OSU Grad, Born In Sudan, Starts Company To Help Children

The company 'Type It Up' was founded by an Oklahoma State University graduate. 

Ashier Majok received a marketing degree in the spring and didn’t wait to start his career.

Ashier is among the first generation in his family to finish high school and college. He is now the first CEO in his family.

'Type It Up' creates digital versions of handwritten memories. Items such as letters and recipes can be transcribed and stored in an online cloud. Part of his company’s mission is that for every page transcribed, a notebook goes to a child in need.

“I know how important a pencil and paper is,” he said.

Ashier had a lot of struggles in his life. He was born in South Sudan in a city called Khartoum.

“I was literally born into a war zone,” he said, “At any second, a rebel tribe could come in.”

He described the gunfire as constant thunder, to the point where he hardly noticed it.

Ashier said, “It’s terrible feeling like you’re born into something and you’re just meant to die. You have no chance.”

At the age of 5, his dad was caught in the crossfire. His father put all his energy into getting his family out of South Sudan and to America.

The Majok’s were finally able to move to Houston, but it wasn’t what they expected.

Ashier said, “Houston was terrible.”

His family lived in a rough neighborhood and they didn’t speak the language.

However, Ashier still counts it as a blessing because he said unlike South Sudan, police would actually show up if he called for them.

In 2005, Hurricane Rita struck and wiped out their home in Houston.

“It took our home. It took all of our baby pictures. It took the memories that my parents wrote,” said Ashier.

So now with 'Type It Up,' Ashier wants to help people preserve all their written memories and their stories. This way, if a hurricane strikes, legacies can carry on.

Eventually, his family moved to Amarillo, Texas to a better neighborhood. Ashier focused his efforts on reading and writing to improve his English. He went on to graduate high school and decided to move to Stillwater to get a clean slate.

Now through starting his own company, he is fulfilling a promise he and his siblings made.

He said, “We made the promise that whatever we had to do, we’re going to give my parents the life that they deserve.”

For more information on Type It Up, head to https://www.typeitup.co/.