PHOTO BY LAURA PETRILLA

Marissa Escajeda
CEO, Girls Inc. of Greater Pittsburgh

Marissa Escajeda’s own path as a teen mom ignited her lifelong drive toward human-services work and a devotion to empowering women and young girls with the support she once desired.

As the head of Strong Women, Strong Girls — which is now Girls Inc. of Greater Pittsburgh — the mother of four knows that the participants of this program and others around the country encounter barriers that she hopes to help alleviate. Everyone’s tired of the constant noise of negativity, she says, and, “they’ve got to hear something good from somebody.”

She aims to expand opportunities and buoy individuals in under-resourced and marginalized communities, to show them what’s possible for their futures.

“Our girls need to know they deserve everything everyone else deserves — to be joyful, happy, to have doors open up for them.”