We are TV producers, journalists and authors who shine the light on ordinary women making a difference and how you can do it too through our podcasts, books, interviews, newsletter and website.
Did you go on an adventure in 2024 that inspired you to make a difference or change your way of looking at the world? I did, as well as the two intrepid women we met recently for TWE.
One of my favorite towns is Concord, MA. I go there as often as possible as I grew up nearby, and where, during the autumn, I walked Walden Pond, one of my most treasured historic places.
Pam at Waldon Pond | Concord, MA
I came across the sign above that I have taken to heart and wanted to share with you. Walking around the 1.5 mile pond was exhilarating. Seeing the spot where writer-philosopher-teacher Henri Thoreau lived in the one-room house he built was a thought-provoking experience.
Reading Walden again later about Thoreau's adventure observing and investigating nature for two years in the woods makes me admire the wonder of the outdoors even more than I have before.
Our contributor Patricia Caso discovered a truly creative spirit with an eye for design and building community. On TWE you will meet Cynthia Davis, founder of Cynthia Designs and Our Woven Community (OWC), a unique nonprofit providing skills to refugee women, who in turn make exceptional creations out of recycled materials.
Pillows, pocketbooks and purses by OWC artisans/Courtesy Burroughs Community Center
A trip to South Sudan inspired Cynthia to connect with a local refugee organization where she found women from several countries needing to integrate into their neighborhood and earn a supplemental income. This creative designer took on that challenge, teaching refugees how to craft gorgeous bags, handbags, scarfs and more.
The result: These women are becoming self-sufficient. You’ll see their lovely products and can purchase them if you’d like on the OWC Shopat the Burroughs Center.
How lucky was Pat to get to talk to another world traveler seeking to change the world in a unique way. When Payton McGriff learned that 100 million girls around the world were not in school, she decided she had to take action. Her trip to Togo, Africa, triggered her to start the non-profit, SHE, Style Her Empowered.
Fidele Soklou, 8-year-old primary school student, now 10 and in the 4th grade. Bag and uniform made by SHE seamstresses. Photo: SHE
Her idea to teach girls in Togo to sew school uniforms has turned into an international organization serving 2,000 girls every year and employing 33 women across 21 rural communities.
And to top it all off, Payton is a CNN Hero of the Year who is in the running to become the 2024 CNN Hero. The award will be announced Dec. 8 on CNN. Good luck, Payton! We are rooting for you!
With the holidays and end of 2024 coming up, are you wondering how you might get your family to agree on an approach to organizing their finances? Financial advisor Catherine Scrivano has a solution: Hold a Family Financial Workshop.
If you can gather your troops around a table and have them fill out the simple document Catherine’s drawn up, she thinks you could find success and a way to future wealth. Check out her podcast with Stacey Gualandi. Go here to download the helpful workbook.
We thought this would be the perfect newsletter to make available a beautiful creation from OWC. One newsletter reader will be able to enjoy this lovely handbag made by Fatima, originally from Eritrea, Africa, for the holidays.
At age16, Fatima was forced to flee her country after members of her family were threatened and killed. She spent 30 years in various refugee camps in Sudan and is happy to be living in America now. Cynthia’s program and the Burroughs Community Center have given her a path to self-sufficiency. Congratulations Fatima!
Be the first to respond (See Process below) and you will receive this handbag made with love by Fatima and donated by Cynthia.
Process:
Reply to this newsletter (It's like Replying to any email: Click your Reply button in your email toolbar at the top)
Say, "I'd love the handbag"
Provide your mailing address
Send it (Click the Send button on your email toolbar)
Good luck!
Want Some Inspiration for 2024?
Check out our TWE Collections of interviews with inspiring women—some known and less well-known—who are creating change in their communities and around the world! Read their stories and learn how they did it!
🚨 From Filmmakers, Journalists, Authors and War Correspondents to Women Creating Homes, Schools, Support and Services for Orphaned Children, Grieving Widows and Moms, the Homeless, Inner-City Kids, Caretakers and more! 🚨
We are TV producers, journalists and authors who shine the light on ordinary women making a difference and how you can do it too through our podcasts, books, interviews, newsletter and website.
