It seems fitting that today, International Women’s Day, a global day celebrating the progress and achievements of females worldwide, you meet Noy.

Noy is a little bit of everything. She is an athlete, a cook and a mechanic. She’s the Pencils of Promise Laos Country Coordinator, a fearless advocate of education and a devout lover of hip-hop.  She is strong, defiant, and believes the future and progress of our world lies with the empowerment of women. And she makes the meanest bowl of phở you’ll ever find.

Noy and I talk about the celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD) over some coffee and sweet milk this morning. It’s a national holiday here in Laos so offices close, restaurants shut-up early and rest is mandatory.

She tells me that it’s a day for women to be pampered, served and thanked by the men in their lives for all they do. It’s also a day to honor women past, present and future who continually work towards the realization of equal rights across the globe; a day to think forward in our development and the promise we hold.

Noy says that today she is proud. She is proud to be a woman and she is proud to be a part of PoP. She says that the work PoP does, and the work each community we partner with does, is what IWD is all about. That by bridging the cultural, economic and social differences in our world and bringing education to each and every person, we are ensuring the future of our women.

When our mugs are empty and our bellies warm, I ask Noy what she’ll do to celebrate today with her mother, aunt and grandmother. She laughs at me and says, “We don’t need men here! Today we take care of us.”

So tonight, three generations of women will come together to cook, eat and talk.  They’ll honor one another, themselves and women throughout the world.