Daughter of Eritrean immigrants one of the youngest ever to open a shelter in California at 21

At 21, Miriam Haregot, a resident of Los Angeles, decided she wanted to make a difference on her birthday by renovating and opening a homeless shelter.

Haregot told Fox11, “It feels good to be able to provide people a sense of humanity because the world just lacks it, you know, so much so. It’s good to be the change you want to see.” 

The young changemaker told the outlet that she established the People Advocating Community Kinship Project (P.A.C.K.) after the shelter renovation.

She explained, “We are a bunch of entrepreneurs, creatives, young kids from South Central. Our mission is to provide the houseless and at-promise kids with food, housing, and educational programs.”

Her team goes to Skid Row to serve hot meals to the homeless, which they call “Feed the Homies.”

Recently when Haregot’s heroic story was highlighted, she replied, “Thank you for bringing attention to this! I would like to clarify that, at present, I am 25 years old, and the mentioned shelter is managed by my uncle’s tenant—an esteemed nonprofit organization engaged in commendable endeavors. Collaboratively, my uncle and I undertake property conversions to provide suitable homes for non-profits to carry out their operations effectively. Holla at me! Ahhh, thank u again much love.”

According to Shine My Crown, the young entrepreneur shared that the said non-profit has requested for their information not to be made public.

Haregot, who is a daughter of Eritrean immigrant parents named Eden and Kesete Haregot, grew up in Eritrea before leaving for the U.S. with her mother at the age of six without speaking or knowing any English. But she proved to be a fast learner, and by age nine, she was already speaking fluent English with advanced communication skills, her bio says. She eventually graduated from Cal State LA in 2021, majoring in business.