Michelle right? In fact Michelle’s dream has always been to get married to a Cameroonian as she acknowledge that it would not be always easy to deal with cultural differences and other social barriers when tiding the nods with someone you can’t relate with historically.
When asked, Michelle describes herself, first and foremost, as being a wife and a mom. For her, family is « priority » and her Christian religious life strengthens her belief that everything starts and ends with a family rooted in God’s word. Her passion to serve others and care for the many needy people around her remains her drive towards discovering new ways to help. In this effect, Michelle, who confuses service with entrepreneurship, admits that it does not matter as long as she can see one more person smile as a result of her actions. Her current main project consists of bringing Africans of the diaspora together through an online dating platform: AfricanAbroadDate.com. This is what Michelle says about investing into this project: « I jumped in without taking into consideration the various implications of running such a business (financial, legal, technical, management, etc). I launched this project on the basis of what I had experienced years back to help people find love wherever they can be, and no matter how busy they could be.«
« It is not easy for an African to meet another African here (in the USA) with whom they can build a strong relationship and get marry to one another, » she said. According to Michelle, this situation could be explained by at least two reasons: firstly, Africans abroad may not have enough time to meet physically because of their busy schedules as they work hard seeking a decent life for them and their families back home (in Africa). Secondly, Africans in the diaspora never know the real intentions of those they want to marry with because, at times, they do it for money or simply to travel abroad (for those who look back to Africa for their mates). The main vision behind this website was therefore to help Africans abroad to spend less time and money in seeking for their perfect match and also to expand and diversify the possible matches one could get on the website. Since its launching, the subscription has been free of charge and any member can have access to around twelve hundred profiles by just logging into AfricanAbroadDate.com.
Is there a concrete need for a dating website about African diaspora only?
Even though Michelle finds great joy in covering the financial costs that are necessary to offer such a service for free, her main current target is to expand the AfricanAbroadDate.com community to a range that the website will be self-maintained. The big challenge she faces is the hesitancy of Africans: Michelle says that « Africans are not used to finding love online; in fact, this is not yet, or at least for the current generation, has not been the common practice for such an endeavor since leaving Africa« . Apart from the relatively low level of digitalization in Africa, life in African is generally communitarian and people mingle and meet in person as much as possible. Hence, Michelle’s main struggle, as she identifies it, is to make incite her fellow Africans to understand and appreciate the way of life in their new environment (in the United States of elsewhere); she encourages all to note that things are generally different and one must accommodate. Michelle believes that the current COVID-19 pandemic, although a calamity, will foster the development of more online tools and activities, and she hopes for her fellow Africans to seize the opportunity of a globalized online world. Why not finding your soulmate online then?
What comes next for you and your dreams about bringing Africans together?
When asked about the next step for AfricanAbroadDate.com, Michelle replies that there is an ultimate call within her to unite souls to their mates, and, to do this, she envisages establishing a marriage counsel and guidance agency. It is worth noting that Michelle now holds a Relationship Coach Certificate which she got not because she fought for, but because it came naturally as she found herself counseling many couples illegally (she smiles). How many times have we said that a mass adoption of this project by Africans all over the world will be her greatest achievement? Well, we have just said it once then.
What could you tell a little girl in Africa about living by and for her dreams?
Michelle’s words to little girls growing in regions of the world where women are usually seen as second zone citizens is that they should stick to their dreams and believe in themselves. « Know yourself and achieve your potentials« , Michelle says. She adds that « prayers and having faith that all will be well is a great motivation when in the process of accomplishing anything, especially those things that are termed uncommon for certain category of people« . Michelle who strongly believes in family and the values about it, advises all women to « chose your husband wisely and get him involved in what you do, and be thoughtful as well. If you have a project, start where you are now and never wait for the perfect time because it may never happen; start right away and aim to learn as you go« .
Michelle’s vision for the future
Michelle does not see herself stuck at the level of mating souls only, no, she also has the vision of raising and training the fruits of any marriage, that is, children. A long-term project she has had since she was still a kid playing in the streets of Cameroon is to build a school in Cameroon, one that has a « freedom and awareness » as moto.
As for now, we encourage all our readers to take a few minutes and sign up to AfricanAbroadDate.com. This website is designed and built for Africans living outside of Africans and who seek to find their soulmates within the African community. You may be a click away from pure happiness, you know?… And guess what: It is FREE.
