2026 Live Your Dream Awards
Meet this years recipients
Soroptimist Raleigh: Empowering Girls & Women
Soroptimist Raleigh is a local club of Soroptimist International. Soroptimist is a global volunteer organization that provides women and girls with access to the education and training they need to achieve economic empowerment. The name, Soroptimist, means “best for women,” and that’s what the organization strives to achieve. Soroptimists are women at their best, working to help other women to be their best. Our Dream programs are at the heart of what we do.
Our Programs
Live Your Dream
This award aids women who are the primary wage earners for their families and are seeking to improve their economic status by gaining additional skills, training and education.
Live Your Dream Plus
In our “Live Your Dream Plus” program we follow up with our awardees for up to three years, mentoring them to afford ongoing support both non-financial as well as financial.
Dream It Be It
Dream It Be It targets girls in secondary school who face obstacles to their future success. It provides girls with access to professional role models, career education and the resources to live their dreams.
Real Stories
These are the real stories of recipients of the Live Your Dream Awards. We hope they will encourage you to take the steps to achieve your dreams, big or small.
Orrie – 2025 Live Your Dream Awardee
Orrie is currently enrolled at Wake Technical Community College as a dental assisting student. She plans to transition to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Dental Hygiene program at the Adams School of Dentistry in the fall of 2026. She views dental...
Alisha – 2025 Live Your Dream Awardee
Alisha is pursuing a degree in early childhood education at Western Governors University Online, and will graduate in November 2025. Alisha is currently working as a Lead Ancillary Teacher at a Christian Montessori School. She is a dedicated wife and mother to an...
Marktika – 2025 Live Your Dream Awardee
Marktika is enrolled in a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) program with a goal of becoming a registered nurse. She is the sole provider for her 12-year-old daughter, who has a disability.She currently works as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) in a nursing home....
News and Events
Awardee Updates
Our 2025 Live Your Dream Award recipients are truly remarkable. Their stories continue to remind us of the transformative power of these awards. As we’ve been catching up with each of them, we’re inspired by the many ways they’re using their awards to build stability,...
Soroptimists Serve at the Women’s Center
On October 29, eight members of Soroptimist International of Raleigh prepared, delivered, and served a warm home-cooked meal of chili, corn muffins, and cookies to 70 women experiencing homelessness at the Women’s Center of Wake County. Led by Service Committee chair...
Oakwood Empress Project Raises Almost $1,900
Soroptimist International of Raleigh extends a heartfelt thank you to Linda Corbin, a resident of Raleigh’s Historic Oakwood neighborhood and the community’s 2025 Empress, for selecting Soroptimist International of Raleigh as her Empress Project. Each year,...