Who We Are

We believe the people of northern Pakistan deserve a brighter future.

That is why we are working to build schools, provide training, & promote community development that break cycles of poverty. We are a small team dedicated to making lasting change for oppressed communities in northern Pakistan.

Our Story

We started with a desire to bring better education to a few kids in Pakistan.

Those kids were from an oppressed minority in Gilgit, Pakistan, struggling against the challenges of poverty and illiteracy. They had no opportunity for quality education.

A young Pakistani leader wanted to change that. In 2003, he joined with volunteers and businessmen to begin tutoring a few children in a small room in his house. The few grew to 20, and the 20 quickly outgrew the space.

The team raised funds to open an after school program called The Gilgit Coaching Center. Soon, the group expanded to 60, and the waiting list kept growing.

The message was clear. Pakistan is hungry for education.

Our Mission

We’re still growing. What started as a few kids in a cramped room is now an organization giving more than 1,000 students the skills they need to break cycles of poverty, and live restored lives full of hope, potential, and joy. More than 400 women have received training that’s changing the trajectory of their lives and the lives of their children. And, more than 500 families in some of the most remote, uneducated and abandoned corners of Pakistan are growing together through support, education, and development that’s bringing hope to the next generation.

We do it because, for these kids, education changes everything and there’s so much left for us to do.

Our Vision

Shining Light is uniquely equipped to address the needs of the most oppressed and isolated people in northern Pakistan. We are drawn to the places where no one else wants to go- places that have remained unchanged for generations, stuck in poverty with no hope for a brighter future.

If we don’t go, who will? We aim to expand our reach into every district in the region, engaging and empowering people along the way. And it’s possible with help. Your gifts will help sustain and expand this work for the people of Pakistan.